Episode Archive
163 episodes of Across the States since the first episode, which aired on March 16th, 2019.
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51: Certificate of Need Laws w/ Pacific Legal Foundation
July 20th, 2020 | 13 mins 48 secs
What are Certificate of Need laws and how do they affect businesses across the country? Anastasia Boden, Senior Attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, weighs in on CON laws and COVID-19, how the Pacific Legal Foundation is defending individual liberty in the states and what states can do now to protect medical freedom.
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50: Criminal Justice Solutions w/ MI Rep. Graham Filler
July 9th, 2020 | 14 mins 14 secs
This episode of Across the States, recorded in early 2020, takes us back to the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), where host Dan Reynolds sits down with MI Representative Graham Filler, a speaker at the event and Chair of the MI House Judiciary Committee, to discuss criminal justice solutions at the state level. Following the FIRST STEP Act, based on ALEC model policy, what is the “second step” states can take to lower recidivism rates in America? Rep. Filler weighs in.
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49: Education Reform w/ Jim Blew from the U.S. Department of Education
July 2nd, 2020 | 21 mins 5 secs
In this special episode of Across the States recorded at the U.S. Department of Education in early 2020, host Dan Reynolds sat down with Jim Blew, Assistant Secretary for Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development, and Sherry Street, ALEC Vice President of Policy Advancement to highlight the work done advocating for education choice. What’s the reality behind charter schools, what does education reform look like today and how might it look in the years to come? One thing is clear from both the federal and state perspective: it should be about empowering the educators, the parents and the students.
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48: The Road to Higher Taxes w/ Stephen Haner
June 26th, 2020 | 18 mins 54 secs
On this episode of Across the States, host Dan Reynolds is joined by Senior Fellow of State and Local Taxes at the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy Stephen Haner, ALEC Vice President of Policy Jonathan Williams and ALEC Center for State Fiscal Reform Legislative Manager Skip Estes. The Thomas Jefferson Institute recently released a brochure, The Road to Higher Taxes, which outlines the nearly two dozen changes in Virginia tax laws passed by the 2020 General Assembly. Now in the podcast studio, the group defines what this will mean for taxpayers come July 1.
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47: State Labor Reforms for Public Sector Unions w/ Vincent Vernuccio
June 23rd, 2020 | 16 mins 25 secs
In the 2018 case Janus v. AFSCME, the Supreme Court reshaped the interaction between public sector employees and unions, affirming the 1st Amendment rights of individual employees. Joining host Dan Reynolds to discuss this landmark decision, its ramifications and the “Post-Janus” environment today is Vincent Vernuccio, Senior Fellow at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.
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46: Youth Involvement in State and Local Government w/ State Legislator of the Month Del. Joshua Higginbotham and TPUSA
June 19th, 2020 | 17 mins 29 secs
Youth involvement in free enterprise and individual liberty will play a crucial role in COVID-19 recovery and onward. On the podcast to discuss this is State Legislator of the Month and 23-year old WV Del. Joshua Higginbotham, who recently sponsored a bill reclassifying 911 telecommunication operators as emergency workers. Also joining the podcast to speak on the important participation of youth in politics is Turning Point USA COO Tyler Bowyer.
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45: A Free Market Approach to Content Moderation w/ John Samples
June 16th, 2020 | 21 mins 49 secs
Social media and free speech: they truly go hand in hand. Knowing this, Facebook recently started funding an oversight board made up of independent individuals as a non-governmental and free market solution to oversee content moderation on the platform. Joining host Dan Reynolds to discuss this is John Samples, a member of the new oversight board and Cato Institute Vice President, and Jonathon Hauenschild, Director of the Communications and Technology Task Force at ALEC.
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44: Social Media and the Section 230 Executive Order w/ Ash Kazaryan and Carl Szabo
June 12th, 2020 | 35 mins 27 secs
President Trump’s executive order, social media and Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. To discuss these hot topics, and why they’re so important right now, host Dan Reynolds is joined by TechFreedom Director of Civil Liberties Ash Kazaryan, NetChoice VP and General Counsel Carl Szabo and ALEC Communications and Technology Task Force Director Jonathon Hauenschild.
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43: Protecting Patients’ Rights During COVID-19 w/ MI Rep. Johnson and the Mackinac Center
June 9th, 2020 | 18 mins 20 secs
With the increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations, ensuring patients’ rights and wishes are not being disregarded protects individual liberty across the states. In response to the responsibility to uphold these wishes and rights is the COVID-19 Patient Rights to Life Resolution from the Mackinac Center. On the podcast to discuss this resolution and why it matters is Mackinac Center Health Care Policy Advisor Greg George, Michigan State Representative Steve Johnson and ALEC Health and Human Services Task Force Director Brooklyn Roberts.
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42: The US Trade Deficit w/ Christine McDaniel
June 5th, 2020 | 23 mins 23 secs
Joining host Dan Reynolds on this episode of Across the States to discuss the trade deficit in the United States is Christine McDaniel, Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center and Karla Jones, Senior Director of the Federalism and International Relations Task Force at ALEC.
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41: A Deep Dive into Higher Education During COVID-19 w/ Armand Alacbay and Dr. Lindsey Burke
May 29th, 2020 | 22 mins 50 secs
On this episode of Across the States, host Dan Reynolds takes a deep dive into higher education, and how COVID-19 has impacted its landscape with guests Armand Alacbay, Vice President of Trustee & Government Affairs at the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, Lindsey Burke, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Education Policy and Will Skillman Fellow in Education Heritage Foundation and Scott Kauffman, ALEC Director of the Education and Workforce Development Task Force.
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40: What is the Swiss Debt Brake? w/ Barry Poulson
May 26th, 2020 | 30 mins 1 sec
As we progress through the Coronavirus pandemic, the national debt remains a growing concern. It’s time to look closely at international models to restore fiscal restraint and responsible spending in the United States. One of those models is the Swiss Debt Brake – but what is it? Here to fill us in is Barry Poulson, Emeritus Professor of Economics at the University of Colorado, Karla Jones, ALEC Senior Director of the Federalism and International Relations Task Force and Lee Schalk, ALEC Senior Director of the Center for State Fiscal Reform.
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39: Sports Betting and the Gaming Industry During COVID-19 w/ the American Gaming Association
May 22nd, 2020 | 25 mins 55 secs
During the COVID-19 pandemic, sporting events of almost every kind were cancelled. How has this affected the online sports betting and gaming industry, and what will we see from that industry as states and society begin to reopen? Here to discuss this is Jess Fiel, the Senior Director of Government Relations at the American Gaming Association (AGA) and Ronald Lampard, ALEC Senior Director of the Criminal Justice and Civil Justice Task Forces.
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38: School Choice, Higher Education and COVID-19 w/ Dr. Lindsey Burke and Martin Lueken
May 19th, 2020 | 19 mins 58 secs
Joining host Dan Reynolds on the podcast are 3 education experts: Lindsey Burke, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Education Policy and Will Skillman Fellow in Education Heritage Foundation, Martin Lueken, Director of Fiscal Policy Analysis at EdChoice and Scott Kaufman, Director of the ALEC Education and Workforce Development Task Force. The group discusses education choice, education savings accounts, how it benefits the states and the future of public higher education after COVID-19.
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37: Tracking China’s Policy Changes During COVID-19 w/ Dr. Weifeng Zhong
May 15th, 2020 | 21 mins 23 secs
Joining host Dan Reynolds on the podcast to discuss Chinese government policies, a policy change index and how it can be used to track China’s response to COVID-19 is Dr. Weifeng Zhong, Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center. Also joining the discussion is Karla Jones, ALEC Senior Director of the Federalism and International Relations Task Force.
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36: Trying to Take a Pay Cut for COVID-19 w/ Cheyenne, WY City Councilman Dicky Shanor
May 12th, 2020 | 12 mins 30 secs
When we increase government spending, it’s a good idea to decrease spending somewhere else – especially during a pandemic. On the podcast to discuss how Cheyenne, WY is working to do just that is City Councilman Dicky Shanor, who recently introduced a resolution to reduce the salaries of him, his fellow council members and the mayor. Also joining the conversation is Councilman Jon Russell, National Director of the American City County Exchange (ACCE), a sister organization of ALEC.