Mike Kapic
Federal Subsidies Now Pervade Almost Everything Local governments are now dependent on federal subsidies for even the smallest of programs and functions. Chris Edwards February 07, 2019 Can’t anyone do anything in this country without federal subsidies? A friend emailed me a local news story from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania: “Firefighter recruitment ads on hold due…
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State Legislature’s Article V Caucus Newsletter by Stuart MacPhail February, 2019 Need Seen for Congressional Term Limits – This past month a web site called 71 Republic.com carried a piece entitled Congressional Term Limits Are a Necessity. The article builds on the statement that “With 14% congressional approval ratings but reelection rates often over 90%, it is clear that…
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Panera’s Utopian “Pay What You Can Afford” Experiment Meets a Predictable End Panera Cares’ failure presents a teachable moment during one of the West’s pivotal turning points. Ben Johnson February 14, 2019 Panera has announced that it will close the last of its charitable stores, which allowed people to pay whatever they wished for a…
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State Legislatures Article V Caucus Newsletter by Stuart MacPhail February, 2019 Congressionally-introduced BBA proposals are already back for the 116th Congress. Mississippi US Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith has introduced SJ Res 3. Alabama Congressman Bradley Byrne has introduced HJ Res 6, and Ohio Congressman Steve Chabot has introduced HJ Res 22. In Congress, these proposed BBA…
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In our opinion: Bring back the deficit hawks Deseret News editorial board Scott Applewhite, AP January 2, 2019 The United States’ national debt is fast approaching $22 trillion, and the federal deficit may pass $1 trillion in 2019. As it stands, the U.S. government may find itself in dire economic trouble when the next economic downturn rolls…
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Federal Subsidies Now Pervade Almost Everything
Local governments are now dependent on federal subsidies for even the smallest of programs and functions.
Chris Edwards February 07, 2019
Can’t anyone do anything in this country without federal subsidies?
A friend emailed me a local news story from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania: “Firefighter recruitment ads on hold due to funding because of government shutdown.” A Lancaster County government shutdown? Nope, the federal one:
As Pennsylvania faces a shortage of volunteer firefighters, funding to recruit them is being held up during the partial government shutdown. An advertisement distributed by the Lancaster County Fire Chiefs Association on TV, radio and social media is meant to recruit volunteer firefighters to Lancaster County’s 67 volunteer fire companies. … Duane Hagelgans, the Lancaster County Fire Chiefs Association spokesperson, says the government shutdown is holding up their federal grant money paying for those ads.
I love the voluntarism and heroism of volunteer firefighting agencies, which play a crucial role in many communities. Indeed, they play such a crucial role that local governments ought to cover their needed costs so that they are not dependent on the faraway and chaotic federal government. Citizens should know how much local services cost, and they should be willing to pay for those local services they really need.
Chris Edwards is the director of tax policy studies at Cato and editor of DownsizingGovernment.org.
