A new survey by the Morrison Institute finds that Arizonans want to spend more money on education. But paying for it? That's another question.

The Arizona Legislature is considering Senate Bill 1354 to alleviate the state’s health care workforce shortage. The bill provides support for five programs — Graduate Medical Education, the University of Arizona Medical School, primary care provider loan repayment, medical student loan repayments, and nurse training. All of these programs will move the needle on the shortage.

I’m very concerned with the increase in the number children attending Arizona schools who are not vaccinated. But, beyond posing a threat to the community-based protection many people need, as an economist I recognize the cost implications that accompany the decision to avoid vaccines.

As Arizona clawed its way out of the Great Recession, Gov. Doug Ducey sought to ease the state’s reliance on borrowing and gimmicks to balance the budget.

Walmart, the world’s largest retail company and Arizona’s second biggest private employer, says key changes in state and federal policy, particularly surrounding regulation and taxation, would result in a boom in domestic production and the creation of millions of American jobs.

At a forum in Phoenix this morning, business leaders emphasized how NAFTA has benefited the state’s economy, noting that more than 100,000 Arizona jobs depend on trade with its southern neighbor and roughly $17 billion in trade flows between Arizona and Mexico.

If the success of supply side economics is so obvious, why doesn’t the research show it? We know the bias of the university research community – over 80 percent of their campaign contributions go to Democrats. The expression of this bias in the pages of research journals has been non-stop.

What’s not mentioned is that the state might have had more money to spend had there not been a series of corporate tax cuts approved by lawmakers half a decade ago which are still kicking in. For just this coming budget year, those changes will reduce state revenues by another $107.2 million.

The next few weeks will include much debate about President Trump’s economic plans with a primary focus on tax cuts. The typical question will be: “So, is this good?” The typical answer by policymakers and economists will be either “yes” or “no.” That’s it. Interview over. This doesn’t come close to the bare minimum discussion that is required. Here is my offering of where to start the debate.

Despite efforts by policymakers to diversify the state’s economy, Arizona still rides on the boom and bust of the housing industry. And when this sector is inactive, its silence – and all the troubles that entails – reverberate throughout the state.