Research Reports
First Amendment
The Regulation of Grassroots Lobbying
President Obama’s domestic policies have generated opposition among many in the general public and mobilized previously uninvolved citizens. This opposition has manifested itself in public rallies, “tea party” protests, and spirited feedback at town hall…
Economic Liberty | Occupational Licensing
Blooming Nonsense
For more than a decade, Monique Chauvin has owned and operated one of the most popular and recognized floral shops in all of New Orleans. Her work is regularly featured in magazines, and her store…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Little Pink House
Before there were Tea Parties, there was Kelo. Susette Kelo’s name turned into a movement. Her loss of her property was the final straw for Americans in 2005. When they heard about the Kelo decision,…
Civil Forfeiture | Private Property
Policing for Profit: First Edition
Policing for Profit, 1st Edition Published in 2010, this is an older edition of IJ’s landmark Policing for Profit report. You can download the report here, but please see the fourth and current edition for the most up-to-date…
Other
Getting Beyond Guns
The Fourteenth Amendment represents a deliberate decision by the people of this nation to make the U.S. Constitution—not state constitutions and not state officials— the primary guardian of liberty in America. The purpose of the…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Robin Hood in Reverse
In November, New York’s Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court, upheld the use of eminent domain to take homes and small businesses to make way for wealthy developer Bruce Ratner’s so-called “Atlantic Yards” development:…
Do restrictions on eminent domain harm economic development?
After the U.S. Supreme Court upheld in the Kelo decision the use of eminent domain for private-to-private transfer of property for economic development, public outrage was followed by attempts to restrict such use of eminent…
Other
The Right to Keep and Bear Arms in the States
District of Columbia v. Heller was an easy case to get right. First, there was the text of the Second Amendment, which plainly states that “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms,…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Empire State Eminent Domain
An analysis of the populations living in areas of New York City under threat of condemnation for private development finds that such eminent domain abuse disproportionately targets those who are less well-off and less educated,…
Educational Choice
School Choice and State Constitutions’ Religion Clauses
After the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Zelman v. SimmonsHarris, only state religion clauses represent a potential constitutional bar to the inclusion of religious options in properly designed school choice programs. The two most significant…
Educational Choice
The National Implications of Cain v. Horne
This commentary addresses the Arizona Supreme Court’s legal reasoning in Cain v. Horne, which struck down two voucher programs for special needs children pursuant to one of Arizona’s Blaine Amendments and explains that the court…
Educational Choice
School Choice and the Law
In 2009, the Journal of School Choice presented a special issue on school choice and the law, guest edited by Institute for Justice Director of Strategic Research Dick Carpenter. In this introduction, Carpenter explains that…
First Amendment
Attack Ballot Issue Disclosure Root and Branch
For years, the lower federal and many state courts have given short shrift to the First Amendment rights of those who wish to contribute money to groups that advocate the passage or defeat of ballot…
First Amendment | Political Speech
Politics for Professionals Only: Ballot Measures, Campaign Finance “Reform,” and the First Amendment
When Scott Eckern donated money to an election committee, little did he know that it would cost him his job of 25 years. Eckern had worked successfully as the artistic director of the California Musical…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Building Empires, Destroying Homes
New York is perhaps the worst state in the nation when it comes to eminent domain abuse. Government jurisdictions and agencies statewide have condemned or threatened to condemn homes and small businesses for the New…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Testing O’Connor and Thomas: Does eminent domain target poor and minority communities?
In dissenting from the US Supreme Court’s 2005 Kelo decision upholding the use of eminent domain for private-to-private transfers of property, Justices O’Connor and Thomas asserted, based on the history of urban renewal, that eminent domain for…
Economic Liberty
Bureaucratic Barbed Wire
Texas has a unique heritage of inspiring entrepreneurs. But the state has been restricting the economic liberty long enjoyed by its citizens.
First Amendment | Political Speech
Locking Up Political Speech
Americans were once free to speak about politics without asking permission from the government or being forced to document their political activities for the authorities. But under the guise of “campaign finance reform,” government regulation…
Economic Liberty
Regulatory Field
Want to create a job in Chicago? It is not that easy. Especially in such tough economic times, people may be shocked to discover the lengths to which the city of Chicago and the state…
First Amendment | Political Speech
Mandatory disclosure for ballot initiative campaigns
This research examines some of the assumptions inherent in discussions of campaign-finance disclosure laws as they relate to ballot issues. Specifically, it tests the theory that mandatory disclosure contributes to “better” (that is, more informed)…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
The Truth About Times Square
The former chairman and chief executive of New York state’s Urban Development Corporation reveals how Times Square succeeded for reasons that had little to do with government condemnation schemes and everything to do with public…
Educational Choice
Expanding Choice
School choice enjoys strong support among Montana residents, and of choice options, tax credits enjoy the greatest level of popularity. Such programs grant tax credits to taxpayers who donate to nonprofit organizations that give scholarships…
Economic Liberty | First Amendment | Interior Design | Occupational Licensing | Occupational Speech
Designed to Exclude
Americans used to be free to practice interior design work and succeed or fail based solely on their skills. But, to the detriment of consumers and would-be entrepreneurs, that is changing. The American Society of…
Educational Choice
Choice and Opportunity
On February 29, 2008, Gov. Bobby Jindal presented the Louisiana Legislature with a proposed budget allocating $10 million for a school choice initiative that would enable parents in New Orleans to send their children to…
Educational Choice
Expanding Choice
One of the oldest and more popular forms of school choice in the United States is educational tax credit. Like many other types of school choice, educational tax credits enable parents to send their children…
First Amendment
Davis v. FEC and the Constitutionality of “Clean Elections” Systems
In a “clean elections” system, taxpayer funded candidates must agree to limit their campaign spending. Imposing limits on campaign spending for candidates who forego taxpayer dollars and instead run traditional campaigns would be unconstitutional. Most…
First Amendment
SpeechNow.org and the Paradox of Buckley v. Valeo
The right to free speech, including the right to speak out about who should be elected to public office, is a fundamental American right, essential to democratic debate. So, too, is the right of individuals…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
They Want to Erase Us Out
This report documents how homes, farms and small businesses across Texas have been threatened by eminent domain for private gain.
Economic Liberty | First Amendment | Interior Design | Occupational Licensing | Occupational Speech
Designed to Mislead
Do people who design interiors “mislead” the public when they call themselves “interior designers” without government permission? Industry insiders advocating greater regulation say yes, but practicing interior designers who simply want to accurately describe what…
Economic Liberty | Occupational Licensing
Regulation through titling laws: A case study of occupational regulation
This case study examines a form of occupational regulation infrequently examined in academic literature – titling laws. These laws regulate who may legally use a phrase, or title, to describe their work to the public.