262. 6 Lessons to Let People Prosper | This Week's Economy Ep. 66

Insights on State Job Openings, School Choice, and Federal Fiscal Challenges

Welcome to Episode 66 of "This Week's Economy”! Watch my podcast here or find it on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform.

Today, we're diving into key national and state economic issues, including the latest insights on state job openings, the CBO report on the dire federal fiscal situation, Louisiana passes school choice, and much more.

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1. State-Level Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) Report Overview: 

• The Bureau of Labor Statistics State JOLTS for April shows job opening rates decreased in 12 states and increased in 3. Hire rates rose in 4 states but fell in 2. Total separations increased in 3 states and decreased in 2.

• Texas saw minimal job openings and hire changes, reflecting a stable labor market. Florida had a notable decrease in layoffs and discharges, highlighting economic resilience.

• Red states like TX and FL have led job growth since Feb 2020, showing less government intervention supports economic prosperity.

• All states should adopt pro-growth policies: sustainable budgeting, tax relief, and fewer barriers to work. Read more (charts here)

2. Louisiana Governor Landry Signs School Choice Bill:

• After 4 years and 12 separate bills and legislative resolutions, the Louisiana Legislature has finally passed a universal education savings account program to expand K-12 educational options for Louisiana students and their families, the 12^th such program in America.

• The program is named after Louisiana’s official state reptile: the “Giving All True Opportunity to Rise” (GATOR) Scholarship Program.

• The program is scheduled to be universal over three years, so it is not perfect, but it is better than most states, including Texas and Tennessee, that haven’t passed school choice yet.

• Great work by the Pelican Institute! Read more.

3. Latest CBO Update to the Budget and Economic Outlook, 2024-2034:

• The latest budget update by the Congressional Budget Office paints a worse fiscal picture for the federal government.

• This budget outlook shows problems of slow economic growth and excessive government spending, not a revenue problem that continues to reach record highs.

• Deficits could be $3 trillion per year, and the national debt could be up to $51 trillion by 2034.

• A simple way to correct this issue is by supporting more economic growth through pro-growth policies, including less spending, taxes, and regulations. Read more.

4. Michigan’s Budget and Economic Ranking:

• The benefits of sustainable budgeting extend beyond fiscal stability. By reducing unnecessary spending and lowering taxes, Michigan can increase disposable income for families, encourage consumer spending, and boost total economic activity.

• The Fraser Institute publishes the Economic Freedom of North America index, which evaluates how states' policies support economic freedom. The index considers three main areas: government spending, taxes, and labor market regulations.

• Higher scores indicate greater economic freedom. In the latest report, Michigan ranks 31st in economic freedom among U.S. states. This ranking reflects areas where Michigan lags in supporting economic freedom and highlights opportunities for policy improvements.

• By addressing its economic and fiscal policy weaknesses, Michigan can improve its rankings and create a more robust and dynamic economy. Sustainable budgeting, tax reform and regulatory efficiency are key to unlocking Michigan’s economic potential. This can lead to more jobs, higher wages and improved living standards for all Michiganders.

• Read articles on sustainable budgeting and economic freedom ranking.

5. Texas’ STAAR 3-8 Grade Test Results Prove Need for Universal School Choice:

• Texas students' math and science scores are plummeting.

• Democrats target school choice to flip TX House seats, ignoring evidence that school choice boosts performance.

• Why not focus on fixing failing schools instead of adding taxpayer money?

• Universal education savings accounts empower parents. Read more.

6. Kansas Passes bad STAR Bond Bill but Provides Tax Relief:

• I’ve recently been working with the Kansas Policy Institute to kill the STAR Bond proposal that would provide $3 billion in debt to potentially fund a Kansas City Chiefs stadium in Kansas instead of Missouri and possibly a new Royals stadium (listen to my radio interview on The John Whitmer Show).

• This corporate welfare is a bad deal. Unfortunately, the Legislature passed it in their special session.

• However, they also passed some good tax relief of more than $400 million by reducing the income tax brackets from three to two and other measures. Will Governor Kelly sign it?

• This continues to increase the number of states that have passed tax cuts over the last few years to get flat income taxes until they reach zero, like 7 other states. Read more.

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Media Hits and Events:

📃 Article on Not Letting a Crisis Go to Waste in 2025: My latest article at the American Institute for Economic Research discusses the upcoming federal fiscal storm in 2025 and what should be done about it. Read the article.

Commentary on FDIC’s toxic culture that raises an opportunity to address its toxic government schemes in The Hill.

I attended the James Madison Institute’s Technology and Innovation Summit in Miami, Florida: It was a great event this week with valuable discussion and insights on the next steps in ensuring parents can parent their kids online, the government doesn’t keep AI from helping the next revolution, and improving education for people across the country.

🎤 Interviews:

• Podcast with Newt Gingrich: Listen to our great discussion on the economy, Trump tax cuts, inflation, sustainable budgeting, FDIC, bank regulations, and more.

Let People Prosper Show

• Don't miss the latest informative Let People Prosper Show Episode 101 with Dr. Robert Gmeiner at the link below.

• On Monday, Episode 102 of the Let People Prosper Show is with Dr. Veronique de Rugy, George Gibbs Chair in Political Economy and Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. We discuss fiscal policy, national conservatism, and the need to treat people like people.

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Conclusion

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