"Rich States, Poor States" Presentation – Traverse City, MI

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and Mackinac Center for Public Policy have partnered to bring Jonathan Williams, vice president of the Center for State Fiscal Reform at ALEC and co-author of the 9th Edition of Rich States, Poor States: ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitiveness Index. Mr. Williams will discuss the policy trends over the years that helped Michigan's economy recover and what needs to be done to keep Michigan moving forward.

The 9th Edition of Rich States, Poor States: ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitiveness Index reveals a pro-growth trend across the nation for 2016.

Rich States, Poor States examines the latest movements in state economic growth. The data ranks the 2016 economic outlook of states using fifteen equally weighted policy variables, including various tax rates, regulatory burdens and labor policies. The ninth edition examines trends over the last few decades that have helped or hurt states’ economies.

Used by state lawmakers across America since 2008, Rich States, Poor States: ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitiveness Index, is authored by economist Dr. Arthur B. Laffer; Stephen Moore, distinguished visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation; and Jonathan Williams, vice president of the ALEC Center for State Fiscal Reform.

There is no charge to attend this event. Seating is limited, so reserve your space today. You are welcome to include a guest in your registration.

Preregistration is required, so please register here.

Heavy hors d'oeuvres and refreshments will be served.

Please register by Friday, August 12 at 12 noon. You may register online, or by contacting our event manager at 989-698-1905 or events@mackinac.org.

Our presenter:

Jonathan Williams is the Vice President for the Center for State Fiscal Reform at the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), where he works with state policymakers, congressional leaders and members of the private sector to develop fiscal policy solutions for the states. Williams also co-authors Rich States, Poor States: ALEC-Laffer Economic State Competitiveness Index with Reagan economist Dr. Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore. Prior to joining ALEC, Williams served as staff economist at the nonpartisan Tax Foundation, authoring numerous tax policy studies.

Williams’s work has appeared in many publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes and Investor’s Business Daily. He is a contributing columnist to Tax Analysts, the leading provider of tax news and analysis for the global community. He has written for the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. In addition, Williams was a contributing author of In Defense of Capitalism (Northwood University Press).

Williams has testified before numerous legislative bodies and spoken to audiences across America. He is frequent guest on talk radio shows and has appeared on numerous television outlets, including the PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, Fox Business News and Bloomberg News. Williams was also the recipient of the prestigious Ludwig von Mises Award in Economics.

Williams has visited all 50 states and regularly travels more than 100,000 miles a year. While on the road, he is a connoisseur of local and regional food across the state capitals.