economy

Three weeks ago today, Governor Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency due to the spread of COVID-19.  One day later, John Locke Foundation researchers paused all other projects and got…

There are two fundamentally different conceptions of civil society. One sees people acting with their families and neighbors to help one another. Civil society is voluntary cooperation with regard to…

Former Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal provides a picture of the true costs of what Progressives and Democratic Socialists call “free.” He notes that many people have never seen a…

As the North Carolina Constitution states, “A frequent recurrence to fundamental principles is absolutely necessary to preserve the blessings of liberty.” It is important though not to let the smell…

I was recently cleaning out some old files and came across an article on trade deficits and surpluses that I wrote in 1988 while working as an economist with the…

Since President Trump has taken office, economic growth rates have soared, 4.2 percent in the last quarter, and unemployment rates are the lowest in decades, at present 3.7 percent. In…

Minimum Wage Hikes Hurt the Very People They’re Supposed to Help. In 2013 President Barack Obama joined Democrats in Congress pushing for an increase of the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour...

Between FY 2009 and FY 2014, 81 out of North Carolina’s 100 counties participated in economic development activities. Counties entered into 776 contracts worth nearly $284 million in incentives over the five-year period. Actual payments, however, totaled $144 million.

RALEIGH — The latest federal employment report delivers excellent news for North Carolina. That’s the assessment from the John Locke Foundation’s chairman, who notes that state employers added 14,000 new…

The economic recession that hit full force in 2008 was declared officially over in June 2009 when the country experienced two quarters of very slow growth. But a troubled housing sector and a still-sluggish economy with high unemployment have contributed to the fiscal crises facing many cities and counties in North Carolina. As always, this edition of By the Numbers is must reading for government officials and taxpayers alike. It highlights what kinds of fiscal problems face local governments in an economy that grows only very slowly. With the facts given here, county commissioners and city council members can easily compare their area’s tax burden to similarly situated cities or counties. For taxpayers, BTN is a starting point for questions about taxes and spending, enabling them to hold their elected and appointed officials accountable.