We can have one without the other
State Senator Steve Erdman’s “Nebraska’s tax system needs fixing” was published in the Star Herald, January 23, 2021 and there are a few points worth addressing. Erdman begins by asserting that the property tax, among others, is bad, Nebraska being the “seventh worst state.” This… Read More »Response to State Senator Erdman’s, “Nebraska’s tax system needs fixing” OP-ED
Macroeconomics has remained substantially unchanged since 1971 when gold and the dollar were uncoupled. Whether this pivotal change in the early 1970s was the end of economic sanity or the beginning of a great era of prosperity is a matter of opinion. In any case,… Read More »LVT, MMT, UBI & BTC: The Alphabet Soup of Economics
How a Tax Shift Would Affect Low-income and Elderly Homeowners As previously stated, land value taxation has different effects on different demographics. So, what about low-income homeowners, or elderly homeowners? The effects of LVT on these groups specifically is not well studied, but we can… Read More »Benefits of Land Value Tax on New York and Other Major Cities – Part 2
In the United States, no major cities have land value taxation (LVT), although a number of cities in Pennsylvania (including Allentown and Harrisburg) have a two-rate property tax. But political economist Henry George ran twice for mayor of New York in the late 19th century,… Read More »Benefits of Land Value Tax on New York and Other Major Cities – Part 1
Behold the 5G mid-band auction. The trade press and the FCC itself have touted the auction, concluded late August 2020, as a long-overdue boon to the U.S. But something about it gives me that “Watch Out” feeling. That something is the 19th Century predatory monopolism… Read More »The 5G Auction: Boon or Trap?
As has become the norm, the weeks since the publication of our December newsletter have been full to the brim with breaking news and accounts of personal struggle and heartbreak too numerous to begin to address here. Today though, two main stories capture the headlines:… Read More »Forging Ahead in 2021
If you were following the tax assessment beat during California’s 2020 election, chances are you heard plenty about Proposition 15. As a bill that would unfreeze assessments for commercial properties, it was flashy, impactful, and activated political blocs both For (teacher unions) and Against (the… Read More »California Election Update: What Is Prop 19, Anyway?
How can a tax help rather than hinder an economic recovery? Believe it or not, a tax on land value would best stimulate economic recovery. A land value tax, like today’s property taxes, is based on the value of land when put to its best… Read More »The Tax We Need for the Pandemic Economic Recovery
A Paradigm for Understanding Budgeting; What Role is there for Land Reformers? It’s in the air: something called “Modern Monetary Theory” (MMT). MMT purports to have answers on how to pay for public goods without burdensome taxes, how to shift more earning power to workers,… Read More »Book Review: “The Deficit Myth”
As we collectively stare down the holidays, the reality that our celebrations won’t look or feel the same as in other years is inescapable. The range of differences varies, of course. For my family, it’s planning our winter holidays without extended family for the first… Read More »It’s time to get creative
