by Eric Peterson, director of the Pelican Center for Technology and Innovation Policy At first glance, the December State Employment and Unemployment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics appeared positive for Louisiana. However, a closer look at the numbers reveals there is still a long way to go in the state’s economic recovery. The...

by Eric Peterson, Director of Policy During the holiday season, Louisianans have more on their mind than the latest state economic reports. Yet as we enter the New Year, it’s important to understand where our state’s economy stands. Two reports, one from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the other from the Bureau of...

Military families relocating to Louisiana will now have greater access to jobs and opportunity thanks to the signing of Representative Chuck Owen’s HB 613. Previously, new Louisiana military families faced needless obstacles to work due to government red tape known as occupational licenses. The new law will allow military spouses and dependents with an occupational...

Today, the Pelican Institute released its Get Louisiana Working Policy Solutions. This plan outlines reforms to key public policy areas to encourage the return of jobs and opportunity and to strengthen the state’s economy following the destruction resulting from COVID-19 and measures taken to address it. The Pelican Institute is also calling on state leaders...

As economic news continues to focus on the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ (BEA) recently released report further underscored Louisiana’s pre-coronavirus economic struggles. In the final quarter of 2019, the BEA report on state Gross Domestic Products (GDP) showed the Louisiana economy grew an anemic 1.1 percent, ranking 43rd in...

Military families relocating to Louisiana are facing needless obstacles to work due to government red tape known as occupational licenses. Occupational licenses are permission slips from the government in order to work in certain professions. To obtain a license, workers often must take hundreds of hours of classes and pay thousands of dollars in fees...

With Presidential candidates revealing plans to forgive billions of dollars in student loan debt, it no surprise that the conversation has centered around debt incurred at four-year universities. But four-year universities are hardly the only place students are racking up thousands in debt. Students around the country are also undergoing significant debt in order to...

In Restoring the Right to Earn a Living: A Common-Sense Solution to Occupational Licensing Job Barriers, Goldwater Institute Director of National Litigation Jon Riches examines the burdens inflicted by onerous job licensing requirements in Louisiana. And for many Louisiana job-seekers, it’s a pretty grim situation. “For too many professions, occupational licensing requirements do not exist...

The burden of attaining an occupational license makes it harder for job seekers to enter the workplace. This results in fewer workers, and thus fewer options for consumers, which is the perfect environment for prices to rise.