Does a pension plan that takes more investment risk become better funded? Both the current accounting standards and the proposed revisions answer yes, while economic theory and real-world financial markets say no. Until and unless this central question is answered correctly, both the size of pension liabilities and the steps that could address them will be misunderstood.

In a just-published op-ed, American Enterprise Institute (AEI) economist Alex Brill sets forth two options to reduce health care costs in Illinois' Medicaid system. If enacted, these efforts would be a part of a broader reform effort which is necessary to avert dramatic cuts in the future.

In Illinois, state officials describe the budget picture as "dire," which will mean for education cuts.

The Medicaid drug program wasted $329 million nationwide in 2009 from states all too frequently reimbursing for a version of a drug that is more costly than another product with the exact same active ingredient, dose, form and bottle size.

AEI Election Watch 2012: American Enterprise Institute experts Karlyn Bowman and Henry Olsen discuss the results of contests in Alabama and Mississippi and preview key next battles – Puerto Rico and Illinois – in the 2012 GOP presidential contest.

Many public workers are overpaid relative to their private sector counterparts, especially in large, unionized states such as Wisconsin, Ohio and California. This may sound like a controversial claim, but it shouldn't. A consensus is building about the need for reform.

Last week I wrote about the standings in the presidential race and said it looked like a long, hard slog through about a dozen clearly identified target states, much like the contests in 2000 and 2004. Call it the 2000/2004 long, hard slog scenario.

Shifting government workers to 401(k)-style plans would offer greater transparency and keep benefits in line with the private economy.