Economy

No, it’s not the Onion; it’s the New York Times. Columnist Ginia Bellafante explains: On Jan. 1, the new minimum wage, set at $15 an hour, went into effect in New York City, and most companies employing more than 10 people have to pay it. … But…

Bill McMorris of the Washington Free Beacon highlights the latest estimates of costs associated with raising the minimum wage. Academics, workers, and small business owners say the Democratic push to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour could cut 2 million jobs and hurt the workers lawmakers…

Familiar faces will lead the General Assembly as it starts work again in 2019. Rick Henderson offers a legislative preview for the next edition of Carolina Journal Radio. Donald van der Vaart assesses the political impact of a movement to base investments on environmental, social, and governance…

Although legislative gridlock is a top concern of the American public, Investor’s Business Daily argues that gridlock saves the American tax payer a lot of money. Among other things, rates of spending are checked, and other potentially costly programs are held at bay by the lack of consensus. However,…

It’s double taxation, it’s unfair, and North Carolina should do something about it. From Roy Cordato comes this commentary about much-needed capital gains tax reform. Here’s why: In North Carolina, capital gains are taxed the same as regular, wage income – at a flat rate of 5.25 percent. Under…

I enjoy watching changes in consumer buying behavior and the adapting marketplace. It’s the classic scenario of ‘find a need and fill it.’ Smart entrepreneurs will always have their eye toward emerging trends. Today comes the story of how the transportation industry is booming due to demand for so-called…

Alan Greenspan isn’t wishy washy about the proposal to soak the wealthy with a 70 percent income tax — the idea endorsed by Dem. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York. From CNBC comes Greenspan’s response to the congresswoman who identifies herself as a democratic socialist: Without getting into the…

Editors at Investor’s Business Daily remind us that a key indicator of economic activity continues to look good. There’s a word to describe December’s jobs report: Wow! With 312,000 new jobs in December, employment growth was much stronger than anyone anticipated. That’s especially true given recent squishy economic…