The federal government may have run up a $1.3 trillion deficit in 2010, but that’s not the only government budget shortfall of note; a recent report from the Pew Center on the States found a $1 trillion funding gap in… Continue Reading
Two distinguished economists at Rice University’s James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy have issued a report calling for the most comprehensive reform of the nation’s corporate and personal income tax system since Ronald Reagan was president. The report… Continue Reading
As legislators debate health care reform in Washington, 200 economists — including John Diamond, the Baker Institute Edward A. and Hermena Hancock Kelly Fellow in Public Finance — this week voiced their concerns in a letter that makes the economic… Continue Reading
A European-style value added tax (VAT) proposed by lawmakers to reduce the federal deficit would cause the loss of 850,000 jobs and dramatically reduce retail spending, according to a new study prepared for the National Retail Federation by John Diamond,… Continue Reading
This week’s Chronicle editorial “Profit over principle…” sets a new low for competence and common sense. The general thrust of the editorial is that health insurers are “bad” because they are not allowing new child-only insurance policies because of the… Continue Reading
John W. Diamond, the Baker Institute’s Edward A. and Hermena Hancock Kelly Fellow in Public Finance, is quoted in an Economist article examining the financial health of the city of Houston. In the article, Diamond expresses concerns about pension-obligation bonds… Continue Reading
John Diamond, the Edward A. and Hermena Hancock Kelly Fellow in Public Finance at the Baker Institute, thinks Washington is broken — particularly when it comes to the way the government spends money and taxes its citizens. In an op-ed… Continue Reading