Proponents of an increase in New York's minimum wage argue that no full-time worker — especially a head of household raising children — should have to live on $7.25 an hour, or $15,000 a year. Read More
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The pitfalls of a government-run health insurance system were best summed up by political satiristP.J. O'Rourke: "If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free." Read More
With New Yorkers preparing to vote on school budget propositions next Tuesday, the Empire Center today released the latest data for its Internet-based tool -- BenchmarkingNY’s Property Taxes by Location -- allowing taxpayers to compute and compare total school district, municipal and county tax burdens in thousands of communities across the state. Read More
Most New York school districts are proposing to hold their per-pupil tax levies within the levels permitted by a new statewide property tax cap, and the average proposed per-pupil spending increase is at or below the projected inflation rate in six out of nine regions of the state, according to an analysis issued today by the Empire Center for Public Policy. Read More
Later this month, the U.S. Census Bureau will release its rundown of K-12 public education expenditures for the school year that ended in 2010. Read More
Former NYC traffic commissioner, ex-cabbie, and all-around legend "Gridlock Sam" Sam Schwartz had an intriguing piece in today's Daily News on "how to fix New York City traffic." Read More
Mike Spano was elected mayor of Yonkers last fall with the strong support of municipal labor unions. Now the state's third largest city is on the brink of fiscal disaster -- and Spano must persuade his labor friends to make significant contract concessions. Read More
Nicole Gelinas — Manhattan Institute senior fellow, City Journal contributing editor and frequent blogger here — wrote a tough column in the New York Post yesterday, criticizing Governor Cuomo’s nomination of former Governor David Paterson for appointment to an open seat on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) board. The choice, Nicole said, was tantamount to “business-as-usual New York" ... Read More