California Pioneers Subsidized Housing for Public Employees

By Edward Ring
12/04/2019
When it comes to affordable housing, what California’s state legislators have done epitomizes what happens when you have a government bureaucracy that serves itself instead of the public, one that is under the complete control of special interests. They have enacted laws that make it nearly impossible for the private sector to build homes, which...

TAGS: affordable housing, cronyism, Edward Ring, special interests, subsidies

Curbing Corporate Welfare and Government Funded Political Campaigns

By Edward Ring
03/27/2019
Should the government spend money to benefit private companies? Should the government spend money to influence voters? In California, they do this all the time. There are laws specifically written to prevent this, but they are undermined by aggressive exploitation of loopholes combined with lax enforcement. And to be fair, genuine ambiguity often makes it...

TAGS: corporate welfare, cronyism, Government, Labor, subsidies, taxes

California Cronyism and its Consequences

By Edward Ring
02/27/2019
Crony capitalism is an economy in which businesses thrive not as a result of risk, but rather as a return on money amassed through a nexus between a business class and the political class. This is done using state power to crush genuine competition in handing out permits, government grants, special tax breaks, or other...

TAGS: corporate cronyism, special interests, subsidies

Anaheim to Award Biggest Tax Subsidy in City History to Disney, but Union Leaders Remain Quiet

By David Schwartzman
07/12/2016
ANAHEIM, Calif. — There’s evidence of a very California coup in the city of Anaheim, where an unusual alliance of city officials, government union leaders and developers is advancing its own financial interests at the expense of everyone else. Their current goal: a council vote Tuesday night by the Anaheim city council to offer major...

TAGS: Anaheim, crony capitalism, government unions, subsidies