There is good news for government employees in one more state! Where Alaska led the way last fall, it seems that Texas is now following suit. By way of background: thanks to the […]
Texas Following in Alaska’s Footsteps
How Can I Stop Having the Union Take My Pay?
If you are a government worker who is currently having union dues or fees deducted from your pay, you can stop the deduction and keep your pay. The decision to stay in or […]
Government Workers: 6 Things You Should Know About Your Rights
If you work for a local, state, or federal government entity – a state agency, public school district, city hall, or another government body – you have the right to decide whether you […]
Compensation Costs for Executive Branch Exempt Employees
In light of the recent brouhaha regarding State of Alaska Executive Branch exempt employees, we are making available the following list with names and the associated costs to the state of compensating all […]
Right-Sizing Alaska’s State Government Workforce Part II
Earlier this year, we commissioned and published a report by Key Policy Data (KPD) providing an analysis of how much Alaska pays for its public employees, comparing their compensation to their private sector […]
School districts apply new union rules
Background On June 27, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court announced a decision which held that public employees do not have to pay union dues/fees as a condition of employment. This is commonly referred […]
Have an extra $45,689?
Do you have an extra $45,689 for you and every member of your family (including kids)? That’s your share of the shortfall in Alaska’s unfunded public pensions. Alaskan Win Gruening writes in MustRead […]
Worker Freedom Prevails
Every government union worker in the country is now “right to work.” With today’s decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in favor of Mark Janus in his suit against American Federation of State, […]
Spread the Word to Anchorage Teachers
The Freedom Foundation, another think tank in our network, does excellent work advocating for individual liberty, free enterprise, and limited, accountable government in Oregon and Washington. Working with our organization, they recently sent […]
412 Anchorage City Employees Cost More than the Mayor in 2017
True to one of our guiding principles that government should be limited and as transparent as possible, we are providing the most recent annual payroll for the Municipality of Anchorage. We believe it […]
The ML&P Buyout by Chugach Electric Will Shock Anchorage Wallets
In the upcoming Anchorage election, voters are being asked to vote on the proposed buyout (Proposition 10) of the Anchorage Municipal Light & Power (ML&P) by Chugach Electric. What prompted this buy-out proposal […]
Right-Sizing Alaska’s State Government Workforce
A few weeks ago the Alaska Policy Forum highlighted an analysis from Key Policy Data, a national data visualization firm. The analysis found that in 2016 Alaska had the second-least productive state and […]
Alaska’s Budget Deficit: Have we really cut enough?
In a large statewide poll conducted by Hellenthal and Associates in the spring of 2017, Alaskan voters agreed with the following statement by a two-to-one margin: “The state budget needs to be drastically […]
State sees bonds as investment capital to close unfunded pension gap
Selling up to $5 billion in bonds could either place Alaska further in the red or, as State officials hope, successfully decrease the multi-billion dollar pension unfunded liability. (This is a repost of an article we posted in June 2010)
Public Service Millionaires in Ohio
The state of Ohio has a program option called DROP that allows public employees (police officers, firefighters) to “double dip” on their pensions. This report from the Buckeye Institute explains why the program matters to the individual Ohio citizen, and specifically how the system should be changed.
Startling state unfunded liabilities
NCPA’s Unfunded Liabilities report takes a sobering look at state pension plans. Alaska’s unfunded liabilities are 42% of the state’s GDP.