Budgets and Budgeting
Why Hitting the Debt Ceiling Would Be Very Bad for the U.S. Economy
WASHINGTON — Washington and Wall Street are bracing for a revival of brinkmanship over the nation’s statutory debt limit, raising fears that the fragile U.S. economy could be rattled by a calamitous self-inflicted wound. For years, Republicans have sought to tie spending cuts or other concessions from Democrats to their votes to lift the borrowing […]
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What Is the Free State Project?
Today’s newsletter is a guest dispatch from Dan Barry, who wrote in The New York Times on Sunday about how the surprise victory of a hardcore libertarian movement in a small New Hampshire town led to swift backlash — and a harsh lesson in the importance of showing up to vote. Here, Dan explains the […]
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What Croydon, a ‘Live Free or Die’ Town, Learned About Democracy
CROYDON, N.H. — The tiny New Hampshire town of Croydon fits the New England of the imagination, with its cozy general store, one-room schoolhouse and local museum open by appointment. The only thing missing is supposed to be missing: a stoplight. But it’s not just the Rockwellian setting that makes this community of 800 seem […]
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Juneteenth Is a U.S. Holiday, but Not a Day Off In Most States
“This is something that Black folk deserve and it was like we had to almost prove ourselves to get them to agree,” said Anthony Nolan, a state representative in Connecticut, where legislators argued for hours earlier this year before passing legislation to fund the holiday. Juneteenth commemorates the events of June 19, 1865, when Gordon […]
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Three Ways to Cut Your Tech Spending, as Prices Rise Everywhere
With the cost of food, gas and electricity going up, we have no choice but to spend more. But we do have more control over how many dollars we allocate to one of our largest-ticket items: personal technology. Compared with the cost of gasoline, which surged 48 percent from March 2021 to March of this […]
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What if Public Funds Were Controlled by the Public?
Studies have found young people are more likely to vote in local and national elections after they were involved in P.B., more likely to walk into a city-owned building, more likely to consider going into politics, more likely to speak to a public official, more likely to volunteer and more confident in their skills. Any […]
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In a Michigan County, Stimulus Funds Are Remaking Public Health Programs
LANSING, Mich. — In an underserved neighborhood of Michigan’s capital city, a health clinic is being built with nearly $900,000 in federal pandemic relief funds, a project that could transform the community’s access to care. Wedged among new affordable apartments and a community center, the clinic is a symbol of the rapid effect the funds […]
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With a Center-Leaning Budget, Biden Bows to Political Reality
But that is not where the president’s emphasis was. He relegated much of his Build Back Better domestic policy agenda — a nearly $2 trillion smorgasbord of proposed safety net and climate programs that drew unanimous Republican opposition and fractured his own party — to a single line item in the budget document, with no […]
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As Broadway Struggles, Governor Hochul Proposes Expanded Tax Credit
As Broadway continues to reel from the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Kathy Hochul is proposing to expand and extend a pandemic tax credit intended to help the commercial theater industry rebound. Ms. Hochul on Tuesday proposed budgeting $200 million for the New York City Musical and Theatrical Production Tax Credit, which provides […]
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