Niskanen Center

@niskanen
932 Followers
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465 Posts
A moderate, nonpartisan think tank that works to promote an open society and change public policy through direct engagement in the policymaking process.
Niskanen CenterOct 18, 2024
How did a Yale professor shape American modernism, work as a WWII intelligence agent, and establish American Studies? Tune in to The Vital Center with @RuleandRuin and @gbarnhisel for a deep dive into Norman Holmes Pearson’s legacy. https://buff.ly/3UgDOUd
Exploring Norman Holmes Pearson’s legacy, with Greg Barnhisel - Niskanen Center

Norman Holmes Pearson, who in the middle years of the twentieth century was a professor of English and American Studies at Yale University, is now a largely forgotten figure — and someone who was never that well known during his lifetime.

Niskanen Center - Improving Policy, Advancing Moderation
Niskanen CenterOct 18, 2024

A potential $1,000 baby bonus in New York would target families that needed it most.

Full overview here: https://buff.ly/3U4jTI0

Niskanen CenterOct 16, 2024
New DOE National Transmission Planning Study finds:
- The U.S. must AT LEAST double the size of its grid to meet power demands by 2050.
- Grid expansion could save up to $1.80 for every dollar invested
- We have to expand interregional transfer capacity
https://buff.ly/3BVWzWC
DOE finalizes long-awaited National Transmission Planning study - Niskanen Center

This month, the Department of Energy (DOE) released its National Transmission Planning (NTP) study), a much-anticipated follow-up to its 2023 National Transmission Needs study.

Niskanen Center - Improving Policy, Advancing Moderation
Niskanen CenterOct 15, 2024

Even when we pass laws, we fail to implement them.

This has become really pronounced in the internet age. https://buff.ly/3NsA5it

AI meets the cascade of rigidity - Niskanen Center

In recent years, the US government at all levels has made significant but incomplete progress catching up to the expectations and ways of working of the Internet era. Nowhere near done with its first digital transformation, though, it has now been jolted rudely into the age of AI.

Niskanen Center - Improving Policy, Advancing Moderation
Niskanen CenterOct 14, 2024

The government’s use of AI is not the goal. The government’s ability to deliver on its promises is the goal, and that will likely involve using AI.

https://buff.ly/3NsA5it

AI meets the cascade of rigidity - Niskanen Center

In recent years, the US government at all levels has made significant but incomplete progress catching up to the expectations and ways of working of the Internet era. Nowhere near done with its first digital transformation, though, it has now been jolted rudely into the age of AI.

Niskanen Center - Improving Policy, Advancing Moderation
Niskanen CenterOct 14, 2024
In a world of strained budgets, it’s actually easier to commit to a tax on pollution than a subsidy. https://buff.ly/4f2FAAy
Carbon pricing deserves to make a comeback

The right idea for a world where budget math matters

Slow Boring
Niskanen CenterOct 10, 2024

What happens when gov tech embraces agile? @USDOT's FLOW project is a great case study! We got collaboration, trust, and iterative learning transformed supply chain management.

Rethinking funding models can lead to lasting change, writes @pahlkadot. https://buff.ly/3N6Yomd

Don’t Fight Paper With Paper

How To Build a Great Digital Product With the Change in the Couch Cushions

Eating Policy
Niskanen CenterOct 7, 2024

53 years ago, when NEPA was written, it was 7 pages long. Today, it has “metastasized” to over 2000 pages.

If process and procedure can metastasize like this, then they are a cancer. https://buff.ly/3Y6F1zI

We have cancer

When procedures proliferate unchecked, they impair our bureaucratic functions. We should treat this as seriously as we treat cancer.

Eating Policy
Niskanen CenterOct 3, 2024

In 1970, NEPA was 7 pages. Today it's 2000.

We have no way of checking this bloat; we have no tools for procedural deflation.
https://www.eatingpolicy.com/p/we-have-cancer

We have cancer

When procedures proliferate unchecked, they impair our bureaucratic functions. We should treat this as seriously as we treat cancer.

Eating Policy
Niskanen CenterOct 2, 2024

"We know what the jurisdictions with more abundant housing look like: more elastic housing supply."

But politicians will use housing as a vehicle to talk about what they want to talk about. And that's going to get us off-track, warns @mattyglesias. https://buff.ly/3XRVaYI
.

Housing policy isn't that complicated

If you want more affordable homes, make it legal to build more. If you don't, then don't.

Slow Boring