There are many myths regarding public policy. Those myths are particularly prevalent among people who purport to do economic research. One of those myths says that when you study Wyoming taxes you have to remove severance taxes from the equation because Wyoming is so exceptionally dependent on those; severance taxes, it is said, make Wyoming look l...

Earlier this year, after being contacted by Tim Thorson, I toured the Juvenile Services Center in Laramie County. Mr. Thorson is a member of the Laramie County Community Juvenile Services Joint Powers Board, which oversees many aspects of the Juvenile Services Center. Upon our arrival, Mr. Thorson introduced me to Captain Michael Sorensen, who is i...

The Wyoming Department of Family Services (DFS) has proposed legislation to reform the current Child in Need of Supervision (CHINS) system to a Family in Need of Supervision (FINS) program. The underlying premise of FINS (sometimes called Families in Need of Services, Persons in Need of Services or PINS) as enacted in many other states including Ar...

Over at the Wyoming Liberty Group, I've written extensively about campaign finance reform and its danger to the First Amendment. Through Republic Free Choice, I'd like to examine this theme a bit more deeply. John Adams once expressed the familiar phrase that ours is a "government of laws and not of men." This statement means that in a free society...

Steve Klein talks to Glenn Woods on Boldrepublic.com about changes to Wyoming's campaign finance and ballot laws. 

This week, the people in Virginia spoke and no amount of money could stop them. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor suffered a stinging loss to primary challenger Dave Brat. For those who despair the role of money in elections this primary upset is a curious case. Cantor, who raised nearly $5.5 million in funding, enjoyed a 26:1 cash advantage over B...

Coal is a major industry in Wyoming. According to the most recent data available, Wyoming is not only the nation's top coal producer, it produces well over three times as much coal as West Virginia, the nation's second largest. Mining in Wyoming accounts for of U.S. coal production.1 Mining (excluding oil and gas production)2 accounts for nearly $1...

Wyoming incarcerates more juveniles per capita than any other state in the country, with the exception of South Dakota. According to the Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF) report entitled Youth residing in juvenile detention and correctional facilities, Wyoming currently ranks 49th with only South Dakota higher at 50th in juvenile incarcerations. The...

Will it leave citizens freezing in the dark? Back in 2012, Wyoming Governor Matt Mead announced that Microsoft would build a $112 million data center in Cheyenne. Since then, Microsoft announced two data center expansions, for a total investment of about $450 million. Sounds great, but is it? Data centers move here because, in addition to taxpayer-...

Steve Klein speaks with KGAB's Gary Freeman about the changes to Wyoming Campaign Finance law, required after the Supreme Court's decision in McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission. June 6, 2014 – KGAB.