In mid-January, an activist group moms4housing illegally moved into and were subsequently expelled from a vacant building in Oakland, to much media attention. Tony Francois of the Pacific Legal Foundation examines, in an exclusive interview with Opportunity Now, the legal and policy issues surrounding the occupation.
Read MoreCalifornia has overreached in its effort to address the challenges in today’s tech platform gig-work economy, notes Brendan Rawson of San Jose Jazz in CalMatters.
Read MoreSan Jose’s upcoming Measure E puts no financial controls on how much the new subsidized “affordable” units funded by the measure will cost. A similar measure (HHH) in Los Angeles resulted in eye-popping price tags for taxpayers, with new studios costing more than $600k, each, much more than the cost of market-rate units. Victoria Taft of PJ Media surveys the damage.
Read MoreWhy our hard-left, pro-union County Supervisors are locked in a wage struggle with the union employees who put them there (hint: think pensions). Edward Ring of the California Policy Center explains in the California Globe.
Read MoreLocal media recently claimed that Proposition 13, California’s successful 1978 initiative which protected property owners from runaway tax increases, was “uneven,” “skewed,” and put disparate "burdens" on new homeowners. Jon Coupal of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association explains why these complaints don’t withstand scrutiny.
Read MoreLower-income and non-white Americans are benefiting the most from recent growth. Deroy Murdock reports in NationalReview.com.
Read MoreOnce the bete noir solely of libertarians, exclusionary zoning polices are now being questioned by a growing array of city planners and politicians (although not in Santa Clara County). Robert Parker of Market Watch reports.
Read MoreReaders' choices for the top Opportunity Now stories and issues from 2019.
Read MoreIn August, intern Simon Gilbert’s close analysis took apart local progressive’s argument against the Google Diridon development, finding it full of dubious assumptions and cherry-picked data.
Read MorePierluigi Oliverio of Silicon Valley Taxpayer’s Association focused in on why our tax burden is so high and we get decreasing levels of service, largely faulting our pension system
Read MoreHousing expert Scott Beyer of the Market Urbanism Report unpacked the flawed assumptions and counterproductive impact of San Jose’s zoning regulations.
Read MoreEugene Vokohl, law professor at UCLA, takes a close look at the County Supervisors’ efforts to limit free speech during elections.
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