Over the weekend, Speaker Boehner penned an op-ed in favor of lifting the oil export ban. Using cities like Youngstown, Ohio who have experienced a resurgence due to jobs from the energy industry, Boehner says “we have an opportunity to reset the foundation of our economy for generations to come.” AAF’s own research says that lifting the crude oil ban alone could bring in $21 billion of revenue to the U.S. 

A company that is called the “Uber for planes” is in a fight with the FAA. Flytenow allows its users to hitch a ride with recreational pilots, however the FAA says that the company is bypassing traditional regulations typically applied for commercial pilots. The company hopes to use the same arguments with which Uber, Lyft,and other ride sharing companies have been successful. AAF recently found that ride sharing companies have added over half a billion dollars to the economy since 2009.

Following the 3 million gallon spill in the Animas River in Colorado, the Associated Press uncovered a report from the EPA in 2014 saying that “Conditions may exist that could result in a blowout of the blockages and cause a release of large volumes of contaminated mine waters and sediment from inside the mine, which contain concentrated heavy metals.” Well, that is exactly what happened, resulting in a spill that AAF estimates could cost from the hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars.

Eakinomics: Policies That Put American Workers “First” by Laura Collins, AAF Director of  Immigration Policy

As the 2016 field continues to roll out policy proposals, a troubling trend is emerging—populist policies that claim to put American workers “first”. From both sides of the political spectrum, some candidates are calling for reducing legal immigration, toughening requirements for hiring temporary foreign workers, and opposing free trade agreements. These policies may actually harm American workers.

The standard argument against legal immigration and temporary foreign workers is that each of these depresses wages and displaces American workers. But study after study confirms that immigration does not negatively affect wages in the long term. The Congressional Budget Office found that average wages would rise after 20 years under the 2013 Senate Gang of 8 immigration bill. Temporary foreign workers are good for American workers. Immigrants and foreign born workers are not direct substitutes for American workers but are complementary. Temporary workers actually help create jobs—every 100 additional H-1B workers resulted in 183 new jobs for American workers. Placing additional restrictions on employers who hire temporary foreign workers is hostile to American businesses and American workers. Current regulations already cost employers thousands of dollars just for a single hire. 

Opponents of free trade often cite evidence of manufacturing moving outside of the U.S. while completely ignoring the thousands of jobs trade supports and creates. Our current trade agreements support over 11 million jobs in the U.S. These jobs pay up to 18 percent more on average. The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a popular punching bag on the campaign trail. But it’s sheer size and scope—it represents 12 nations and 40% of the world’s GDP—increase its potential impact. Over 10 years, the TPP is estimated to create 550,000 jobs.

A robust legal immigration system, an efficient temporary foreign workers system, and free trade are the policies that actually put American workers first. 

From the Forum

Week in Regulation by Sam Batkins, AAF Director of Regulatory Policy

Fact of the Day

The Air Force is one-third the size it was 60 years ago— now the smallest in history.