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Top 10 Results of 2015

January 22, 2016
by Goldwater Institute

1. Protected Tax Payers by Ending Public Sector Union Release Time

Goldwater’s milestone legal victory, the first decision of its kind in the country, put an end to public sector union release time. The court ruling ensures that government union workers must be paid on the union’s dime– not at taxpayers’ expense. This precedent will be used to stop this illegal practice in states across the country.

2. Gave Millions of Patients the Right to Try

We protected the rights of patients to try potentially lifesaving investigational medicines that are pending full FDA approval. Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wyoming all passed the popular health care initiative with overwhelming bipartisan support.

3. Improved Education Options for Families Nationwide

Education Savings Accounts, Goldwater’s groundbreaking school choice initiative, is now available to thousands more students nationwide. Mississippi, Tennessee, and Nevada became the third, fourth, and fifth states to adopt the accounts, with Nevada adopting the country’s first universal program. In Arizona, 55,000 students living on Native American tribal lands are eligible for savings accounts alongside children attending D- and F-rated schools, adopted children, and children in military families.

4. Defended Florida’s Most Vulnerable Students

The Goldwater Institute successfully defended two legal challenges from the Florida Education Association, which had tried to end education savings accounts for special-needs children. These rulings reinforce past precedent upholding education savings accounts.

5. Protected Students from Government Interference

With national implications for school choice programs hanging in the balance, the Goldwater Institute successfully defended Louisiana students from the Obama Administration’s Department of Justice’s attempt to stop the state’s successful school choice program.

6. Opened FDA Books

Our lawsuit drove the FDA to release records it kept secret for over 18 months regarding its internal drug-approval process for the experimental drug ZMapp. The FDA had allowed the drug to be used on two American doctors infected with the Ebola virus in Africa while other sick and dying Americans were denied promising investigational treatments in the U.S. This initial victory injects transparency into the FDA’s approval process, and furthers the Institute’s mission of expanding patient access to potentially lifesaving investigational treatments.

7. Restrained Regulatory Overreach

Last year, we passed a state law to stop state administrative agencies from increasing regulatory burdens on property rights or the right to engage in a lawful business. This ensures that lawmaking is done by the legislature, not unaccountable administrative agencies. This Arizona blueprint will serve as a model for reform nationwide.

8. Defended the Rights of Property Owners

When a popular tourist destination banned short-term rentals, the Goldwater Institute stepped in to successfully defend the rights of property owners. Thanks to a state court victory, property rights are more secure than ever in Arizona. We will use this ruling to help property owners nationwide.

9. Restored Doctors’ Right to Provide Medical Services

Dr. Carrol Landrum can continue to provide medical care to the homebound after the Goldwater Institute stopped a state board from taking his medical license without grounds. The victory establishes an important precedent and serves notice to licensing agencies that it is illegal to arbitrarily deny the rights of Americans to earn a living.

10. Protected Taxpayers from Unfair Local Bid Preferences

An Arizona trial court struck down Tucson’s local bid preference law, ensuring that all businesses get a fair chance to compete for contracts. This precedent will help put an end to business bid preference laws across the country.

 

 

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  • Eliminating government interference in the fundamental right of individuals to own property and use it as they see fit.
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