Press Releases

Fixing Federal Debt is Up to the States

lcaldwell — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 16:29:29 +0000

Contact: Lucy Caldwell
(602) 633-8986

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: FIXING FEDERAL DEBT IS UP TO THE STATES
Compact for America is exactly what Founders intended to check Washington

Most Americans don’t relish the thought of our children and grandchildren paying down the out-of-control federal debt over the next several decades. But with a national debt level now approaching $17 trillion, Americans must face up to the fact that Washington won’t fix itself: The best hope for fixing the spiraling federal bill is using the constitutional powers of the states.

In a policy report released this week, Goldwater Institute Director of Policy Development Nick Dranias proposes the Compact for America, an interstate compact concept to advance a balanced budget amendment through state legislatures. If approved by 38 states, the Compact would require the federal government to obtain the approval of the majority of legislatures to green light any increase above an initial debt limit. In other words, 26 states would have to cosign for the federal government’s credit card.

Dranias will present Compact for America to audiences in Orlando, Florida this Saturday, April 26.

“While there are many balanced budget amendment proposals out there, the Compact for America has the best chances for passage,” said Dranias. “It will cut the time and resources needed for successfully advancing this much-needed reform by more than half, making a powerful balanced budget amendment possible for the first time.”

The Compact doesn’t wait around on Washington to initiate balanced budget amendment. Instead it establishes an agreement among the states to use the powers granted to them by Article V of the U.S. Constitution. The Founders established Article V to provide a failsafe to the states in the event that Washington overstepped its bounds. The provision allows states to originate constitutional amendments by applying for a convention to propose amendments. Unlike merely seeking to hold a constitutional convention, the Compact consolidates both the convention application and the content of the proposed balanced budget amendment itself, which would speed up the process significantly.

This feature of the Compact should reassure traditional opponents of Article V conventions, who have previously feared the prospect of a runaway constitutional convention. Under the Compact the convention cannot proceed unless the agenda is limited to a balanced budget amendment. As written, the compact bars any member state from ratifying any convention proposal other than the balanced budget amendment it specifies.

Once passed, the Compact would also quell fears of across-the-board tax increases to meet new revenue demands by requiring any new income or sales tax to secure two-thirds approval of both houses of Congress.

“The Founders enabled the states to rein in a runaway federal government through mechanisms like the Compact for America,” said Dranias. “This is our country’s best chance at achieving the critical protection of a balanced budget amendment.”

Dranias will present the Compact for America to audiences in Orlando, Florida, this Saturday. For more information about that event, please visit: http://www.ucfavconference.org/.

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To arrange an interview, please contact Communications Director Lucy Caldwell at 602-633-8986 or lcaldwell@goldwaterinstitute.org.

To read “States Can Fix the Debt,” please visit: http://goldwaterinstitute.org/article/states-can-fix-national-debt-reforming-washington-compact-america-balanced-budget-amendment.

Media Advisory: Board of Cosmetology Will Cease Regulating Small Businesswoman

lcaldwell — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 22:58:02 +0000

Contact: Lucy Caldwell

602-633-8986

In what is a major victory for individuals’ right to earn a living, the Arizona Board of Cosmetology has agreed to cease its attempts to needlessly regulate Lauren Boice, a small businesswoman who connects terminally ill patients with beauty service-providers. The Board also has agreed never to regulate businesses like Boice’s in the future.

This commitment was spelled out this week in a settlement agreement between the Board and Boice, ending a grueling sixteen-month legal battle between the parties.

In the legally binding settlement agreement filed with the court, the Board agrees to stop requiring Lauren to comply with these regulations and promises it will not to regulate business people like her in the future.

“This is a great victory for small businesspeople and consumers alike," said Christina Sandefur, the Goldwater Institute attorney who represents Boice. "Thanks to this settlement, entrepreneurs like Lauren Boice can focus on serving their clients rather than navigating the Board’s labyrinth of red tape.”

The Goldwater Institute’s legal team is committed to continue the fight on behalf of small businesspeople like Lauren Boice whenever their livelihoods are threatened by needless government red tape.

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To arrange an interview or for more information, please contact Communications Director Lucy Caldwell at 602-633-8986 or lcaldwell@goldwaterinstitute.org.

To read about the case, please visit www.goldwaterinstitute.org/article/boice-v-aune.

A cancer survivor and former hospice nurse’s assistant, Boice founded Angels on Earth Home Beauty, a dispatch-service to connect homebound elderly and ill clients with licensed cosmetologists who can perform haircuts, manicures or massages right in the clients’ own homes. In a classic story of government run amok, the Arizona Board of Cosmetology began threatening to shut down Boice’s business unless she complied with regulations designed for beauty salons, not home visits. The Board even demanded she open a physical salon location even though her homebound clients would never step foot inside. In the legally binding settlement agreement filed with the court, the Board agrees to stop requiring Lauren to comply with these regulations and promises it will not to regulate business people like her in the future.Wednesday, April 24, 2013 - 15:55Government Red Tape Free Speech Press ReleaseYesBy Topicsfalse

Media Advisory: Ruling Halts Taxpayer-Funded Union Activism

lcaldwell — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 17:41:49 +0000

Contact: Lucy Caldwell

(602) 633-8986

MEDIA ADVISORY: RULING HALTS TAXPAYER-FUNDED UNION ACTIVISM

Goldwater Institute Lawsuit Puts Police Back on Patrol, Not at Union Desk.

PHOENIX, AZ –A widespread practice taking police officers off the street and sending them to the union desk on the taxpayer dime has been halted, thanks to a Goldwater Institute lawsuit challenging the practice as unconstitutional.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Katherine Cooper granted a preliminary injunction Tuesday against the practice of “release time” in a Phoenix labor contract with the local police union, the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association (PLEA). Release time is a provision in government labor contracts allowing public employees to collect taxpayer-funded salaries and benefits while being "released" to do union work, including lobbying, electioneering, and other forms of political activism.

A 2011 Goldwater Institute investigative report found that release time is prevalent in labor contracts across Arizona and America, costing local taxpayers millions annually while giving unions the ability to divert members away from their public duties to perform a range of activities not related to their jobs. The Institute chose to challenge Phoenix’s contract with PLEA because it contained the most egregious release time provisions of the city’s labor contracts.

The Institute's legal team is arguing that release time violates the gift clause in Arizona’s state constitution because it gives public money to a private organization that doesn’t provide the public with a discernible benefit in return.

According to today’s ruling, “[release time] diverts resources away from the mission of the Phoenix Police Department, which is the safety of the community…and places public funds at the disposal of the union.”

The Court granted a virtually identical injunction against release time last summer in an earlier round of the lawsuit. At that time, six full-time release time officers were sent back to the police academy (some of them had not performed police work in over a decade). That injunction expired when a contract between the City and PLEA expired last July, so the case was amended and a new injunction requested challenging the current contract, which contains release time provisions nearly indistinguishable from the old contracts.

The Court still must rule on the lawsuit as a whole, and the case will likely be appealed to a higher court, regardless of the outcome at the trial court.

“If successful to the end, this lawsuit would establish that release time is in violation of Arizona’s state constitution, effectively stopping the practice in its tracks in all state and local labor contracts,” said Clint Bolick, lead attorney and Vice President for Litigation at the Goldwater Institute.

Nearly all 50 states contain a gift clause in their state constitutions, signaling that the lawsuit could be replicated elsewhere. The Institute’s lawsuit was recently featured in Mallory Factor’s bestselling book, Shadowbosses, as a blueprint for taxpayers to rid their states of release time.

“This is a huge victory for taxpayers,” declared Bolick. “It sends a powerful message that tax dollars should be used for public safety, not to promote the interests of a union.”

“The streets of Phoenix will be safer, now that union officials must go back to the important police work for which they were hired.”

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To schedule an interview, or for more information, please call Communications Director Lucy Caldwell at (602) 633-8986 or email lcaldwell@goldwaterinstitute.org.

To learn more about the case, please visit: http://goldwaterinstitute.org/article/cheatham-v-gordon

Overestimating Tax Revenue Hurts Vulnerable Populations

lcaldwell — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 22:58:29 +0000

Contact: Lucy Caldwell
(602) 633-8986

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: OVERESTIMATING TAX REVENUE HURTS VULNERABLE POPULATIONS
Better government practices will protect programs and services during next recession

If you lost your job today, would you go on a spending spree like there was no tomorrow? Of course you wouldn’t. Yet that’s exactly what state policymakers chose to do with state coffers when the recession hit and they failed to face up to the economic downturn, continuing to accept sunny revenue forecasts that never came to be.

In a policy report released Wednesday, Goldwater Institute economist Byron Schlomach, Ph.D., explains how inaccurate government revenue forecasts during the recession led to serious budget woes for states, many of which are still working to fix bad financial decisions made during that period.

Accurate revenue forecasting is essential because it determines how much money will be spent on government programs and services like schools and roads. If a state overestimates revenues and doesn’t collect enough tax money to fund the budget, programs and services are cut or taxes are raised.

Politics are often to blame for revenue overestimation, according to Dr. Schlomach. “It’s not realistic to think that the politicians who are out door-knocking for votes are also going to be the bearers of bad news to taxpayers,” says Dr. Schlomach.

As the recession raged in Arizona, revenue estimates overstated actual revenues so badly that it became clear state leaders were failing to acknowledge reality. Between 2006 and 2011, there was not one year in which policymakers estimated revenues might be lower the next year, even as tax collections were dropping by double-digit percentages. In 2009, estimated revenue overstated actual revenue by more than $2 billion, a 24 percent error.

“No one likes austerity measures, but ultimately policymakers have to face up to budget realities sooner or later,” says Dr. Schlomach. “It is far worse to promise people a program they become reliant upon and then pull the rug out from under them down the line. With more accurate revenue forecasting, we will budget for programs and services we can afford in the long-run.”

Dr. Schlomach recommends seven reforms to improve the accuracy of revenue estimates, including requiring multiple revenue estimates, an independent estimate from someone outside the government; increased frequency of publicly released estimates; and budgeting practices that strictly prioritize programs.

Dr. Schlomach also advocates that states adopt spending limits based on inflation and population growth. During the last recession, states with spending limits in general were forced to recognize the economic downturn earlier and as a result didn’t overestimate revenue as badly as states without limits. Budget cuts were less severe over the course of the recession in states whose spending was not allowed to rapidly expand during the housing boom.

To read the report, please visit: http://goldwaterinstitute.org/article/no-more-rainy-days-how-make-state-revenue-estimates-more-accurate

To arrange an interview with Byron Schlomach, please contact Communications Director Lucy Caldwell at (602) 633-8986.

Goldwater Institute Fighting for Students' First Amendment Rights Violated by Private Group

rkramer — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 23:07:24 +0000

Contact: Robert Kramer, (602) 633-8961

The Arizona Board of Regents, which oversees the three public universities in the state, voted last month to end a policy that diverted mandatory tuition surcharges to the Students Association, a private group that lobbies on behalf of Arizona’s 130,000 public university students.

The Students Association, which traditionally generates most of its income from $2-semester fees on public university students’ tuition bills, sued the Regents last month over the recent policy change. The Regents' decision to end the mandatory dues collection came on the heels of a Goldwater Institute investigative report revealing that the Students Association was directing significant resources toward political activism, including a $120,000 donation to Prop 204, a proposed $1 billion state sales tax increase on the November 2012 ballot.

The Students Association's lawsuit claims that the Regents' decision to stop its automatic funding stream from tuition payments was retaliation for the Association’s high-profile election-time activism.

The five students requesting to join the lawsuit to defend the Regents' decision, including state representative Paul Boyer, an Arizona State University graduate student, believe that the practice of mandatory dues-collection for the Student Association violated their First Amendment rights, because they were forced to subsidize political activity they didn’t agree with.

“University students shouldn’t have to worry when they pay their tuition bills that they are being forced to fund political causes they don’t support,” said Kurt Altman, the Goldwater Institute senior attorney who is representing the students. “The Students Association is a private organization, and it should raise its money from supporters of its positions, just like other private political groups.”

The Students Association claims that under the previous policy, students who wished not to support its agenda could “opt out” by applying for a refund. However, that opt-out process could only be initiated after the tuition surcharge had been collected, and the request had to be made in writing within the first 21 days of the semester. In its annual budget, which exceeded half a million dollars, the Students Association set aside only $50 for student refunds.

The Regents' policy change has not eliminated funding for the Students Association altogether. Beginning in the fall of 2013, Arizona’s public universities will again collect $2 fees on tuition bills each semester, but the fee will not be automatically assessed—students will be given the choice to “opt in” to pay the fee.

“The only group that could oppose this sort of ‘opt-in’ funding mechanism is one that fears that, given the choice, students will choose not to support the organization,” said Altman.

Arizona’s is not the only state university system to fund a private activist group through tuition surcharges. The practice occurs at universities throughout the country, including in California, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota and Oregon.

To read more about the case, please visit: www.goldwaterinstitute.org/asa-v-abor.

The Goldwater Institute is representing five public university students whose First Amendment rights were violated when the Arizona Students Association used mandatory tuition surcharges to support a 2012 ballot initiative that the students opposed.Monday, March 25, 2013 - 16:03Education Reform Press ReleaseYesasa, arizona, students, association, fee, tuition, mandatory, free, speech, first, amendment, right, political, board, regents, public, universityBy Topicsfalse

Goldwater Institute Releases Model "School Choice Catalog"

rkramer — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 23:11:07 +0000

Contact: Robert Kramer, (602) 633-8961

Unfortunately, many families simply don’t know how to take advantage of these opportunities. 87,000 Arizona children, or almost ten percent, are languishing in failing schools. It is clear that more needs to be done to increase the involvement of parents in choosing the best education option for their children.

One way to do that is to ensure that the Arizona Department of Education informs parents about the programs at their fingertips. Today, the Goldwater Institute released A Parent’s Guide to School Choice: Education Options for Arizona Families, which provides a comprehensive guide to Arizona families of all the school choice programs available to them, including other families’ experiences and how to apply.

The release comes in the wake of a legislative push to mandate an annual catalog of this kind. Earlier this session, Senator Kelli Ward introduced legislation (SB1285) that would have required the Department of Education to produce and mail a school choice guide to all families with school-aged children. Opponents of the bill cited cost concerns, but the Goldwater Institute’s own Parent’s Guide to School Choice was produced for $1 per-unit, and the Institute estimates that the Department of Education could produce and mail a similar brochure for less than $1 million annually.

Moreover, this could be done with no additional cost to the general fund. Under the No Child Left Behind Act, Arizona receives almost $350 million every year to help children succeed through services like tutoring and increasing parent engagement (the funding source is known as Title I). The department’s production of an annually mailed school choice catalog would qualify for this funding as an effort to increase parent engagement in children’s education.

“School choice gives every child the chance to succeed, and it also saves Arizona money.” said Goldwater Institute Education Director Jonathan Butcher. “Informing parents that they have great options is a no-brainer to help Arizona families."

The Goldwater Institute will continue to support Senator Ward in advocating for a state-mandated annual catalog to inform Arizona families of the wide range of school options available to them.

To view a digital copy of the Goldwater Institute’s model school choice catalog, please visit http://goldwaterinstitute.org/schoolchoicecatalog.

From tax-credits to fund tuition scholarships to charter schools to the revolutionary education savings account program, Arizona is the national leader in school choice; the state has a broader range of school options than anywhere else in the country.Monday, March 11, 2013 - 16:03Education Reform Press ReleaseYeseducation, savings, account, press, release, school, choice, catalog, catalogue, kelli, ward, sb, 1285, sb1285By Topicsfalse

Airing Out the Smoke-filled Rooms: Bringing Transparency to Public Union Collective Bargaining

rkramer — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 20:49:19 +0000

Contact: Robert Kramer, (602) 633-8961

In a report released by the Goldwater Institute, Director of Policy Development Nick Dranias and economists Byron Schlomach and Stephen Slivinski survey all 50 states’ transparency requirements for collective bargaining negotiations. The study finds that a mere seven states have open government laws on the books to bring these negotiations out of the shadows.

When secrecy in negotiations is combined with state laws requiring governments to engage in collective bargaining, unions can exert tremendous political pressure on government officials; and both unions and government officials are able to hide from any meaningful oversight.

According to the report, the lack of transparency in negotiations leads to routine awarding of inflated compensation and benefits packages that far exceed typical private-sector employment terms. In 2012, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that state and local government employees make nearly 43 percent more per hour on average in total compensation than private-sector workers.

Although elected officials vote on contracts in public, by the time taxpayers are made aware of a contract and that a vote will be taken, it is too late for substantive changes to be made. Even elected officials themselves are frequently cut out of the process. One Phoenix, Ariz. councilmember recently acknowledged voting to approve labor contracts because he did not have enough time to become familiar with the issues negotiated by the time the contracts arrived on his desk before the vote.

“Secrecy in collective bargaining gives unions a double political advantage,” said Dranias. “First, they get the government officials to themselves without any competing interest – like taxpayers -- during the bargaining session, and then they get to apply their significant political influence when the deal is finally put up for a public vote.”

The report recommends that state legislatures pass a measure requiring that collective bargaining negotiations be made subject to open meetings law, like all other government dealings. In the coming months, legislators in several states, including Arizona and Utah, will consider this legislation.

“It’s hard to argue that there is good reason for allowing unions to use closed-door negotiations to increase the tab that taxpayers pay for government workers’ salaries and benefits,” said Dranias. “It's time to disinfect collective bargaining with the sunlight of transparency.”

To read the report, click here: http://goldwaterinstitute.org/article/airing-out-smoke-filled-rooms-bringing-transparency-public-union-collective-bargaining

Secret negotiations over employment contracts between union representatives and government officials are the norm in nearly every state in the union. This keeps taxpayers in the dark about how inflated compensation packages are awarded and even stops journalists from knowing what goes on behind closed doors. In a report released by the Goldwater Institute, Director of Policy Development Nick Dranias and economists Byron Schlomach and Stephen Slivinski survey all 50 states’ transparency requirements for collective bargaining negotiations. The study finds that a mere seven states have open government laws on the books to bring these negotiations out of the shadows.Thursday, January 17, 2013 (All day)Government Accountability Press ReleaseYespublic, union, transparency, collective, bargaining, nick dranias, byron schlomach, steve slivinski, stephen slivinskiBy Topicsfalse

Goldwater Institute Commends Governor Jan Brewer for Protecting Arizonans' Health Care Freedoms

rkramer — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 22:46:52 +0000

Contact: Rob Kramer, (602) 633-8961

The Goldwater Institute commends Governor Brewer and state legislative leadership for their steadfast commitment to protecting Arizonans’ freedom to make their own health care decisions.

A state-funded exchange would have imposed significant burdens on Arizona taxpayers and small businesses. Under a state-funded exchange, which would have cost the state an estimated $60 million or more every year, small businesses would face fines of at least $2,000 per employee if they failed to provide health insurance coverage, and the state would be required to share Arizonans’ private medical information with the federal government.

Additionally, a state-funded exchange would have triggered millions of taxpayer dollars each year to subsidize insurance companies participating in the exchange.

“Governor Brewer and our state legislators have demonstrated great leadership in protecting Arizona’s citizens and businesses against the heavy hand of the federal government,” said Clint Bolick, Goldwater Institute Vice President for Litigation. “Arizona was the first state to enact the Health Care Freedom Act, and today’s decision strengthens the principle that individuals, families, and businesses should have the freedom to make their own lawful medical decisions.”

Governor Brewer’s announcement Wednesday afternoon that the state would not move forward with implementation of a state-funded health insurance exchange signals that Arizonans will be protected from some of the worst aspects of the federal health care law.Wednesday, November 28, 2012 - 15:45State Powers Press ReleaseYesstate, exchange, health care, insurance, state powersBy Topicsfalse

Increasing Entrepreneurship is a Key to Lowering Poverty Rates

rkramer — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:55:43 +0000

Contact: Rob Kramer, (602) 633-8961

Just in time for Global Entrepreneurship Week, a new report shows that states with a larger share of entrepreneurs do a better job at reducing poverty than states with fewer entrepreneurs.

A new study released by the Goldwater Institute, Increasing Entrepreneurship is a Key to Lowering Poverty Rates, explores the relationship between entrepreneurs and statewide poverty. Goldwater Institute Senior Economist Stephen Slivinski finds that for every one-percentage point increase in the average rate of state entrepreneurship there is a two percent drop in the average state’s poverty rate. A drop of this magnitude means thousands of families are lifted out of poverty.

“Thousands of Americans are waiting to live their dream, create their own livelihoods, and build their community through entrepreneurial pursuits,” says Slivinski. “Unfortunately, many can’t do that when they face onerous government barriers to entry.”

How can a state expand the opportunity for entrepreneurs to start working? Slivinski gives policymakers two simple guidelines to promote entrepreneurial activity in their state; lower taxes and reduce regulatory barriers.

Slivinski’s analysis of federal data found that lower taxes often correlate to higher rates of entrepreneurship. As Slivinski points out, in states with no state income tax, entrepreneurs make up roughly 21.7% of the workforce. In states with a state income tax, however, that rate drops to 19.6%.

Slivinski says a few small points make a big difference in a state’s economy. “If policymakers eliminated the state income tax and Arizona’s rate of entrepreneurship increased from where it is today, at 16%, to the national average for states with no income tax, that would mean more than 100,000 people would be starting businesses. Just imagine what that would do for our economy. Fostering entrepreneurship is the best jobs program the state could ever pursue.”

On top of taxes, regulatory barriers also stop low-income people from becoming entrepreneurs. Licensing laws, high permitting fees, and other government requirements have been shown to limit the number of entrepreneurs who can afford to start their businesses and hire employees.

During America’s last economic boom from 2001 to 2007, Arizona’s poverty rate dropped roughly 2%, while some states enjoyed declines greater than 30%. Even though all states are subject to the same policies under the federal government, they can still focus on shaping their own policies at home to foster growth and combat poverty.

“Differences in how well states do at reducing poverty are not random; each state pursues different policies and some are proven to work better than others,” Slivinski concludes. “Arizona policymakers should approach fostering entrepreneurship as an anti-poverty program. Arizona can continue to pursue specific industries and the jobs associated with them, but growing our own crop of tens of thousands of new business owners should be at the top of the priority list. Arizona should strive to become known nationwide as the ‘Entrepreneurship State’.”

To read the report, please visit: http://goldwaterinstitute.org/article/increasing-entrepreneurship-key-lowering-poverty-rates

To read Stephen Slivinski’s biography, please visit: http://goldwaterinstitute.org/stephen-slivinski-bio

To interview Stephen Slivinski, please call Communications Associate Rob Kramer at (602) 633-8961.

Just in time for Global Entrepreneurship Week, a new report shows that states with a larger share of entrepreneurs do a better job at reducing poverty than states with fewer entrepreneurs.Wednesday, November 14, 2012 - 13:53Tax Reform Press ReleaseYesentrepreneur, taxes, tax, income tax, poverty, licensingBy Topicsfalse

Tucker Carlson

JGabriel — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 22:34:37 +0000

Goldwater Dinner 2012 speaker Tucker Carlson is a veteran journalist and political commentator, currently working for the Fox News Channel. Carlson is also the editor-in-chief of TheDailyCaller.com, one of the largest and fastest growing news sites in the country. Carlson joined Fox from MSNBC, where he hosted several nightly programs. Previously he was the co-host of Crossfire on CNN, where he was the youngest anchor in the history of that network. During the same period, Carlson also hosted a weekly public affairs program on PBS.

A longtime writer, Carlson has reported from around the world, including dispatches from Iraq, Pakistan, Lebanon and Vietnam. He has been a columnist for New York magazine and Reader's Digest. He currently writes for Esquire and The New York Times magazine. Carlson began his journalism career at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette newspaper in Little Rock. His most recent book is entitled, Politicians, Partisans and Parasites: My Adventures in Cable News. In 2006, he appeared on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars.

Carlson is currently working on his third book.

Goldwater Dinner 2012 speaker Tucker Carlson is a veteran journalist and political commentator, currently working for the Fox News Channel. Carlson is also the editor-in-chief of TheDailyCaller.com, one of the largest and fastest growing news sites in the country. Carlson joined Fox from MSNBC, where he hosted several nightly programs. Previously he was the co-host of Crossfire on CNN, where he was the youngest anchor in the history of that network. During the same period, Carlson also hosted a weekly public affairs program on PBS.Tuesday, November 6, 2012 - 15:30Constitutional Rights Press ReleaseYesBy Topicsfalse