David Kersten is an expert in public policy research and analysis, particularly budget, tax, labor, and fiscal issues. He currently serves as the president of the Kersten Institute for Governance and Public Policy – a moderate non-partisan policy think tank and public policy consulting organization. The institute specializes in providing knowledge, evidence, and training to public agencies, elected officials, policy advocates, organization, and citizens who desire to enact public policy change.
It was with great surprise that I learned yesterday that Bay Area Rapid Transit management had reached a “tentative deal” with the BART unions that would increase worker wages by 10.8% over four years starting in mid-2017, according to a San Francisco Chronicle report. The “tentative deal” comes more than one year before the end...
As it turns out, the impacts of the increase in minimum wage on workers at the very bottom of the pay scales might be just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the ramifications of the minimum wage increase. Nothing short of a “tsunami” appears headed towards state and local government balance sheets as...
Initially, it looked like Governor Jerry Brown (D) was going to drive a much harder bargain with the public sector labor unions, but in the end he gave in too easily by granting concessions that would primarily benefit his legacy but not the State of California, California businesses and California taxpayers. I know the polling...
a new form will got here