The Heritage Foundation Papers: Government Reform

Time for Congress to Work Under the Same Rules as the Private Sector

The Heritage Foundation - James Sherk and Ryan O'Donnell — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 13:07:22 EST

All too often, Congress imposes restrictive and burdensome regulations on employers in the private sector--while conveniently exempting itself from these same rules. Many Members of Congress are currently urging passage of the misnamed Employee Free Choice Act and RESPECT Act, which, again, would leave Congress untouched. This paper demonstrates the hypocrisy of such an approach, and urges Congress to either swallow its own medicine or to extend the same rights to the private sector that it claims for itself.

Democracy in Danger: What States Can Do to Safeguard America's Election System

The Heritage Foundation - Hans A. von Spakovsky — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:27:11 EST

In order to have an election process in which we can be confident that everyone who is eligible gets to vote, the vote is counted, and the vote is not diluted by fraudulent votes, we have to have security and integrity throughout the entire process, from voter registration to the casting of the actual votes and the counting of ballots. Unfortunately, because of various problems with election laws and procedures in many states, we cannot currently ensure that such security is in place. State legislators can take several steps to safeguard America's election system and to improve the integrity of the election process.

America's Military Voters: Re-enfranchising the Disenfranchised

The Heritage Foundation - Hans A. von Spakovsky and M. Eric Eversole — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 10:08:39 EST

In recent elections, only 5 to 20 percent of eligible military voters cast absentee ballots that were counted. This shockingly low participation rate is as severe as any in our nation's history, including that which resulted in the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to strike down barriers to voting for black Americans.

Contracting Out in Defense: Lessons from the British Experience for the U.S. and Great Britain

The Heritage Foundation - Ted R. Bromund, Ph.D. — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:34:59 EST

Contracting out is an important instrument and should to be employed effectively. The British method of financing it has encouraged the growth of the state while creating risks and perverse incentives. The U.S. and Britain should each learn from the other's experience about when to employ contracting out, how to fund it, how to design suitable programs, and how to improve its efficiency.

Executive Summary: Contracting Out in Defense: Lessons from the British Experience for the U.S. and Great Britain

The Heritage Foundation - Ted R. Bromund, Ph.D. — Thu, 28 May 2009 12:13:30 EST

Don't Regulate the Suburbs: America Needs a Housing Policy That Works

The Heritage Foundation - Wendell Cox and Ronald D. Utt, Ph.D. — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 17:05:14 EST

As housing-price trends in the U.S. over the past decade reveal, the intensity of a region’s land-use regulations is a key factor in the region’s relative house-price inflation, affordability, and recent foreclosure experience. Areas with less land-use regulation consistently sustain housing prices that are affordable, while regions with greater regulations consistently sustain prices that are unaffordable to the majority of the citizens living in the region. Future federal housing-assistance programs should be linked to a requirement to lessen the burden of these regulations.

Homeland Security Oversight Reform Requires Leadership

The Heritage Foundation - Jena Baker McNeill — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 14:10:26 EST

On November 12, senior House Republican leaders sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging her to amend the rule that governs how committees are organized. This letter is a positive step toward changing the chaotic system of congressional oversight of homeland security.

Reforming U.S. Public Diplomacy for the 21st Century

The Heritage Foundation - Tony Blankley, Helle C. Dale, and Oliver Horn — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 10:40:53 EST

U.S. government institutions tasked with strategic communications have lacked the leadership and resources necessary to do their job and have operated with virtually no interagency coordination. Congress and the President should create an institutional framework and strategy that includes a new U.S. Agency for Strategic Communications, substantial reforms of the Department of State, and greater utilization of the Pentagon's combatant commands.

Executive Summary: Reforming U.S. Public Diplomacy for the 21st Century

The Heritage Foundation - Tony Blankley, Helle C. Dale, and Oliver Horn — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 11:09:04 EST

Davis-Bacon Flaws Hurt South Dakota's Workers

The Heritage Foundation - James Sherk and Patrick Tyrrell — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 15:34:41 EST

The Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division uses highly inaccurate methods to estimate prevailing wages for the Davis-Bacon Act. Davis-Bacon rates in South Dakota average 12 percent below market wages. The Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics already estimates wages using accurate scientific methods. Congress should require the Department of Labor to use these surveys to set Davis-Bacon wage rates.