Reason Foundation

The Jones Act blocks shipping routes even when no suitable American vessel is available. Congress should create an economic-need waiver process to let foreign ships carry those cargoes and meet demand, writes Jay Derr.

Restricting access to experimental peptides risks steering consumers toward unreliable sellers. The FDA should let pharmacies compound them under standards that reduce contamination and inaccurate dosing while holding suppliers accountable.

“Harm reduction starts with helping people reduce the risks they face, even when they decline the treatment others would choose for them.” -Dr. Jeffrey Singer

Federal law already prohibits nicotine sales to anyone under 21. Generational bans add no protection for today’s kids but could push future adults toward illegal markets and cut off access to less harmful alternatives to cigarettes.

New York City’s congestion pricing program has reduced traffic and improved travel speeds. Policymakers should now tie tolls to traffic conditions, charge similar vehicles similar rates, and clearly show how they spend the revenue.

A family’s address or ability to pay shouldn’t limit its public school options. Letting students attend any public school with an open seat, without tuition or fees, would help more families find schools that meet their children’s needs.

In many U.S. cities, a 20-minute car trip can take an hour or more by transit because routes are indirect, service is infrequent, or buses and trains are delayed by traffic.

In Reason Foundation’s 2026 open enrollment report, California scores 62 out of 100, earning a D-.

In Reason Foundation’s 2026 open enrollment report, Oklahoma scores 99 out of 100, earning an A+ and ranking first in the nation. See your state’s grades:

An hourly bus can leave people without cars struggling to reach jobs, health care, and groceries. Transit agencies should match service to demand by running more frequent buses on busy routes and offering more flexible options in lower-density areas.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called for another $30 billion in air traffic control modernization. Robert Poole says a different air traffic control funding and management system is needed. ⬇️

California Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed two bills that would have increased pension benefits for the state’s best-paid police and firefighters. The vetoes preserve pension reforms as California works to close a $257 billion pension funding gap.

In Reason Foundation’s 2026 open enrollment report, Alaska, Maine, Maryland, and North Carolina each score zero out of 100, earning an F and tying for last place. See your state’s grades:

Transit agencies need to become more creative in their service to better serve transit-dependent riders and adapt to today’s travel patterns.

Reason Foundation’s new 50-state report finds that 33 states earn an F in open enrollment policies, including Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia.

Despite 74% of K–12 parents telling pollsters they support open enrollment, 80% of public school students live in states with weak or ineffective laws that often prevent transferring to other public schools with open seats.

In Reason Foundation’s 2026 open enrollment report, Oklahoma scores 99 out of 100, earning an A+ and ranking first in the nation for policies that let kids transfer to public schools with open seats. See your state’s grade:

In @judeschwalbach's study of every state's open enrollment laws, Arkansas, Arizona, Idaho, Oklahoma, Utah, and West Virginia earn A grades; seven states earn Bs; two states get Cs; two receive Ds; and 33 states earn F grades.

Rent-setting software that pools landlords’ confidential data can facilitate collusion and raise rents. Enforcing existing antitrust laws can address that collusion, while overly broad state restrictions risk banning useful tools and adding costs without helping renters.

Arkansas’ proposed economic development amendment would give unelected boards broad powers over taxes and taxpayer dollars.

Robert Poole examines Virginia’s proposed $4.5 billion expansion of I-95 express toll lanes, which would more than double capacity. He also analyzes highway projects in North Carolina and Alabama and what Brightline Florida’s bankruptcy filing means for rail. 🔽

Traditional public pensions promise retirement payments even when investments fall short, leaving taxpayers to cover the gap. South Dakota and Wisconsin show how adjusting future benefit increases can stabilize costs and keep pension plans near full funding.

Only about 12% of current youth vapers cite flavors as a reason they vape. More cite stress, a nicotine buzz, or friends who vape. Banning flavors could push adults back to cigarettes.

Youth vaping has dropped roughly 75% since 2019, even as flavored products remain widely available. Why risk pushing adults back to cigarettes by banning flavors if the ban doesn’t address what drives young people to vape?

Methadone can save lives, yet patients seeking treatment for opioid use disorder often face long trips, frequent clinic visits, and rules that can interrupt their care.

A failed circuit near Philadelphia caused 6,000 flight delays nationwide. The FAA knew the aging equipment needed replacing. An air traffic control provider separate from the FAA and funded by aviation user fees could modernize the system and make regular upgrades before equipment fails.

The thousands of canceled and disrupted flights caused by a failed circuit and cut cable illustrate why the U.S. needs a better system to manage air traffic control and fund and replace aging equipment.

On President Trump’s proposed Dulles Airport project, Robert Poole writes, “Letting Trump play airport designer is a recipe for retaining the current United fortress hub and potentially wasting nearly a billion dollars on a totally unneeded parking facility.”

A closer look at outcomes in Seattle, Burlington, and Vancouver undermines claims that harm reduction strategies are causing their overdose crises.

The U.S. needs an air traffic control system that replaces equipment before it fails. The FAA’s costly, outdated model cannot deliver those regular upgrades.

Meta’s settlement adds protections for teen Facebook and Instagram users and sends billions to states. Whether young people benefit depends on lawmakers safeguarding the money, reporting how they spend it, and funding programs that measurably improve care, safety, and well-being.

Youth vaping has fallen sharply since 2019. New prevention efforts should reflect that progress and avoid reinforcing misconceptions that could discourage smokers from switching to less harmful alternatives.

Robert Poole on the causes of the tragic Miami cargo plane accident, Marc Scribner on the latest TSA problems, and more in Reason’s aviation newsletter. ⬇️

Short-term rental restrictions do little to improve housing affordability and often impose sweeping burdens on responsible hosts, guests, and platforms.

The Ratepayer Protection Act is a common-sense first step toward guarding against higher household energy bills. However, lawmakers must also reduce the regulatory barriers that keep large-load customers from generating their own power outside the public grid.

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System is already $179 billion in debt, so it is a bad time to ask taxpayers to pay $11 billion in additional, expensive pension benefit increases to the state’s highest-paid public employees.

New York’s Earned Time Act could improve prison safety, reduce repeat offenses, strengthen reentry, and save taxpayers an estimated $5.6 billion by rewarding good behavior and participation in rehabilitation programs.

The fuel tax is cheap to collect, costing just 1%–5% of the revenue it generates. But as new vehicles have become nearly 19% more fuel-efficient over the past two decades and the federal gas tax not increased since 1993, states are collecting less money for transportation.

Indiana is reshaping its public education system to reflect how many more families are choosing alternatives to their residentially assigned public schools.

California lawmakers sent a bill to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk that would partially roll back the state’s 2012 pension reforms and increase police and firefighter pension costs by an estimated $11.8 billion over 30 years.

“Government agencies must remain accountable for how they use AI and for the effects of AI-supported decisions. Using AI does not excuse agencies from civil rights, anti-discrimination, privacy, or due-process obligations.”

In Indianapolis, 57% of publicly funded students chose schools other than Indianapolis Public Schools, the largest public school district in Indiana, over the past five years.

Pilot programs are essential for state leaders to determine if a mileage-based user fee is a realistic alternative to fuel taxes.

Missed our webinar on how cities fund themselves through fines and fees? You can watch the recording below:

As concession fees become more common in express toll lane projects, questions remain about who ultimately pays for them and what they mean for the future of public-private partnerships.

Local governments raise billions each year through court fines, fees, and forfeitures, and some now rely on this revenue. A recent Reason Foundation webinar explores our research on how local governments use fines and fees to fund their budgets and what can be done:

A California bill, if signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, will increase pension benefits and could add over $11 billion in public pension costs for taxpayers.

“Retirement boards are not legislatures. They are fiduciaries entrusted with safeguarding billions in assets for the exclusive benefit of retirees.”

Texas has high property taxes. Providing more property tax exemptions without reducing government spending simply shifts the tax burden elsewhere and risks adding to the state’s debt.

San Diego Unified School District has $83,762 in debt per student—the highest of any California school district in the Reason Foundation study.