Minnesota leaders often boast about the state’s high business survival rate. Indeed, Minnesota ranks well when it comes to how many of its new businesses survive. According to the Bureau…
We at the Center write a lot about taxes and their impact on the state’s economy. We write less often about the impact of regulations. As we noted in our…
Willmar Radio carried the following story yesterday: Triple-A reports the average price for a gallon gas in Minnesota has jumped 10 cents in the last week. That’s the biggest increase…
Minnesota’s unemployment rate has fallen in recent months, but this is entirely due to Minnesotans leaving the labor force. Our state actually ranks 8th in the United States for the…
State and local taxes and spending KNSI: Lawmakers Visit St. Cloud In Renewed Push for Frontline Worker Bonus Pay Duluth News Tribune: Minnesota senators OK $2.7B plan to replenish jobless…
Restaurant and bar owners in St. Paul, already struggling to recover from COVID-19 and government responses to it, were dealt another blow last month when Mayor Melvin Carter imposed a…
Last week, I noted that in January, Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) was running at its highest year over year rate since February 1982. This is the inflation figure most familiar…
St. Paul’s rent control ballot is yet to come into effect, but the residents of the city are already seeing the consequences of the terrible policy. According to Pioneer Press,…
State and local taxes and spending St. Cloud Times: Don’t forget: Vote on 1.5% food and beverage tax in Sartell on Tuesday Brainerd Dispatch: Ruud works to phase out Social…
Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) announced that inflation was 0.6 percent in January and 7.5 percent over the year (the increase was 7.9 percent in the Midwest). This is the fastest…
Proponents of licensing — and other forms of regulation –– proclaim that customers usually lack sufficient information to measure the quality or safety of products. In this case, licensing signals a…
Economic development KIMT3: Rochester business gets state innovation grant State and local taxes and spending Alexandria Echo Press: Minnesota’s record $7.75 billion budget surplus is taking center stage as lawmakers…
In the year to December, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 7 percent, its fastest rate of annual increase since June 1982. “Core CPI” — which excludes more volatile food…
Despite what Mayor Jacob Frey might say, restaurants in Minneapolis do not appear to be coping well with his new vaccine and testing regime. Data on restaurant bookings in the…
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey tweeted last week about how on the first Friday of his new vaccine and testing regime (Jan. 21), his phone had “been flooded with pictures of…
That chaotic Union Pacific railyard just outside of downtown Los Angeles continues to generate headlines. The situation is so bad that even California Governor Gavin Newsom wonders what’s going on.…
In October, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain endorsed a tweet claiming that inflation and supply chain issues affecting the United States were “high class problems.” They are not. As I pointed out in December,…
State and local taxes and spending Minn Post: A new Minnesota law is saving certain kinds of businesses a boatload in federal income taxes Star Tribune: Minnesota lawmakers face $7.7B…
These were some of the headlines in Minnesota’s media last week: Kare 11: Minnesota’s unemployment rate is lower than it was before the pandemic Pioneer Press: Minnesota unemployment drops to lowest level…
Collections of a hospitality-specific city tax were down by 81 percent last spring. No doubt, hotels, bars, restaurants, and entertainment venues in the City of Minneapolis have suffered in the…
On Jan. 15, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey announced a mandate requiring proof of vaccinations or negative tests for entry into food or drink establishments in the city beginning Jan. 19.…
The United States is currently experiencing its fastest rate of inflation, year over year, since mid-1982. Those of you who are old enough to remember that might also remember the…
Nebraska, again, lowers its own record for America’s lowest unemployment rate. Minnesota’s rate returns to pre-pandemic level, but lags neighboring states. In data released for December, Nebraska again recorded the…
The Minnesota House Commerce Finance Policy committee is currently deciding which of 26 proposed liquor bills will be included in an omnibus package to go to a vote. These decisions…