TOP POLICY STORIES

Americans Achieve Tax Freedom Four Days Later than Last Year, Joseph Henchman, Tax Foundation

Tax Freedom Day® 2012 arrives on April 17 this year, four days later than last year due to higher federal income and corporate tax collections. That means Americans will work 107 days into the year, from January 1 to April 17, to earn enough money to pay this year’s combined 29.2 percent federal, state, and local tax bill.

If the federal government raised taxes enough to close the budget deficit—an additional $1.014 trillion—Tax Freedom Day would come on May 14 instead of April 17. (read more)

Bad Tax-the-Rich, Transactions Tax Ideas on Both Sides of the Atlantic, Ian Mason, The Heartland Institute

This election cycle, some American politicians have insisted that, in order to solve the government debt problem, millionaires and billionaires must pay their “fair share,” and bankers and financiers must be “held accountable.” Their European counterparts are far ahead of them in this regard.

François Hollande, whom polls predict will be elected the next president of France this May, has promised a 75 percent top marginal tax rate on those earning more than €1 million ($1.33 million) a year. Hollande announced his tax plan on French television in February. Expressing his indignation that CEOs of companies in the CAC40, France’s equivalent of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, earn a mean of €2 million ($2.65 million) a year, he asked, “How can we accept it?” (read more)

An Evening with John Stossel: Sunday, April 15

The Heartland Institute will host John Stossel – on Tax Day, no less – for the Chicago stop on his book tour for No They Can’t: Why Government Fails – and Individuals Succeed.

Come spend an evening with the libertarian star of the Fox Business Channel as he talks about and signs copies of his next best-seller arguing for smaller government, freer markets, and more liberty. (Click here to RSVP)

New Study Warns Against ‘Reforming’ Toxic Substances Act, Bonner R. Cohen, The Heartland Institute

Efforts to reform the Toxic Substances Control Act could end up harming human health by stifling innovation and keeping perfectly safe and beneficial products from reaching consumers, concludes a just-released study by the Competitive Enterprise Institute. (read more)

School Reform News: Milwaukee Voucher Program Sees Big Growth, Joy Pullmann, The Heartland Institute

The April issue of School Reform News reports that enrollment in the Milwaukee Parental Choice program – still the largest voucher program in the nation – grew 12 percent in 2011 after Gov. Scott Walker signed legislation to expand education options for Wisconsin families. (read more)

Heartland Applauds School Voucher Bill Passage in LA

The Louisiana House of Representatives recently passed the Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence Program, a voucher program that allows low- and middle-income students in low-performing public schools to receive government-funded vouchers to attend private schools. The state Senate passed the bill Wednesday night, and Gov. Bobby Jindal is expected to sign the bill into law. (read more)

InfoTech & Telecom News: Internet Taxes, Spectrum Auctions, Wi-Fi, and more, Bruce Edward Walker, The Heartland Institute

The April issue of InfoTech & Telecom News reports Congress’s extension of payroll tax cuts and jobless benefits included a mandate that the Federal Communications Commission conduct auctions of wireless spectrum for commercial use. (read more)

Many High Schools Offer Poor Curriculum, Harnessing Technology Key?, Sally Nelson, The Heartland Institute

Many high schools do not offer sufficiently rigorous curricula to graduate college- or career-ready students, a new report by Center for Public Education concludes.

The report notes 3,000 high schools offer no classes in Algebra II, a subject tested on the SAT and important for college preparation. This is approximately one in nine high schools in the nation, serving approximately 500,000 students. (read more)

Environment & Climate News: Gleick, Other Alarmists Poison Climate Discussion, James M. Taylor, The Heartland Institute

The April issue of Environment & Climate News reports on the ongoing Fakegate scandal. Prominent scientist and global warming alarmist Peter Gleick confessed to assuming the identity of a Heartland Institute board member in order to steal the organization’s internal documents and send them to global warming activists and sympathetic members of the media. (read more)

Health Care News: HHS Mandate Sparks an Outcry, Benjamin Domenech, The Heartland Institute

The April issue of Health Care News reports on the controversy greeting the Obama administration’s mandate that all private insurance plans cover the costs of abortifacients, sterilization, and contraceptives. (read more)

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