Author: James A. Bacon
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No Brainer Ethics Reform
It’s nice to see that Republicans and Democrats in the General Assembly can agree on something. House Republican Majority Leader Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights, and House Democratic Minority Leader David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, unveiled the outlines of their ethics reform plan in an op-ed published in the Times-Dispatch this morning. They will unveil details in a…
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Medicaid Expansion and the Trust Issue
by James A. Bacon Do you trust the federal government to make good on its promises to uphold entitlement spending? Or do you fear that, as the federal funding crisis intensifies, the feds will renege? That is the question at the heart of the debate over Medicaid expansion in Virginia. Bart Hinkle, a columnist for…
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No Medicaid Expansion without Reform
John M. O’Bannon III, R-Henrico, is a neurologist, and his medical practice provides care to indigent patients with little hope of paying their bills, but he is also a Republican delegate to the General Assembly. When he contemplates an expansion of Medicaid, a top priority of incoming Governor Terry McAuliffe, he is very concerned about…
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New Concerns about Medicaid Expansion
The debate over Medicaid expansion in Virginia just got more complicated… again. A new study found that 10,000 new low-income Medicaid recipients in Oregon visited emergency rooms 40% more often than those without insurance, reports the Wall Street Journal. The finding undercuts claims that expanding the program would save money as low-income patients utilized primary…
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Are the Millennials Really Different?
by James A. Bacon One of the key questions in forecasting future trends in urban development is a demographic one: How different are the Millennials from previous generations? Sure, young people are flocking to urban centers, they’re driving less and they’re riding their bicycles more than Boomers and Generation Xers did at the same age.…
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Six Reasons to Feel Good about 2014
by James A. Bacon Despite awakening this morning with a hangover resulting from a fabulous New Year’s celebration last night, I was curiously and uncharacteristically upbeat about the year ahead. I still have grave reservations about the fiscal future of this country and I still believe Boomergeddon is in our future. But for some odd…
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A Stupid Tax Break Gets Even Stupider
A portion of the federal commuter tax benefit will expire January 1, which upsets a number of people on the grounds that the change hoses transit riders and benefits drivers. As someone who qualifies for no benefit at all because I work at home, my reaction to the partial wind-down of this special-interest benefit is,…
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Expand Free Clinics, Not Medicaid
by James A. Bacon So, what’s the alternative to expanding Virginia’s Medicaid program? Let an estimated 400,000 Virginians continue without health insurance? That option was workable in the past because the federal government gave financial aid to hospitals to help offset some of the cost of providing health care to indigent patients. But the Affordable…
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The McDonnell Track Record: Incremental Improvement
by James A. Bacon Governor Bob McDonnell’s four-year term in office is drawing to a close. Sadly, it appears that the governor will be remembered mainly for his atrocious judgment in accepting more than $150,000 in gifts and loans from a Richmond businessman. While the Giftgate scandal deservedly dominated the headlines in his last year…
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How the Scandal Started
There is a fascinating tidbit in the Washington Post article today about Todd Schneider, former executive chef at the Governor’s Mansion, that has gone largely unremarked upon. It may have been reported before, but I had not taken note of it, and I don’t believe anyone else has either. Before I explain, let me ask…
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Fiscal Analytics and the Next Municipal Revolution
by James A. Bacon It is the best of times for local government, it is the worst of times. It is the worst in the sense that local governments across America are experiencing unrelieved fiscal stress from pension obligations, mounting infrastructure backlogs and lagging revenues. Yet it is the best in the sense that rarely…
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The Laughable Fiction of Travel-Demand Forecasts
by James A. Bacon The Virginia Department of Transportation and regional transportation planning organizations periodically make traffic forecasts for planning purposes. The idea makes sense in the abstract — estimating future volumes of traffic is needed to determine how much, and where, we should invest in new transportation infrastructure. Unfortunately, the process is flawed. Estimates…
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About those Henrico School Disparities, Part Deux
by James A. Bacon In my never-ending quest to bring to you, the readers of Bacon’s Rebellion, a keener insight into the dynamics of Virginia’s educational system, I present the chart above, which shows the correlation between average teacher salaries at Henrico County schools and the percentage of children on free or reduced lunch. Why…
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Virginia Rates a B+ for Tax Administration
There is broad agreement that tax rates are an important factor influencing a state’s business climate. Less widely recognized is the importance of how taxes are administered. Apparently, there is as much variation in tax administration as there is in tax rates. The transparency and even-handedness of tax administration is an attribute that Virginia can…
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Virginia’s Pension Picture: Among Most Improved
Here’s the good news: Virginia ranks among the seven “most improved” states in the union measured by the reduction of unfunded pension liabilities between 2009 and 2012, according to data published by the Institute for Truth in Accounting. Here’s the bad news: The commonwealth still has billions of dollars in unfunded pension liabilities. Have fun…