Archive for the ‘Issues’ Category

Audio: The Failed Experiment of Pension Bonding

In 2008, the Alaska Legislature passed House Bill 13, which authorized the selling of bonds (debt) for investment to fill the $10 billion pension gap in PERS/TRS. But Steve Malanga from the Manhattan Institute says pension bonding is an idea that has been attempted in other states with some terrible...
August 31st, 2010 | Fiscal Policy, Recent News | Read More

Utah: Reforming health care since 2005

(Heritage Foundation) Utah continues its five-year-old health care reform plan, scheduled to take full effect in the fast approaching 2011 year, all while continuing the fight against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Portable plans for employees of small businesses is just one of the...
August 26th, 2010 | Health Care | Read More

Audio: Federal Health Care Law would create more paperwork than IRS could handle

Josh McIntyre from Mikunda, Cottrell & Co., Inc. in Anchorage explains the increased 1099 reporting requirements in the federal Health Care law. (4:47) Federal Health Care Law would increase paperwork and reporting to the IRS - Click here to listen
August 20th, 2010 | Health Care, Recent News | Read More

Federal employees collect far more than private sector

(Daily Policy Digest) As private sector pay growth has slowed, federal employee pay has putzed along to double its counterpart’s rate. Federal compensation has ballooned nearly 30% more than private pay since 2000. Read the article <here>
August 13th, 2010 | Recent News | Read More

Social Security ripe for bailout

(NCPA) As questions regarding Social Security issues are raised, methods of dealing with them that include raising the retirement age and payroll taxes are being floated. This year Social Security paid out more than it received, and predictions say it will only continue. Read the article <here>
August 11th, 2010 | Fiscal Policy, Recent News | Read More

Chief Actuary of Medicare rejects Trustees’ report

(NCPA) The Medicare Chief Actuary has published his own Medicare projections report, calling the official Trustees’ report ”unreasonable” and “implausible.” The Trustees’ report is based on current law, and not inclusive of changes caused by the resent healthcare...
August 9th, 2010 | Health Care | Read More

Alaska Watchdog:Boroughs to end financial disclosure laws

An often overlooked provision in Alaska statute allows cities to exempt themselves from campaign financial disclosure requirements, and several Alaskan boroughs have made the move to include the exemptions on the upcoming October ballots. On Tuesday night, the Mat-Su Borough Assembly introduced an ordinance...
August 5th, 2010 | Policy, Transparency | Read More

Federal Health Care: Creating Dozens of New Bureaucracies

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA, P.L. 111-148, March 23, 2010) creates, requires others to create, or authorizes dozens of new entities to implement the legislation. The precise number of new entities that will ultimately be created pursuant to PPACA is currently unknowable, for...
August 4th, 2010 | Health Care | Read More

Where are the innovators in health care?

(Kaiser Health News) Almost everyone believes there is an enormous amount of waste and inefficiency in health care. But why is that? In a normal market, wherever there is waste, entrepreneurs are likely to be in hot pursuit — figuring out ways to profit from its elimination by cost-reducing, quality-enhancing...
August 3rd, 2010 | Health Care | Read More

Unfunded pension liabilities drastically underestimated

(NCAP) Recent reports state that due to over-estimated discount rates, the public employee retirement pension liabilities of many state and local governments have been under-estimated by 75-86 percent. Read the article <here>
July 30th, 2010 | Fiscal Policy, Policy | Read More

Financial Regulation Bill Exempts SEC From FOIA Requests

Under a little-noticed provision of the recently passed financial-reform legislation, the Securities and Exchange Commission no longer has to comply with virtually all requests for information releases from the public, including those filed under the Freedom of Information Act. The law, signed last week...
July 29th, 2010 | Accountability, Recent News, Transparency | Read More
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