When it comes to creating jobs, North Dakota has found the right formula. The state has the largest percentage increase in employment over the past year and was the fastest of all 50 to recover from the recession. The reason is simple: energy production. “North Dakota has been the poster child for what can happen when we unleash free enterprise and allow states to develop and commercialize their resources,” Heritage’s Nick Loris wrote recently on The Foundry. “North Dakota is drilling at record pace.” The state’s unemployment rate is 3.4 …
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is refusing to release an unredacted version of its safety evaluation reports on Yucca Mountain, leaving the conclusions unknown to the public. The agency notified Heritage that it had rejected an appeal under the Freedom of Information Act. The NRC’s decision comes eight months after Heritage first requested volumes II and III of the Yucca report in October. The NRC released more than 1,400 pages in February, but redacted the conclusions. Heritage appealed in March. (Full text of the letter is below.) The NRC’s reports on …
Education reform is taking shape across the nation, and for many states, the next wave of change is coming as state leaders push for teacher tenure reform. Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Nevada, and New Jersey have proposed to eliminate or dramatically restructure the current form of teacher tenure. Additionally, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg “has campaigned aggressively for the state to end ‘last in, first out’ protections for teachers.” At present, public school teachers receive tenure after a few years of teaching, at which point they can be fired only …
As a result of last week’s election, 2011 could be a watershed year for education reform and school choice. Many conservative candidates in the states campaigned on returning to local control in education and expanding school choice options for parents. Several states in particular could see significant movement on the education reform front as new leadership takes the helm in the coming months. In Arizona, incoming superintendent John Huppenthal bested Penny Kotterman, whom the American Federation for Children notes would have worked to roll-back school choice options for Arizona families. …
The budget shortfalls, plunging revenue, and economic woes plaguing near-broke California could foretell the future of other cash-strapped states. A new study by The Pew Center on the States found that the economic pressures that pushed California to the brink of a total economic meltdown are also found in nine other states across the country, all of which could face a financial disaster just like the one in the Golden State. Those states with economic conditions most like California’s include Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Florida, New Jersey and …
Relying heavily on the slots and roulette tables to bring in revenue, it’s no surprise this recession hit Nevada’s economy especially hard: The Silver State’s unemployment rose to 12.5 percent in July, while joblessness in especially hard-hit Las Vegas surged to 13.1 percent. It’s the highest jobless rate both statewide and locally since the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation began tracking data in 1976. Bill Anderson, chief economist with the employment department, said Nevada remains mired in the longest, deepest recession since World War II, and recent labor-market …
On Wednesday Nevadan officials met to discuss the transportation of used nuclear fuel to the geologic repository Yucca Mountain. Needless to say, officials had concerns over transporting radioactive waste claiming the plan “lacks so much specificity.” If a few politically entrenched officials in Nevada are going to halt a completely safe process that could grow the state’s ailing economy, maybe we should let them. In fact, since shipping spent fuel is supposedly so dangerous, maybe no radioactive shipments should head to Nevada. Let’s take a look at some of the …
It’s time for the NRC to listen to the collective voice of Nevada.” Ah, Harry Reid, you couldn’t be more right. The Senate Majority Leader again voiced his anti-Yucca Mountain sentiments a few days ago, claiming the dump is wrong and saying, “We will not accept it.” Reid made these statements after 4,000 Nevadans filed a petition to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and Nevada officials “contend nuclear waste cannot be safely stored at Yucca Mountain for the thousands of years envisioned by the government.” First of all, only 4,000 …
