Reason Foundation

Priced managed lanes, otherwise known as express toll lanes, are separate lanes on urban highways that charge their users variable-rate tolls. The tolls are designed to limit use just enough so the managed lanes remain free-flowing, even during peak travel times when the general-purpose lanes are congested.

Rising costs and inflation, along with increased fuel efficiency and electric vehicle adoption, have created a major problem for state transportation revenues. Many states are examining funding alternatives to fuel taxes, such as mileage-based user fees, to help bridge the gap between transportation system needs and revenue projections.

In this issue: Concession fees for express toll lanes Future of the Highway Trust Fund Texas express toll lanes P3 success New findings on truck user fees Autonomous trucks progress in California Getting serious about highway safety News Notes Quotable Quote Concession Fees for Express Toll Lane Projects Last month, the Tennessee Department of Transportation selected as its public-private partnership developer for its I-24 express toll lanes, a joint venture of Cintra and Transurban under a...

A version of the following public comment was submitted to the Texas Senate Committee on Local Government on September 1, 2026. Our research finds that the current approach toward increasing Texas’ homestead exemption is more likely to redistribute the cost of government than reduce it. Despite several increases in the property tax homestead exemption, total property tax levies have continued to rise.

Local governments across the country raise billions of dollars a year through court fines, fees, and forfeitures. In some jurisdictions, that revenue has become a fixture of the municipal budget. When police departments and courts come to depend on citation revenue to fund basic operations, the incentives of public safety and revenue generation can come into direct conflict, with consequences for public safety and trust in law enforcement.

Automated license plate readers (ALPRs) have spread to thousands of American communities faster than almost any policing technology in memory. Flock Safety, one among many ALPR vendors, now operates approximately 120,000 cameras nationwide.

Lawmakers in the California Legislature passed a bill that will reverse some of the key provisions of a bipartisan cost-saving pension reform from 2012, granting a significant benefit sweetener to the state’s highest-paid police and firefighters. If Gov.

Texas is proud to be among the states with the lowest taxes. According to the Tax Foundation, the state ranks seventh in overall tax competitiveness, largely because it has no personal income tax and no traditional corporate income tax. But there’s a trade-off: Texas relies disproportionately on property taxes to fund local services. The state ranks 38th in property tax competitiveness, with property taxes equal to about 1.4% of owner-occupied housing value.

The hard-won public pension reforms of recent years remain vulnerable to constant political pressure. Political leaders must deal with demands from both plan stakeholders and the general public to address exigent budget demands (e.g., Medicaid funding due to federal cutbacks). Public spending challenges can tempt lawmakers to make decisions that can harm the longer-term goal of properly and prudently designing and managing public pension plans.

Medical marijuana is legal in 47 states, the District of Columbia and three U.S. territories. Yet for millions of Americans on probation or parole suffering from qualifying conditions like chronic pain, post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety, that legalization is worth very little in practice. In many states, people on probation and parole are forbidden to use medical marijuana, even when legally recommended by a physician. It’s an oversight that state lawmakers need to address.