A Trio of Terrible Bills for Oregon Employers
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. Apparently, there is no limit to the Oregon legislature’s…
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Wind Energy is Just Hot Air
By Miranda Bonifield TriMet recently announced its first “zero-emission” bus is ready to…
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There’s No Such Thing As a Free Government
By Miranda Bonifield April 16 was the first day of 2019 where the…
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Testimony Before the Joint Subcommittee on Capital Construction HB 5005
By John A. Charles, Jr. Members of the subcommittee, my name is John…
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Road Widening, Congestion Pricing Can Improve Metro-Area Drive Times
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. I’ve got a big family, which means we do…
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Portland’s Affordable Housing Bond: Nothing for Money
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. Remember that song about getting money for nothing? In…
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Read My Lips: Metro’s Promises Are Doubtful at Best
By Miranda Bonifield There’s nothing so permanent as a temporary government program, and…
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Free to Choose with Freedom Scholarships
By Miranda Bonifield School choice made a splash in the headlines last month…
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Oregon Taxpayers Can’t Celebrate $146 Million Debt Service on the Elliott State Forest
By John A. Charles, Jr. This week our State Treasurer, Tobias Read, issued…
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What’s Causing Oregon’s “Housing Affordability Crisis”?
By Miranda Bonifield Here’s a question for you: Why is housing so expensive…
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Cultivating Educational Choice with Education Savings Accounts
By Miranda Bonifield A Portland public school made headlines last week for offering…
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Local News Brings Accountability to Local Government
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. Fake news is bad, but no news is even…
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Testimony Before the Transportation and Economic Development Subcommittee of Ways and Means Regarding HB 5039
By John A. Charles, Jr. Members of the Subcommittee, my name is John…
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Education Savings Accounts: A “Ticket to the Future” Today
By Kathryn Hickok Derrell Bradford has spent his adult life passionately advocating for…
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Our Most Pressing Environmental Crisis Is at Home
By Miranda Bonifield Oregon’s most pressing environmental crisis isn’t in forests or renewable…
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Metro’s Priorities Don’t Match Yours
By John A. Charles, Jr. The Portland regional government known as Metro recently…
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A Done Deal and a Bad Deal: Why Rent Control Won’t Solve the Housing Crisis
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. Oregon will soon be the first state to have…
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Cap and Trade in Oregon: All Pain, No Gain
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. The Oregon legislature is expected to pass a carbon cap-and-trade…
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Portland Economist Eric Fruits Joins Cascade Policy Institute as Vice President of Research
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: John A. Charles, Jr. 503-242-0900 john@cascadepolicy.org Portland, OR…
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Rent Control Is a Steal
By Miranda Bonifield Remember that emotional final episode of the now-classic sitcom Friends?…
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How Ride Hailing Services Can Complement Bus and Rail—and Save TriMet Money
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. After teaching an evening class at Portland State University,…
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What’s at the Root of Oregon’s Rock-Bottom Graduation Rate?
By Kathryn Hickok Last week the National Foundation for Education Statistics released the…
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Education Savings Accounts: Fiscal Analysis of a Proposed Universal ESA in Oregon
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. Executive Summary Education Savings Accounts deposit a percentage of…
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More Money for Schools Is Meaningless Without Controlling PERS Costs
By John A. Charles, Jr. Several members of the Portland Public Schools Community…
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Press Release: Hillsboro CPA and Former Oregon State Legislator Katie Eyre Joins Cascade Policy Institute Board of Directors
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: John A. Charles, Jr. 503-242-0900 john@cascadepolicy.org Portland, OR…
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Press Release: Report shows Oregon’s “smart growth” policies make housing less affordable for Oregonians
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: John A. Charles, Jr. 503-242-0900 john@cascadepolicy.org PORTLAND, Ore….
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Taiko Drums, Jazz Choir to Perform at Salem School Fair during National School Choice Week
RSVP for FREE to Options in Education Fest – 2019 SALEM (Jan. 11,…
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Can National Parks’ Operations Be Funded with User Fees? National Park Service Says Yes!
By Rachel Dawson Whether or not you have ever visited a national park,…
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The Housing Affordability Crisis: The Role of Anti-Sprawl Policy
By Randall Pozdena, Ph.D. Executive Summary So-called smart growth policies are advocated as…
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Ride-Hailing Could Give an Uber-Needed Lyft to TriMet Service
By Miranda Bonifield TriMet’s ridership has been steadily declining in recent years, to…
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Options in Education Fest Celebrates Oregon Parents’ Education Choices
By Bobbie Jager As a mother of 13 children (no, that’s not a…
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Annual School Choice Week Celebrates K-12 Education Options
By Kathryn Hickok Every January, National School Choice Week shines a spotlight on…
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ODOT’s Passenger Rail Project Equals Increasing Costs, High Taxpayer Subsidies
By Justus Armstrong The Oregon Department of Transportation recently published its Tier 1…
Read Blog DetailPress Release: Report shows ride-hailing services would be a viable solution for TriMet’s high-cost bus lines
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: John A. Charles, Jr. 503-242-0900 john@cascadepolicy.org PORTLAND, Ore….
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Ride Hailing as a Solution to TriMet’s High-Cost Bus Lines
A Proposal for a Pilot Project By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. Summary and recommendation…
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A Proposal To Generate Adequate Returns From Common School Trust Lands
By Eric Fruits, Ph.D. Summary of Conclusions Across the Western States, approximately 80…
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Proof by Assertion
By John A. Charles, Jr. Many Portland drivers probably wonder why there are…
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More Spending Won’t Solve Educational Woes
By Miranda Bonifield Increasing funding to Oregon’s school system may seem like an…
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Prosper Portland’s Latest Business Grants Program Oversteps Again
By Justus Armstrong Should the City of Portland invest taxpayer money in local…
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QuickPoint! – “They Left Out Radio!” – The Human Genius Behind Economic Growth
By Kathryn Hickok Bull market? Bear market? Growth? Uncertainty? What does 2019 have…
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Lessons in Education from Gandalf the Grey
By Miranda Bonifield Cascade Policy Institute has supported parental choice in K-12 education…
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Fake Leadership
By John A. Charles, Jr. Governor Kate Brown’s proposed two-year general fund budget…
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School Choice Improves Student Mental Health
By Miranda Bonifield If you’ve done your homework on school choice, you know…
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The Story Behind Thanksgiving That Every Elected Official Should Know
By Kathryn Hickok The quintessential American holiday, Thanksgiving evolved from the Pilgrims’ celebrations…
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TriMet’s New Electric Buses Will Be Less Reliable, More Costly
By John A. Charles, Jr. The TriMet board recently voted to replace the…
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Survey Shows Florida Scholarship Parents Are Overwhelmingly Satisfied with Their Children’s Schools
By Kathryn Hickok Florida’s Tax Credit Scholarship Program currently helps more than a…
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Metro Should Let Transit Customers Drive Transportation Innovation
By Justus Armstrong ABC’s Shark Tank may be coming to the Portland region—not…
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Another Tax Increase from Kate Brown
By John A. Charles, Jr. Governor Kate Brown’s top health care administrator is…
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Metro’s Bond Measure 26-199 Raises Taxes on Homeowners, Requires No Accountability for Money Spent
By Miranda Bonifield Metro claims Measure 26-199 is designed to address affordable housing,…
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Is Oregon’s Department of Justice for Hire?
By Justus Armstrong Last June, former Portland City Commissioner Steve Novick was hired…
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Watch “School Choice Changes Lives!” Online Now
By Steve Buckstein On September 25, Cascade Policy Institute and its School Choice…
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Electric Buses: Another Costly Fad
By John A. Charles, Jr. The TriMet Board recently approved a plan to…
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Kate Brown’s Environmental Showmanship Has No Substance
By John A. Charles, Jr. Governor Kate Brown has announced a legislative proposal…
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Oregon Parents Need More Options for Children with Learning Challenges
By Miranda Bonifield For students born with learning disorders like dyslexia, learning to…
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Can School Choice Change Lives?
By Steve Buckstein Can School Choice Change Lives? Join Cascade Policy Institute and…
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The Kicker Debate Continues
By Steve Buckstein Because of Oregon’s recent and projected strong economy, a personal “kicker”…
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Better Forest Management Can Prevent Oregon WIldfires
By Justus Armstrong Wildfires in Oregon this summer have burned thousands of acres,…
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To Work or Not to Work, That Is the Question
By Jakob Puckett When I was growing up in Ohio, my family had…
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Moving in the Wrong Direction
By Jakob Puckett Oregonians have a proud tradition of giving back to distinguished…
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Reform of Oregon’s Foster Care System Is Long Overdue
By Justus Armstrong Are we failing Oregon’s foster kids? A January audit from…
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When Did ODOT Become a Consumer Advocate?
By Jakob Puckett Do you need to be protected from your own judgment?…
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Plastic Straw Ban Isn’t Environmentalism—It’s Virtue Signaling
By Miranda Bonifield What’s the deal with plastic straws? Heartbreaking images of sea…
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Missing from Mayor Wheeler’s Homelessness Program: Long-Term Independence
By Rachel Dawson Give a man a fish and you feed him for…
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Metro’s Poorly Thought-Out Grants Program
By Justus Armstrong Portland’s Metro Council plans to award grants for its Investment…
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23 Million Reasons for Metro to Repeal Its Construction Excise Tax
By Jakob Puckett How much do we have to tax something to make…
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Private Developers Leading the Way for Affordable Housing
By Rachel Dawson The Metro Council voted June 7 to place a housing…
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The Smartest Choice Is School Choice
By Miranda Bonifield What do 29 states and nations from Australia to the…
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High Costs and Low Ridership Are Nothing New for Southwest Corridor Project
By Rachel Dawson Decreasing ridership paired with increasing costs makes for a bad…
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Metro’s Waste Reduction Program Lacks Direction and Accountability
By Justus Armstrong This October, the Portland-area Metro Council will award the first…
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Gov. Brown, lawmakers, unions decry court ruling / Published in News Channel KTVZ
SALEM, Ore. – Top Oregon Democrats, including Gov. Kate Brown and Sen. Jeff…
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Local unions rally against SCOTUS union decision / Published in KOIN
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Unions, and the people that make them up, headed…
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Supreme Court deals big setback to labor unions, local groups gather in Portland / Published in KATU
The Supreme Court issued a ruling in an Illinois labor case Wednesday that…
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Local unions react the ruling by the Supreme Court / Published in KVAL Eugene Oregon
EUGENE, Ore. – Top public employee unions in Oregon are less than pleased…
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Supreme Court Decisions Deals Blow to Labor Unions / Published in KAST 1370AM
The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that government workers can’t be forced to contribute…
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Metro’s November Bond Measure Would Make All Housing More Costly
By John A. Charles, Jr. Metro recently decided to refer a $652.8 million…
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Direct Primary Care Puts Patients First, Lowers Health Care Costs
By Justus Armstrong Could forgoing health insurance make health care more affordable? That’s…
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Supreme Court Janus Decision Upholds Public Employees’ First Amendment Rights
By Jakob Puckett When’s the last time you went to a store, and…
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U.S. Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Public Employee Worker Freedom
By Steve Buckstein On June 27 the U.S. Supreme Court restored First Amendment…
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U.S. Supreme Court Rules Today in Favor of Public Employee Worker Freedom
For Immediate Release Media Contact: Steve Buckstein (503) 242-0900 Cascade Policy Institute stands…
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Is Metro’s Affordable Housing Plan Really That Affordable?
By Rachel Dawson The Metro City Council voted June 7 to place a…
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Time to Stop the PERS Pac-Man from Eating Teachers’ Salaries and Taxpayers’ Pocketbooks
By Steve Buckstein What do Pac-Man and public pensions have in common? An…
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Stop Waiting for Superman—Be a Voice for Choice Instead
By Miranda Bonifield Are we waiting for Superman? In 2010, a documentary by…
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How the PERS Pac-Man Eats Teacher Salaries
By Steve Buckstein and Kathryn Hickok What do Pac-Man and public pensions have…
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Right to Try Goes National
By Steve Buckstein Last week President Trump signed a national Right to Try…
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Children’s Scholarship Fund Gives Low-Income Parents Real Education Choices
By Kathryn Hickok This spring, the Children’s Scholarship Fund-Oregon program sponsored by Cascade…
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New Transportation Tax Is on the Wrong Side of History
By John A. Charles, Jr. Oregon employers began receiving notices this week regarding…
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Underestimating Public School Spending
By Steve Buckstein A 2017 national poll on education issues found, among other…
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School Choice Leads to Student Success
By Kathryn Hickok Parents know a solid education prepares their children for life,…
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Charters Schools Are a Laboratory for Innovation Within Public Education
By Kathryn Hickok This is National Charter Schools Week. Did you know almost…
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Throwing Money at Homelessness Is a Failed Strategy
By John A. Charles, Jr. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler hopes to spend $31…
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What’s Better for Low-Skilled Workers: Higher Minimum Wages or Lower Taxes?
By Kathryn Hickok What’s better for welfare recipients and low-skilled workers: a higher…
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Amateur Hour at the State Land Board
By John A. Charles, Jr. Oregon owns 1.5 million acres of School Trust…
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End PERS—For a Day!
By Steve Buckstein Most Oregonians know that our state’s Public Employees Retirement System…
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TriMet Shows Pension Reform Is Possible
By Scott Shepard and John A. Charles, Jr. The Oregon legislature recently adjourned…
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In 9 Years, WES Hasn’t Decreased Westside Congestion
By John A. Charles, Jr. February marked the nine-year anniversary of the Westside…
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WES at 9: Time to Admit the Mistake
By John A. Charles, Jr. February marked the nine-year anniversary of the Westside…
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TriMet Shows Public Pension Reform Is Possible
By John A. Charles, Jr. The Oregon legislature recently adjourned and once again…
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Study: School Trust income would go up by 600% if lands were sold
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: John A. Charles, Jr. 503-242-0900 john@cascadepolicy.org PORTLAND, Ore….
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Oregon Small Businesses Deserve the Tax Break They Expected
By Steve Buckstein While most Americans are reaping the benefits of the recent…
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Time to Decentralize Oregon’s Education Reform Efforts
By Kathryn Hickok and Steve Buckstein Three years ago, Oregon state government killed…
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