Badger Institute

Drawing sidelined Wisconsin workers back to the labor force

Wisconsin employers are struggling to find qualified workers. At the same time, the state’s labor force participation rate is well below the peak reached during the last two economic expansions. What can employers and policy-makers do to get workers off the sidelines?

Wisconsin: A Blueprint
for More Workers

In response to a tight state labor market, our latest report offers strategies for increasing labor force participation. Authors Ike Brannon and Andrew Hanson find that increasing the participation rate by just 1 percentage point would increase gross state product by a whopping $667 annually per resident.

Online sales tax ruling opens door
for Wisconsin tax reform

Wisconsin will likely collect an estimated $120 million in additional annual online sales tax revenue following the U.S. Supreme Court's recent South Dakota v. Wayfair ruling. In a policy brief, the Badger Institute and the Tax Foundation provide ideas for using this revenue to address structural issues with the state's tax code.

Another reason new federal law
should prompt Wisconsin tax reform

A whole lot more Wisconsinites are about to feel the sting of high state and local taxes (SALT) in ways they never have before — a fact that will lead either to a whole lot more dissatisfaction with elected officials or to substantive tax reform in Madison. By Badger Institute visiting fellow Jay Miller.

Save the date: Oct. 23

The Badger Institute proudly presents Jason Riley at our Annual Dinner on Tuesday, Oct. 23. The columnist, author and commentator will speak on the tragic lack of educational, social and economic advancement among many African-Americans in the United States and why black political success hasn't made a difference.

SAVE THE DATE!

Join us Tuesday, Oct. 23, for our Annual Dinner — featuring Jason Riley, Wall Street Journal columnist, Manhattan Institute senior fellow, 2018 Bradley Prize winner, Fox News commentator and author of “False Black Power?” and “Please Stop Helping Us.”

He'll speak on the tragic lack of educational, social and economic advancement among many African-Americans in America and why black political success hasn’t made a difference.

For more information or to register, click here.

What's new from the Badger Institute

Job Opportunity: Policy Analyst

The Badger Institute seeks a Policy Analyst for its newest initiative, the Center of Opportunity. The Analyst will deploy cutting-edge research and compelling storytelling to advance criminal justice reform, occupational licensing reform and poverty alleviation.
Learn more about this new role at the Badger Institute.

Wisconsin: A Blueprint for More Workers

Report provides an overview of labor force participation in Wisconsin. Increasing the rate by just 1 percentage point would increase state GDP by $667 annually per resident. By Badger Institute visiting fellows Ike Brannon and Andrew Hanson.

Interactive map of labor force participation rates

An interactive map shows the labor force participation rate for every Wisconsin county. Washington County enjoys the highest participation rate (74.8%), while Adams County has the lowest rate (48.6%). View the map here.

Rethinking Wisconsin’s Highways

The Badger Institute this summer hosted transportation expert Bob Poole to discuss Rethinking Wisconsin’s Highways. Poole made the case that highways should be treated like public utilities to create a self-supporting infrastructure that responds to economic, not political, realities. He promoted public-private partnerships and user-based tolls to address the congestion, maintenance, funding battles and pork barrel spending associated with the status quo.

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Badger Institute's new visiting fellows

Ike Brannon (left), president of the consulting firm Capital Policy Analytics in Washington, D.C., and Andrew Hanson, associate professor of economics at Marquette University, are providing the institute with research and commentary on a wide variety of topical issues ranging from labor force needs to immigration to minimum wages to tax subsidies. Read more here.

Diggings Spring 2018

► Time to burn: So few fires to fight. By Dave Daley.
► Government grows at expense of private sector. By Dave Lubach.
► Clinging to an old picture. By Mike Nichols.
► Regional approach offers solution. By Janet Weyandt.
► Conservative young Wisconsin women defy stereotypes. By Emily Jashinsky.
► From the ground up: A profile of Badger Mining Corp. By Betsy Thatcher.
► Tax incremental financing is a recipe for abuse. By Richard Esenberg.
► TIF: Valuable tool or crony capitalism? By Ken Wysocky.
► Eschewing marriage and celebrating marriage. By Marie Rohde.
► Marriage is a foreign concept to some. By Michael Jahr.
► The road to driverless transit. By Baruch Feigenbaum.

Licensure reform levels playing field for aspiring chiropractors

Madison — A bill signed by Gov. Scott Walker on April 16 will allow aspiring chiropractors who pass the national board exam to secure a license in Wisconsin without having to attain an arbitrarily higher score set by the state. Read more here.

Institute launches Center for Opportunity

The Center will focus on public policies related to poverty alleviation, criminal justice, upward mobility and occupational licensing. The Institute also announces Visiting Fellows Program.

New federal tax law should prod Wisconsin to enact tax reform

Residents in high-tax states like ours are stung harder by cap on state/local tax deduction. By visiting fellow Jay Miller.

Licensure reform helps barbers, cosmetologists

Madison — Barbers, cosmetologists and other beauty professionals will now be able to practice their professions with fewer regulatory burdens after Gov. Scott Walker signed into law reforms that will reduce complicated and costly licensing requirements. Read more here.