Research Reports
Economic Liberty
One Test, Two Standards
Most of us have a drawer or a closest in our home where we put things that are not important enough to have their own place but are not quite worthless enough to throw away…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
A False Sense of Security
Washington state law is rife with opportunities for eminent domain abuse.
Educational Choice | Tax Credit Scholarships
Fiscal Analysis of Arizona’s Corporate Tax Credit Scholarship Program
This report updates a 2005 analysis by Arizona’s Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) that looked at the fiscal impact of a proposed corporate tuition tax-credit scholarship program and reflects the program as actually passed in…
Educational Choice | Tax Credit Scholarships
Arizona Individual and Corporate Tax Credits
Arizona’s tax code, like that of many state, national and international governments, includes a series of tax credits individuals and corporations may use to offset taxes owed. Arizona’s individual and corporate scholarship tax credit programs…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Myths and Realities of Eminent Domain Abuse
The report debunks several of the most prevalent myths about eminent domain for private gain.
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Redevelopment Wrecks
Cities and developers tend to overhype the benefits of private development projects that use eminent domain. But many of these projects are failures.
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Opening the Floodgates
One year after the U.S. Supreme Court case, Kelo v. New London, local governments threatened eminent domain or condemned at least 5,783 homes, businesses, churches and other properties so that they could be transferred to…
Economic Liberty
The Land of 10,000 Lakes Drowns Entrepreneurs in Regulations
This study shows how Minnesota’s government-imposed regulatory barriers block the path to the American Dream and how these barriers can be removed.
Educational Choice
School Choice and the North Carolina Constitution
Education has always been an issue of central concern for the people of North Carolina. Even before statehood, the area’s colonists made concerted efforts to secure the blessings of education for their children. In 1776,…
Economic Liberty | Hair Braiding
A Dream Deferred
Hair braiding provides outstanding economic opportunities, but licensure requirements in many states have given mainstream cosmetologists a near monopoly.
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Kelo v. City of New London
This white paper explains to both legislators and the general public why eminent domain reform is needed after the Kelo v. New London decision.
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Manual de Supervivencia contra el Uso Abusivo del Dominio Eminente
Activistas de todo el país han utilizado la información de este Manual de Supervivencia para proteger con éxito sus hogares y pequeños negocios del uso abusivo del dominio eminente. Este Manual de Supervivencia se elaboró…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Eminent Domain Abuse Survival Guide
Activists nationwide have used the Eminent Domain Abuse Survival Guide to successfully fight illegitimate land-grabs. Expanding on the most effective practical strategies to protect your property outside of the courtroom, the Survival Guide is designed…
Economic Liberty
No Such Thing
The original legal definition of insanity is the inability to tell right from wrong.1 So it is the first irony of the “rational” basis test that it is, according to that definition, insane. The word…
Civil Forfeiture | Private Property
Policing and Prosecuting for Profit
In 2002, New Jersey’s Carol Thomas made headlines after her teenage son used her 1990 Ford Thunderbird to sell marijuana to an undercover police officer. He was arrested, pled guilty and faced his punishment. However,…
Economic Liberty
Entrepreneurship in the Emerald City
This study examines the effects of regulation on entry into several occupations in Washington state and, specifically, the greater Seattle area.
Economic Liberty
Burdensome Barriers
If set free from burdensome and needless regulations, Arizona entrepreneurs would find it easier to open new businesses. When government regulation are necessary, they should be highly circumscribed, easily understandable and narrowly tailored to achieve…
Educational Choice
The Past Should Not Shackle the Present
In Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, the Supreme Court ruled that school voucher programs in which parents choose which schools, including religiously affiliated schools, their children attend do not violate the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause. The consequences…
Other
Judicial Abdication and the Rise of Special Interests
Interest group politics is a problem that has plagued American government since the nation was founded. The Constitution itself was drafted and adopted in large part because of the intractable problems that interest group politics,…
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Public Power, Private Gain
In the first-ever report to document private-to-private takings, the Institute for Justice found more than 10,000 instances of eminent domain abuse in just a five-year-period.
Eminent Domain | Private Property
Government Theft
The Institute for Justice brings together the 10 most egregious uses of eminent domain for private purposes from 1998 to 2001.
Economic Liberty
Is New York City Killing Entrepreneurship?
This report describes licensing and permitting laws and related regulations affecting entry-level entrepreneurship in New York City.
Economic Liberty
Entrepreneurship in San Antonio
Entrepreneurs in San Antonio need that Alamo spirit and perseverance to surmount obstacles placed in their way by state and local laws.
Economic Liberty
How Detroit Drives Out Motor City Entrepreneurs
Detroit is plagued by an intimidating bureaucracy, stifling and expensive rules, and a lack of easily obtained information. The government needs to get out of the way to allow the residents of Detroit to reach…
Economic Liberty
Entrepreneurship in Charlotte
Too often, the government gets in the way through anachronistic and anti-competitive regulations that are often enforced by bureaucrats who do not share Charlotte’s entrepreneurial spirit.
Economic Liberty
Running Boston’s Bureaucratic Marathon
Starting a small business in Boston often turns into a regulatory endurance test for would-be entrepreneurs.
Economic Liberty
Baltimore
Baltimore's small shops and entry-level entrepreneurs are a vital, year-round source of employment and opportunity for those struggling to gain a foothold on the economic ladder.