Blog

How Online Education Can Open Doors for Rural Students

04.15.2024

Seventy-two percent of America is rural, yet these areas are only home to 14  percent of the population. Rural communities across the U.S. have higher poverty rates and lower education levels compared to those in urban and suburban areas. While 41 percent of urban adults have a college degree, only 28 percent of rural adults do. While…

Presentation to FCC Open Internet Roundtable

04.12.2024

Presentation of Dr. Michael Mandel, Progressive Policy Institute, to FCC Commissioner Gomez Open Internet Roundtable, 4/11/24 Thank you for the opportunity to contribute to this roundtable. I’m Michael Mandel, Chief Economist of the Progressive Policy Institute. The Progressive Policy Institute is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C. Our mission…

Trade Fact of the Week: Tariff revenue in FY2023: $80 billion. Reps. Fletcher and Pettersen have some very good questions about who is paying this money.

04.10.2024

FACT: Tariff revenue in FY2023: $80 billion. Reps. Fletcher and Pettersen have some very good questions about who is paying this money. THE NUMBERS: Tax revenue by source, Fiscal Year 2023* – Tariff system: $80.3 billion Fuel tax for trust fund: $42.2 billion Estate and gift tax: $33.7 billion Tobacco excise tax: $10.3 billion Alcohol…

PPI Down Under: The Economic Impact of Weakening Encryption in Australia & New Zealand

04.04.2024

The Progressive Policy Institute traveled to Australia and New Zealand in mid-March 2024 to present our latest report “Backdoors and Balance Sheets: The Consequences of Weakening Encryption on the Future of Work.” The paper was authored by PPI’s Colin Mortimer and guest author Joel Gladwin, a former Special Adviser to two Secretaries of State at…

Trade Fact of the Week: The Port of Baltimore handles 10% of U.S. vehicle trade and 94% of Ethiopian birdseed imports.

04.03.2024

FACT: The Port of Baltimore handles 10% of U.S. vehicle trade and 94% of Ethiopian birdseed imports. THE NUMBERS: Arrivals of Ethiopian “noug” imports, 2023 – Port of Baltimore: 7,095 tons Port of New York:    429 tons All other:        6 tons   WHAT THEY MEAN: Last week’s destruction of the Key…

Trade Fact of the Week: Trump campaign proposes the highest U.S. tariff since 1937.

03.27.2024

FACT: Trump campaign proposes the highest U.S. tariff since 1937. THE NUMBERS: U.S.’ “trade-weighted average tariff”* – 2022 2.8% 2016 1.5% 1990 3.3% 1960 7.2% 1937 15.6% WHAT THEY MEAN: The 2024 election’s core questions are more basic than policy choices. Such as: Can a person who has attempted to overthrow a settled election and…

The FTC’s Odd View of Online Inflation

03.27.2024

During the inflationary surge of 2021-2022, PPI demonstrated that the inflation rate for digital goods and services was lower than the inflation rate for “physical-economy” goods and services such as food, energy, and housing. In the digital sector, price increases were moderated by faster productivity growth and higher investment rates. In particular, key digital sectors…

What the DMA Experiment Means for Japan

03.26.2024

Japan should keep a close eye on the European Union’s recent rollout of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). As the results of the EU regulatory experiment unfold over the next year, taking account of the lessons — and downsides — of the DMA could greatly improve Japan’s digital regulatory efforts. First, the economic backdrop: The…

Biden’s Budget Tax on Executive Compensation is an Imperfect Solution

03.21.2024

Skyrocketing executive pay has become an increasingly important indicator of income inequality and has prompted questions as to what policy tools can rein it in. The Biden administration recently proposed to tackle the problem by prohibiting corporations from deducting salaries over $1 million for all their employees. Although this approach may be an improvement to…

The Cautionary Tale of ESG Oversight: Arkansas Should Heed Texas’ $886 Million Cost for Prioritizing Politics

03.20.2024

With the creation of a new ESG Oversight Committee, Arkansas has made a substantial shift in the state’s changing investment and sustainability landscape. The committee was fully formed last month when Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders appointed Tom Lundstrom as the committee’s fifth and final member. This committee is charged with identifying financial service providers who…

How Postsecondary Online Education is Empowering Today’s Students

03.20.2024

Today’s postsecondary students look different than they did 20 years ago. Their paths today are not as linear, with many students opting out of going to college right after high school. As a result, today’s students are more diverse than ever before: 34% are adults, over half are first-generation students, 22% are parents, and the…

Trade Fact of the Week: U.S. carbon emissions fell by 190 million tons in 2023.

03.20.2024

FACT: U.S. carbon emissions fell by 190 million tons in 2023. THE NUMBERS: Energy-related carbon emissions, 2023* – World total: 37.8 billion tons Change by country China: +565 million tons India: +190 million tons World: +410 million tons Japan: -100 million tons United States: -190 million tons European Union: -220 million tons *International Energy Agency,…