Category Archives: Fiscal Freedom

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Today, the Department of Defense (DoD) released its 2015 fiscal year Freedom of Navigation (FON) Report, which provides a summary of excessive maritime claims that were challenged by U.S. forces during the period of Oct. 1, 2014, through Sept. 30, 2015. The report summarizes challenges to excessive maritime claims asserted by 13 claimants throughout the world.

The DoD FON program is comprehensive in scope, encompassing all of the rights, freedoms, and lawful uses of the sea and airspace available to all nations under international law. The program is implemented actively against excessive maritime claims by claimants in every region of the world in order to support DoDs global interest in mobility and access.

Each year, DoD compiles an unclassified FON Report providing summaries of the FON operations and other FON related activities conducted by U.S. forces. The summarized reports transparently demonstrate the U.S. non-acquiescence to excessive maritime claims, while still protecting the operational security of U.S. military forces.

The 2015 DoD FON Report is available at http://policy.defense.gov/OUSDPOffices/FON.aspx.

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DoD Releases 2015 Fiscal Year Freedom of Navigation Report

William P. Ruger

William P. Ruger is Vice President of Policy and Research at the Charles Koch Institute and Charles Koch Foundation. Ruger is the author of the biography Milton Friedman and a coauthor of The State of Texas: Government, Politics, and Policy. His work has been published in International Studies Quarterly, State Politics and Policy Quarterly, Armed Forces and Society, and other outlets. Ruger earned an AB from the College of William and Mary and a PhD in politics from Brandeis University. He is a veteran of the war in Afghanistan.

Jason Sorens is Lecturer in the Department of Government at Dartmouth College. His primary research interests include fiscal federalism, public policy in federal systems, secessionism, and ethnic politics. His work has been published in International Studies Quarterly, Comparative Political Studies, Journal of Peace Research, State Politics and Policy Quarterly, and other academic journals, and his book Secessionism: Identity, Interest, and Strategy was published by McGill-Queens University Press in 2012. Sorens received his BA in economics and philosophy, with honors, from Washington and Lee University and his PhD in political science from Yale University.

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Freedom in the 50 States 2015-2016 | Overall Freedom ...

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The continuing lack of economic freedom compounds Greeces worsening competitiveness and political volatility. Bold policy actions are needed to restore fiscal sustainability, enhance labor market flexibility, and tackle systemic corruption.

Major fiscal weaknesses exposed by the debt and employment crisis have not been sufficiently addressed. Unemployment remains high, particularly among young people, and public unions and special interests stifle or delay adjustments to market conditions.

Greece joined NATO in 1952 and the European Union in 1981. It adopted the euro in 2002. Following elections in January 2015, the Coalition of the Radical Left (Syriza) party assumed power on a pledge to end austerity and renegotiate debt repayments. In August, the EU Commission, International Monetary Fund, and European Central Bank agreed to a $95 billion bailout package in exchange for more fiscal and economic reforms and additional austerity. It was the third bailout package in five years. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras resigned in August after his support in parliament crumbled following his signing of the deal, but he was able to reestablish his coalition following snap elections in September. Greece remains mired in political and economic uncertainty, and its future in the eurozone is uncertain. The economy, which depends on shipping and tourism, fell back into recession in the first quarter of 2015 after a brief upswing. Unemployment is the highest in the eurozone.

Deeply rooted systemic cronyism and corruption, as well as the absence of a strong civil society, lie at the heart of the Greek debt crisis. Both public-sector and private-sector elites are able to plunder the country and their fellow citizens with impunity. Tax evasion is rampant. The judiciary is independent, but protection of property rights is not strongly enforced.

The top personal income tax rate has increased to 42 percent. The top corporate tax rate is 26 percent. The overall tax burden equals about 33.5 percent of GDP. Government spending remains at over 50 percent of GDP, chronic budget deficits continue, and public debt far exceeds the size of the economy. Fiscal stability is highly dependent on eurozone creditors, and structural adjustments have been marginal.

Efforts to enhance the business environment have been sporadic. The process for launching a company is fairly streamlined, but licensing requirements remain time-consuming. With high non-salary costs for employing a worker and rigid restrictions on work hours, the labor market remains stagnant. Resolution of the debt crisis will require privatization of heavily subsidized and loss-making state-owned enterprises.

EU members have a 1 percent average tariff rate. Trade agreements are currently being negotiated with countries that include the United States and Japan. Greece maintains non-tariff barriers to the provision of some professional services by non-EU providers. The financial systems overall stability has been severely undermined, and banking has been under increasing strain.

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Greece Economy: Population, Facts, GDP, Unemployment ...

William P. Ruger

William P. Ruger is Vice President of Policy and Research at the Charles Koch Institute and Charles Koch Foundation. Ruger is the author of the biography Milton Friedman and a coauthor of The State of Texas: Government, Politics, and Policy. His work has been published in International Studies Quarterly, State Politics and Policy Quarterly, Armed Forces and Society, and other outlets. Ruger earned an AB from the College of William and Mary and a PhD in politics from Brandeis University. He is a veteran of the war in Afghanistan.

Jason Sorens is Lecturer in the Department of Government at Dartmouth College. His primary research interests include fiscal federalism, public policy in federal systems, secessionism, and ethnic politics. His work has been published in International Studies Quarterly, Comparative Political Studies, Journal of Peace Research, State Politics and Policy Quarterly, and other academic journals, and his book Secessionism: Identity, Interest, and Strategy was published by McGill-Queens University Press in 2012. Sorens received his BA in economics and philosophy, with honors, from Washington and Lee University and his PhD in political science from Yale University.

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Freedom in the 50 States 2013 | Overall Freedom | Mercatus ...

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Brazils limited experiment with market-oriented reforms has been uneven and even derailed in some areas. The states presence in such sectors as energy, financial services, and electricity remains extensive. The legacy of decades of central planning, state meddling in economic activity continues even where it has demonstrably failed, and the weak rule of law further undermines economic progress.

The onerous regulatory environment hinders needed economic transformation and undercuts realization of the economys full potential. Growing public debt and higher debt service costs have kept fiscal pressure high, and burdensome taxes further crowd out private-sector growth.

President Dilma Rousseff of the leftist Workers Party began her second term in January 2015. A recession, fiscal and monetary belt-tightening, and a far-reaching kickback scheme involving her party and the state-controlled Petrleo Brasileiro oil company sent her approval rating plummeting. Brazil has poor public services, antiquated and insufficient infrastructure, and high tax rates. In recent years, inflation has surged again. Growth is sluggish, but Brazils Bolsa Famlia conditional cash transfer program for the poor has won support in some sectors. Brazil is the worlds seventh-largest economy, and its population of almost 200 million is heavily concentrated on the Atlantic coast. Since the advent of the monetary real plan in the 1990s and the end of hyperinflation, the poverty rate has dropped, but heavy government intervention in the economy continues to limit development.

Graft remains endemic, and Brazilians disapprove of President Dilma Rousseffs policies on corruption and crime. In 2014, a former director of state-owned Petrobas accused more than 40 politicians, including one minister and three governors, in a massive kickback investigation. Brazils judiciary is inefficient and subject to political and economic influence. The court system is overburdened, and contract disputes can be lengthy and complex.

The income tax rate is 27.5 percent. The standard corporate tax rate is 15 percent, but a financial transactions tax, 10 percent surtax, and 9 percent social contribution on net profits bring the effective rate to 34 percent. The overall tax burden amounts to 33.4 percent of GDP. Public spending equals over one-third of GDP, and fiscal stimulus efforts have increased chronic deficits. Public debt equals about 65 percent of GDP.

Bureaucratic hurdles remain common, including lengthy processes for launching a business and obtaining permits. The non-salary cost of employing a worker adds to the cost of doing business, and labor regulations remain stringent. In 2015, surging state-administered prices for gasoline, electricity, and transportall heavily subsidized before the 2014 presidential electioncaused inflation to reach its highest level in over a decade.

Brazils average tariff rate is 7.8 percent. Brazilians may not import used consumer goods like cars and clothing. Government procurement policies favor domestic companies. Foreign investment in agricultural land is restricted. Brazil has the regions largest financial services market. The states role in credit markets has grown since 2008, and public banks now account for over 50 percent of loans to the private sector.

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Index of Economic Freedom - The Heritage Foundation

Peer-Reviewed Papers (published in academic journals):

1994|1996|1997|1998|1999|2000|2001|2002

2003|2004|2005|2006|2007 |2008 |2009 |2010 |2011

Other Papers Related to Economic Freedom: 1998-2007

If you know of any other papers current or forthcoming that should be included on this page, or have further information about any of these papers or authors, please write to freetheworld*at*fraserinstitute.org.

de Vanssay, X. and Z. A. Spindler (1994). Freedom and Growth: Do Constitutions Matter. Public Choice. 78, 3-4: 359-372.

This paper empirically investigates whether certain constitutional enumerations matter for economic growth. We find that negative (positive) rights tend to have a positive (negative) effect on economic growth, and that structural constraints have a more significant and larger effect than procedural constraints.

Uses the 'Scully and Slottje' Index as an independent variable. (See: Scully, GW and Slottje, D, (1991) "Ranking Economic Liberty Across Countries" Public Choice 69, pp. 151-2). The model estimates the steady-state solution of an (institutionally) augmented Solow growth model. The dependent variable is the logarithm of per-capita income. This is a cross-section analysis covering 100 countries.

de Vanssay, X. and Z. A. Spindler (1996). Constitutions, Institutions and Economic Convergence: An International Comparison. Journal for Studies in Economics and Econometrics. 20, 3 (November): 1-19.

Abstract: This paper explores empirically whether constitutional enumerations and economic freedom indexes affect economic convergence. Some constitutional features and economic freedom do affect convergence, though economic freedom is by far the more influential.

Uses the 'Scully and Slottje' Index as an independent variable. (See: Scully, GW and Slottje, D, (1991) "Ranking Economic Liberty Across Countries" Public Choice 69, pp. 151-2). The dependent variable is the average annual per capita growth rate. This is a cross-section analysis covering 109 countries.

Islam, Sadequil (1996). Economic Freedom, per Capita Income and Economic Growth. Applied Economics Letters 3: 595-97.

Examines the effect of economic freedom on income and growth in high-, middle-, and low-income country sets and finds that economic freedom is significant for a sample of all countries but only in some subsets.

Uses the precursor to Economic Freedom of the World, Measuring Economic Freedom, by James Gwartney, Walter Block and Robert Lawson, a chapter in Stephen Easton and Michael Walker (eds.), Rating Global Economic Freedom (Vancouver: The Fraser Institute, 1992). Measuring Economic Freedom is the main data source for institutional variables.

Paul, C.W.; Souder, W.E.; Schoening, N.C. (November 1996). The influence of government policies on innovation and technological advance. Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research of India. 55 (11): 851-859.

Petersmann, E.U. (June 1996). International competition rules for governments and for private business - The case for linking future WTO negotiations on investment, competition and environmental rules to reforms of anti-dumping laws. Journal of World Trade. 30 (3): 5-35.

Ali, Abdiweli M. (1997). Economic Freedom, Democracy and Growth. Journal of Private Enterprise 13 (Fall): 1-20.

This paper takes advantage of newly constructed measures of economic freedom to show the importance of economic freedom on growth. I find that economic freedom is a more robust determinant of growth than political freedom and civil liberty.

Uses summary ratings from Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 as one variable in a comparison of a number of institutional variables.

Anwar, S.T. (1997). Economic freedom of the world: 1975-1995. Journal of International Business Studies. 28 (4): 872-878.

Dornbusch, R. (1997). Brazil's incomplete stabilization and reform. Brookings Papers on Economic Accountability. (1): 367-404.

Easton, Steven T., and Michael A. Walker (1997). Income, Growth, and Economic Freedom. American Economic Review 87 (2) (May): 328-32.

Finds that economic freedom is an important explanatory variable for steady-state levels of income. The addition of a variable for economic freedom is also shown to increase the explanatory power of a neo-classical growth model.

Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 is the main data source for institutional variables.

Goldsmith, Arthur A. (1997). Economic Rights and Government in Developing Countries: Cross-National Evidence on Growth and Development. Studies in Comparative International Development 32 (2) (summer): 29-44.

The paper finds that developing countries that score better in protecting economic rights also tend to grow faster and to score higher in human development. In addition [the paper finds that] economic rights are associated with democratic government and with higher levels of average national income.

Uses summary ratings from Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 as one of a number of institutional variables.

Hakura, F.S. (April 1997). The Euro-Mediterranean policy: The implications of the Barcelona Declaration. Common Market Law Review. 34 (2): 337-366.

Hanke, Steve H., and Stephen J.K. Walters (1997). Economic Freedom, Prosperity, and Equality: A Survey. Cato Journal 17 (2) (Fall): 117-46.

The article compares several institutional indexes for content and explanatory power: Gerald Scully's studies, The Fraser Institute's Economic Freedom of the World, Freedom House's Economic Freedom Indicators, The Heritage Foundation's Indices of Economic Freedom, The International Institute for Management Development's World Competitiveness Yearbook 1996, The World Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 1996. Compares liberty and prosperity, equality and foreign policy implications. They find that economic freedom is positively correlated with per-capita GNP.

Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 is used as one variable in a comparison of a number of institutional variables.

Jordan, Jerry L. (1997). Jobs Creation and Government Policy. Cato Journal 16 (3) (Winter): 287-94.

Argues that employment-creating initiatives or job-creation policies hinder the creation of new technology and the process of "creative destruction." Also argues that the role of government monetary intervention in the economy should be limited to creating stable monetary policy.

Makes reference to the general conclusions of Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 regarding economic freedom and income and growth.

Download the paper. (PDF)

Mbaku, J.M. (December 1997). Africa in the post-Cold War era: Three strategies for survival. Journal of Asian and African Studies. 32 (3-4): 223-244.

Park, Walter G., and Juan Carlos Ginarte (1997). Intellectual Property Rights and Economic Growth. Contemporary Economic Policy 15 (July): 51-61.

The authors have compiled an index of intellectual property rights, and examine its effects on growth and the factors of production (investment, schooling, and R&D). The paper finds that IPRs affect economic growth indirectly by stimulating the accumulation of factor inputs like R&D and physical capital.

Uses summary ratings of Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 as a control variable for market institutions in the analysis.

Trebilcock, Michael J. (1997). What Makes Poor Countries Poor?: The Role of Institutional Capital in Economic Development. Chapter in The Law and Economics of Development, edited by Edgardo Buscaglia, William Ratliff and Robert Cooter. Greenwich: JAI Press.

Discusses the general conclusions regarding economic freedom and growth found in Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995.

Ayal, Eliezer B., and Karras Georgios (1998). Components of Economic Freedom and Growth: An Empirical Study. Journal of Developing Areas 32 (Spring): 327-38.

The paper uses regression analysis to examine the effect of the components of economic freedom on growth, output and investment and finds that "economic freedom enhances growth both via increasing total factor productivity and via enhancing capital accumulation." It also identifies components that have the highest statistical effects on these variables, with the aim of informing policy makers.

Uses component ratings from Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 as the main data source for institutional variables.

Download the paper. (PDF)

Chafuen, Alejandro (1998). Estado y Corrupcion. In Alejandro Chafuen and Eugenio Guzmn, Corrupcin y Gobierno (Santiago, Chile: Fundacin Libertad y Desarrollo): 45-98.

Finds that corruption is negatively related to economic freedom.

Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 and Transparency International are the main data-source for institutional variables.

Dawson, John W. (1998). Institutions, Investment, and Growth: New Cross-Country and Panel Data Evidence. Economic Inquiry 36 (October): 603-19.

This paper outlines the alternative channels through which institutions affect growth, and studies the empirical relationship between institutions, investment, and growth. The empirical results indicate that (i) free-market institutions have a positive effect on growth; (ii) economic freedom affects growth through both a direct effect on total factor productivity and an indirect effect on investment; (iii) political and civil liberties may stimulate investment; (iv) an important interaction exists between freedom and human capital investment; (v) Milton Friedman's conjectures on the relation between political and economic freedom are correct; (vi) promoting economic freedom is an effective policy toward facilitating growth and other types of freedom.

Uses Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 as the main data source for institutional variables.

De Haan, Jakob, and Clemens L.J. Sierman (1998). Further Evidence on the Relationship between Economic Freedom and Economic Growth. Public Choice 95: 363-80.

Primarily investigates the robustness of the index of economic freedom devised by Gerald Scully and D.J. Slottje and determines that the robustness of results depends heavily on how freedom is measured. Finds that some specifications are robust predictors of the growth rate of real per-capita GDP (1980-1992) but few are robust for investment share of GDP.

Empirical analysis on Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 is limited to correlation with the Scully and Slotjie's index. Suggests further empirical work be done on Economic Freedom of the World.

Elbadawi, I. and Schmidt-Hebbel, K. (December 1998). Macroeconomic policies, instability and growth in the world. Journal of African Economy. 7: 116-168 Suppl. 2.

Farr, W. Ken, Richard A. Lord, and J. Larry Wolfenbarger (1998). Economic Freedom, Political Freedom and Economic Well-Being: A Causality Analysis. Cato Journal 18 (2) (Fall): 247-62.

The paper uses Granger causality analysis to demonstrate that economic freedom "causes" economic well-being and economic well-being "causes" economic freedom. Additionally, the authors argue that economic well-being causes political freedom but that there is no causation flowing from political freedom to economic well-being. The paper also finds no evidence of a casual relationship in either direction between economic freedom and political freedom. Indirectly economic freedom causes political freedom through its effect on economic well-being.

Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 and the Freedom House index of political rights and civil liberties are the main data sources for institutional variables.

Download the paper. (PDF)

Ford, John B., Kiran W. Karande, and Bruce M. Seifert (1998). The Role of Economic Freedom in Explaining the Penetration of Consumer Durables. Journal of World Business 33 (1): 69-86.

The study examines the link between economic freedom (a measure of government intervention) and the penetration of three durable goods (televisions, radios and automobiles) across countries.

Cites conclusions of Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995; uses other indexes of economic freedom for empirical work.

Grubel, Herbert G. (1998). Economic Freedom and Human Welfare: Some Empirical Findings. Cato Journal 18 (2) (Fall): 287-304.

The paper compares economic freedom to income, growth, unemployment in the OECD, the UN Human Development Index, life expectancy, literacy, poverty, and income distribution. It finds that economic freedom does not have a cost in terms of income levels, income growth, unemployment rates, and human development.

Economic Freedom of the World: 1997 Annual Report is the main data source for institutional variables.

Download the paper. (PDF)

Gwartney, James, Randall Holcombe, and Robert Lawson (1998). The Scope of Government and the Wealth of Nations. Cato Journal 18 (2) (Fall): 163-90.

The paper examines the effect of the size of government in OECD countries upon economic growth. This paper draws on the authors' Joint Economic Committee Study, The Size and Functions of Government and Economic Growth.

Makes reference to the general conclusions regarding economic freedom and income and growth as published in Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 and Economic Freedom of the World: 1997 Annual Report.

Download the paper. (PDF)

Henderson, David (1998). The Changing Fortunes of Economic Liberalism. London: Institute of Economic Affairs.

A comprehensive review of the trends in economic liberalism in the last century. The book covers economic liberalism in thought and practice as well as discussing how the climate of political and popular opinion has both helped and constrained the development of liberal policy. One section uses the Economic Freedom of the World to discuss the progress made by countries engaging in economic reform and the appendix discusses the derivation, benefits, and limitations of the Economic Freedom of the World.

Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 is the only quantitative source for institutional variables.

Johnson, James P., and Tomasz Lenartowicz (1998). Culture, Freedom and Economic Growth: Do Cultural Values Explain Economic Growth? Journal of World Business 33 (4): 332-56.

The paper discusses which cultural values are associated with economic freedom, drawing on two international quantitative cultural indexes.

Uses the summary ratings from Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 as one of a number of institutional variables.

Johnson, Simon, Daniel Kaufmann, and Pablo Zoido-Lobaton (1998). Government in Transition: Regulatory Discretion and the Unofficial Economy. American Economic Review, Papers and Proceedings (May): 159-239.

Empirically studies the effect of institutional quality on the share of the unofficial economy in GDP.

Uses the component, Equality of Citizens under the Law and Access of Citizens to a Non-Discriminatory Judiciary, of Economic Freedom of the World: 1997 Annual Report as one of a number of institutional variables.

Kealey, T. (April 1998). Why science is endogenous: a debate with Paul David (and Ben Martin, Paul Romer, Chris Freeman, Luc Soete and Keith Pavitt). Research Policy. 26 (7-8): 897-923.

Lim, Linda Y.C. (1998). Whose "Model" Failed? Implications of the Asian Economic Crisis. Washington Quarterly 21 (3): 25-36.

The paper examines the conflicting interpretations of the role of governments and economic freedom in the success and subsequent crises in Asia.

Cites conclusions of Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995.

Mbaku, John Mukum, (1998). Constitutional Engineering and the Transition to Democracy in Post-Cold War Africa. The Independent Review 2 (4) (Spring): 501-17.

Discusses the constitutional guarantees necessary to secure economic freedom and why such guarantees are important. Focuses specifically on Africa.

Makes reference to the general conclusions of Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 regarding economic freedom and income and growth.

Milhaupt, Curtis (1998). Property Rights in Firms. Virginia Law Review 84: 1145-94.

Discusses how differences in property rights and corporate governance systems arise within differing institutional frameworks.

Uses the Property Rights component of Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 as one of a number of institutional variables in case-study analysis.

Nelson, Michael A., and Ram D. Singh, (1998). Democracy, Economic Freedom, Fiscal Policy and Growth in LDCs: A Fresh Look. Economic Development and Cultural Change 46 (4) (July): 677-96.

The study examines the effect of democracy on economic growth after controlling for a number of variables for the size of government and institutions. The study finds that it is not the redistributive policies of democratic governments that hinder development in developing countries but the lack of economic freedom.

Uses the precursor to Economic Freedom of the World, Measuring Economic Freedom, by James Gwartney, Walter Block and Robert Lawson, a chapter in Stephen Easton and Michael Walker (eds.), Rating Global Economic Freedom (Vancouver: The Fraser Institute, 1992). The summary ratings of Measuring Economic Freedom are used as one variable in a comparison of a number of variables for institutions and the size of government.

Norton, Seth W. (1998). Poverty, Property Rights, and Human Well-being: A Cross-national Study. Cato Journal 18 (2) (Fall): 233-45.

The paper compares property rights to indicators of development and determines that the well-being of the world's poorest inhabitants [is] sensitive to the cross-national specification of property rights. The paper shows that well-specified property rights enhance the well-being of the world's most impoverished.

Economic Freedom of the World: 1997 Annual Report and the Heritage Foundation's Indices of Economic Freedom are the main data source for institutional variables.

Download the paper. (PDF)

Norton, Seth W. (1998). Property Rights, the Environment, and Economic Well-Being. In Peter J. Hill and Roger E. Meiners (eds.), Who Owns the Environment (Rowman & Littlefield): 37-54.

Investigates whether countries with better property rights have better performance on environmental measures.

Uses the summary ratings of Economic Freedom of the World: 1975-1995 as one of four measures used as proxies for property rights.

Porket, J.L. (1998). Is the state in retreat? Politicka Ekonomie. 46 (6): 805-815.

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Economic Freedom of the World - Peer-reviewed papers ...

Donate Supreme Court Affirms Rule of Law; Separation of Powers in DAPA Ruling

June 23, 2016

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 23, 2016 Supreme Court Affirms Rule of Law; Separation of Powers in DAPA Ruling Nashville, Tennessee The Supreme Court of the United States handed down President Barack Obama a major defeat by deadlocking on the United States v Texas, No. 15-674, a case concerning the legality of an

March 29, 2016

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 29, 2016 Latinos for Tennessee Urges Passage of HB2414 Nashville, Tennessee Today, Raul Lopez, Executive Director for Latinos for Tennessee, a statewide organization dedicated to promoting and defending faith, family, freedom and fiscal responsibility to the Latino community in Tennessee issued a statement concerning Tennessee House Bill 2414,

March 23, 2016

President Barack Obama made history this week by becoming the first sitting United States President in nearly nine decades to visit the communist island of Cuba. As a Cuban that fled to the United States seeking refuge from Communism, it has been tough to watch images of the president shaking hands with Cuban President Raul

March 17, 2016

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 17, 2016 Media contact: Israel Ortega izzy.ortega@gmail.com (202) 345-9130 Latinos for Tennessee Salutes Lieutenant Governor Ron Ramsey Nashville, Tennessee For over two decades, Tennesseans have been able to rely on Lieutenant Governor Ron Ramsey as a tireless advocate for freedom, limited government and the free enterprise system. Latinos

February 27, 2016

Even as the number of Latinos in Nashville and elsewhere around the country grows, misinformation abounds about the fastest and youngest growing demographic community. The biggest misconception is that Latinos all speak in one voice. This is patently false and does a great deal of disservice to the millions of individuals who are unique and

February 11, 2016

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 11, 2016 Media contact: Israel Ortega izzy.ortega@gmail.com (202) 345-9130 Tennessee House Honors Tommy Vallejos, Latinos for Tennessee Board Chairman Nashville, Tennessee Today, the Tennessee House honored Clarksville, TN County Commissioner Tommy Vallejos, a gang-member turned U.S. Army Gulf War Veteran and now Pastor, for his contributions to the

October 12, 2015

September 16, 2015

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 16, 2015 Media contact: Israel Ortega iortega@crispcomm.com (202) 345-9130 Latinos for Tennessee Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month Makes Appeal to Policymakers for Greater School Choice to Help Close Educational Achievement Gap Nashville, Tennessee Latinos for Tennessee, an organization dedicated to providing the Hispanic community in the state with information

August 24, 2015

When the job numbers came out early this month, they were not pretty especially for the Latino community. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the unemployment rate for the Latino community had risen to 6.8% well above the national average of 5.3%. These numbers suggest that in spite of claims that

July 14, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 14, 2015 Media contact: Israel Ortega iortega@crispcomm.com (202) 345-9130 Latinos for Tennessee Co-Hosts Nashville Mayoral Forum on Tuesday Six candidates for Mayor confirmed to attend; Metro Council Candidates also confirmed Nashville, Tennessee Six of the seven candidates vying to become the next mayor of Nashville are set to appear before

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Latinos For Tennessee | Faith, Family, Freedom, and Fiscal ...

The budget meeting went well today. With several website/iOS development invoices coming in this month there should be ~$4,000+ extra at the end of the month to pay off credit cards. There is a possibility that this money may go to buying a used vehicle and selling the newer vehicle. This would free up ~$600/month of cashflow and knock out about 30K of car loan debt! My financial advisor is crunching these numbers and we will decide if its better to pay off the cards or buy a used car/sell newer car. Ill update this Friday.

Had another great meeting this week! Unfortunately there is ~$550 of vehicle and income tax adjustments that are due that wont go towards my our debt

There is ~$800 budgeted towards a small personal loan that will be paid off this month as well. I am expecting ~$2700 worth of development work to come in this month and am expecting a $2500 bonus (drastically reduced by taxes Im sure) in my first June paycheck. My hope is that this month well be able to pay off close to 3 credit cards at the end of the month!

Still feeling positive and making progress!

Fantastic meeting with financial planner today. Great news! Since we started the blog weve paid down several credit cards!! Last month I was able to pay off the two smallest cards. Today I was able to pay off another credit card as well! Im awaiting several payments for invoices for development work for several companies. When they arrive I should be able to allocate them for two more cards possibly in the next few weeks!

Current net worth:

Focusing on paying off personal debt is my number one priority. I do, however, enjoy reading various perspectives on what people do to achieve financial independence.

Currently my thought-process is more of Dave Ramsey approach and working with gazelle intensity to pay off debt.

I spent part of this past weekend looking through various websites and reading about personal finance. Im sure everyone has read some, if not all, of the websites I began reading through but wanted to include them in on this site as a reference for readers and myself, just in case.

The sites I began reading through, from the very first post I might add, were:

Lots of fantastic information on these sites. Ill keep adding more resources as I come across other great websites.

I met with my financial planner today. This was a crazy month with my Mrs. FC traveling (a trip planned prior to working on finances) but will be able to pay at least $2,000 on credit cards this month. An additional $1,200 came about because of an iOS app I helped to develop last year for free. The product owner decided to allocate funds toward it. It was for a non-profit. Next month Im aiming for $3,500.

There will be, hopefully, a minimum of $3,200 total will be applied to credit card balances at the end of May! Whoop whoop!

I decided to start writing about my personal finances because I felt that it would help to keep my motivated on my way to becoming 100% debt free. I also wanted to document the process for myself and my family. I especially wanted to have a narrative for my three small children so that one day they could read what their mother and I had to do in order to dig ourselves out of our financial hole. Hoping that they would never have to go to through this and that their parents loved them very much.

I would like this site to ultimately consist of 3 things:

I could see this possibly evolving over time but wanted to point out those main objectives.

Currently our financial coach at Artisan Finance is having us stay one month ahead with our expenses. This has been fantastic and I would encourage everyone to have at least one, if not more, months of expenses in the bank. After we have the next months expenses locked in any excess funds at the end of the month are used to pay down debt. At that time I would like to update the total debt outstanding on this site to keep track of that as a way for me to see progress.

I have learned a lot in the past year about financial planning and goal setting. I have asked and received may additional resources along the way from people and sources online. I would like to document articles, tweets, podcasts and websites I come across. Ill add them in posts and try to keep a list up-to-date for people that find the site as these are great for motivation.

This year is critical. There should be, and will, be major milestones. The goal for 2016 is to sell our vehicle ($35,000) and buy a older vehicle for ~$5,000. Credit cards ($16,000) should be gone. Medical bills in collections should be paid off and cleared as well ($4,000). These will definitely be documented and Im going to celebrate!

I wanted to include our starting point on the About page as a reference to where we began.

Below is our current status:

Any feedback is welcome, send me an email through the contact page.

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Fiscal Cricket Figuring out this financial freedom thing.

The Path to Prosperity: A Blueprint for American Renewal

House Budget Committee - Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Resolution

Read Full Report

Read Facts and Summary

A Contrast in Visions

For years, both political parties have made empty promises to the American people. Unfortunately, the President refuses to take responsibility for avoiding the debt-fueled crisis before us. Instead, his policies have put us on the path to debt and decline.

The President and his partys leaders refuse to take action in the face of the most predictable economic crisis in our nations history. The Presidents budget calls for more spending and more debt, while Senate Democrats for over 1,000 days have refused to pass a budget. This unserious approach to budgeting has serious consequences for American families, seniors, and the next generation.

We reject the broken politics of the past. The American people deserve real solutions and honest leadership. Thats what were delivering with our budget, The Path to Prosperity. House Republicans are advancing a plan of action for American renewal.

Our budget:

Cuts government spending to protect hardworking taxpayers;

Tackles the drivers of our debt, so our troops dont pay the price for Washingtons failure to take action;

Restores economic freedom and ensures a level playing field for all by putting an end to special-interest favoritism and corporate welfare

Reverses the Presidents policies that drive up gas prices, and instead promotes an all-of the-above strategy for unlocking American energy production to help lower costs, create jobs, and reduce dependence on foreign oil.

Strengthens health and retirement security by taking power away from government bureaucrats and empowering patients instead with control over their own care;

Reforms our broken tax code to spur job creation and economic opportunity by lowering rates, closing loopholes, and putting hardworking taxpayers ahead of special interests.

At its core, this plan of action is about putting an end to empty promises from a bankrupt government and restoring the fundamental American promise: ensuring our children have more opportunity and inherit a stronger America than our parents gave us.

READ FULL REPORT

The FY2013 Budget Resolution: Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for FY 2013 as Reported The Report on Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for FY 2013

Introduction by Chairman Ryan

Appendix I: Summary Tables

Appendix II: Reprioritizing Sequester Savings

CBO Analysis

Views and Estimates of Committees of the House Additional Information:

A Budget Presentation - Charts

Additional Fiscal Comparisons on The Path to Prosperity

The GOP Budget and America's Future - Wall Street Journal op-ed, By Paul Ryan

See the rest here:

Fiscal Year 2013 Budget | Budget.House.Gov

Fiscal freedom is a measure of the tax burden imposed by government. It includes direct taxes, in terms of the top marginal tax rates on individual and corporate incomes, and overall taxes, including all forms of direct and indirect taxation at all levels of government, as a percentage of GDP. Thus, the fiscal freedom component is composed of three quantitative factors:

Fiscal freedom scores are calculated with a quadratic cost function to reflect the diminishing revenue returns from very high rates of taxation. The data for each factor are converted to a 100-point scale using the following equation:

Fiscal Freedomij= 100 (Factorij)2

where Fiscal Freedomij represents the fiscal freedom in country i for factor j; Factorij represents the value (based on a scale of 0 to 100) in country i for factor j; and is a coefficient set equal to 0.03. The minimum score for each factor is zero, which is not represented in the printed equation but was utilized because it means that no single high tax burden will make the other two factors irrelevant.

As an example, in the 2013 Index, Mauritius has a flat rate of 15 percent for both individual and corporate tax rates, which yields a score of 93.3 for each of the two factors. Mauritiuss overall tax burden as a portion of GDP is 18.5 percent, yielding a tax burden factor score of 89.7. When the three factors are averaged together, Mauritiuss overall fiscal freedom score becomes 92.1.

Sources. Unless otherwise noted, the Index relies on the following sources for information on taxation, in order of priority: Deloitte, International Tax and Business Guide Highlights; International Monetary Fund, Staff Country Report, Selected Issues and Statistical Appendix, and Staff Country Report, Article IV Consultation, 20092012; PricewaterhouseCoopers, Worldwide Tax Summaries, 20092012; countries investment agencies; other government authorities (embassy confirmations and/or the countrys treasury or tax authority); and Economist Intelligence Unit, Country Commerce and Country Finance, 20092012.

For information on tax burden as a percentage of GDP, the primary sources (in order of priority) were Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development data; Eurostat, Government Finance Statistics data; African Development Bank and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, African Economic Outlook 2012; International Monetary Fund, Staff Country Report, Selected Issues, and Staff Country Report, Article IV Consultation, 20092012; Asian Development Bank, Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific, 20092012; and individual contacts from government agencies and multinational organizations such as the IMF and World Bank.

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Fiscal Freedom: How Tax Burden Affects Economic Freedom