Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court provided states with the opportunity to reject the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) Medicaid expansion without jeopardizing existing Medicaid funds, the expansion has become a political football. Governor Bentley has called the ACA Medicaid expansion “a federal government dependency program for the uninsured.” On the other end of the political […]

By Cameron Smith & Terry Bowman Since 1993, Alabama has become a powerhouse of automotive manufacturing.  With a strong market in the U.S., Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai, and Honda continue to show signs of increased production.  That is great news for Alabama’s workforce and state economy. The good news does not stop there. Because of Alabama’s legislative […]

Over the last several months, liberal politicians, members of the media, hospitals and even the head of Alabama’s retirement system have renewed their calls for Alabama to expand Medicaid under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The left and right have quibbled over economic projections, job creation, state costs, and political motivations. Every special […]

By now, most Americans paying attention recognize that the federal government began shutting down on Monday based on the inability of Congress to appropriate funds. The hill that both Republicans and Democrats seem to be willing to die on is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), otherwise known as “Obamacare.” How many Americans […]

Last week, I spent Thursday night at a Teacher Town Hall hosted by StudentsFirst and the Alabama Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO). Before the event began, the Alabama Education Association (AEA) was out in force protesting the event.  I spoke to several of the protesters who said they opposed StudentsFirst’s stance on charter schools.  When I suggested that […]

By Cameron Smith, Alabama Policy Institute In his recent State of the Union address, President Obama stated that “[i]t is our generation’s task…to reignite the true engine of America’s economic growth – a rising, thriving middle class.” For many of us, that idea seems reasonable. The President told us that we will not be able […]

This article is the second in a three part series by the Alabama Policy Institute focusing on energy issues in Alabama. The first article can be viewed on AL.com The stated mission of the Alabama Public Service Commission (PSC) is “[t]o ensure a regulatory balance between regulated companies and consumers in order to provide consumers […]

By Cameron Smith, Alabama Policy Institute At the end of 2012, while Alabama families were focused on the holidays, the Alabama Supreme Court issued an opinion that undermined private property rights in Alabama and created a significant deterrent to economic investment in the state. In 2003 and 2004, M&N Materials, Inc. purchased property in an […]

By Cameron Smith On December 14, 2012, Americans saw the darkness in Newtown, Connecticut. And for many of us it is hard to grasp, maybe impossible. How could a young man be so full of pain and rage that he would take so many young lives? Where are the answers? What can we do? What […]

As the automatic tax increases and spending cuts of the so-called “fiscal cliff” near the horizon, political pundits continue to argue whether the government should solve its budget woes by reducing spending, raising taxes, or some combination of the two. Even the President has engaged with the trendy narrative of taking a “little more” from […]

As pundits across the country sift through the electoral debris, President Obama’s re-election affords an opportunity for Republican introspection. The recent election demonstrates that American political ideologies, cultural demographics, and even the level of political engagement are transitioning in a way not seen in generations. Conservatives face the challenge of determining how the principles of […]

Over the last few weeks, the Alabama Education Association (AEA) and a number of Democrat lawmakers have led the charge to preserve racist language in Alabama’s Constitution by opposing Amendment 4 on the November 6 ballot. Amendment 4 deletes language in Section 256 of Alabama’s Constitution relating to “elective” segregated schools and repeals poll tax […]