School Vouchers are the Wrong Choice

by | Mar 13, 2017

Many in the conservative movement advocate for “school choice”: aka educational reform in the way of school vouchers, but there are waves and waves of research that suggest private school vouchers harm students who receive them. But first: What are school vouchers?...

Mid-Week Reads: Economics and Early Ed

by | Aug 11, 2016

Every week, North Star will take some time out of our schedules to bring you our favorite reads from the past week. Jeff Van Wychen The Third Way: Share-the-Gains Capitalism Economist and for U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich outlines three economic systems in...
Executive Summary: Minnesota's Budget Surplus

Executive Summary: Minnesota's Budget Surplus

by | Mar 3, 2016

The conservative effort to use the entire budget surplus to reduce state taxes—often referred to as the “give it back” campaign—is based on the premise that state revenues and expenditures have increased dramatically and thus all legitimate state expenditure needs...
Minnesota's Budget Surplus: Balancing Tax Cuts and Investments

Minnesota's Budget Surplus: Balancing Tax Cuts and Investments

by | Mar 3, 2016

I. Introduction Last March, a group of legislators gathered at the State Capitol with a simple message: “Give it back!” The “it” refers to the state budget surplus, then projected to be nearly two billion dollars for the upcoming fiscal year (FY) 2016-17 biennium....