Fairlie on Hispanic Business Ownership

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UCLA Luskin Public Policy Chair and Professor Robert Fairlie was quoted in a ShareAmerica feature on the growing number of Hispanic and Latin American entrepreneurs in the United States and how their contributions are boosting the economy. The story cites research from Stanford Graduate School of Business’s “State of Latino Entrepreneurship” report published in March 2024 which showed a 57% increase in Hispanic entrepreneurship between 2007 and 2022, with about 5 million Latino-owned businesses contributing $800 billion to the U.S. economy. The story also cites U.S. Department of the Treasury data showing that almost a quarter of new entrepreneurs in the U.S. were Latino in 2021. Fairlie suggested that this increasing entrepreneurship is partially due to immigrants who start businesses at a higher rate than non-immigrants. “Immigrants take some initiative to leave [their countries of origin] and come to the U.S., and thus might be more risk-taking and entrepreneurial,” Fairlie said.

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On the Political Use of Pseudoscience

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Professor of Public Policy Aaron Panofsky commented in a STAT article on the rise and use of eugenics — pseudoscientific genetic and racial theories popularized around the turn of 20th century — in the 2024 race for U.S. president. Former President Donald Trump’s use of this language in regard to immigrants and minorities underscores a larger trend in which eugenics is being revived in the U.S. in immigration policies, campaign rhetoric and academic literature. Panofsky, director of UCLA’s Institute for Society and Genetics, said that through the Human Genome Project — the mapping of the human genetic code in the 1990s — it was hoped that the idea that genetics was responsible for significant differences among various groups would end, creating a post-racial world. “But it turns out that both scientists and the public spend all their interest in the 0.1% of genetic variation that makes us different, not the 99.9% that makes us the same,” he said.

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LAX’s Long-Awaited Rail Connection

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UCLA Luskin’s Brian D. Taylor and Zev Yaroslavsky commented in a Los Angeles Times story on L.A.’s long-awaited rail connection to Los Angeles International Airport. A link to the region’s famous air transportation hub, while contemplated for decades, has faced a number of obstacles. “To not have public transportation at one of the busiest airports in the world … is a major faux pas,” said Yaroslavsky, the longtime county and city official who now directs the Los Angeles Initiative at UCLA Luskin. The project is now set to open in 2026, with an Automated People Mover connecting LAX to the Metro rail system. The 2.25-mile system also is expected to reduce traffic at the airport. “When the trains are essentially running every couple of minutes, that tends to reduce the transfer burden,” said Taylor, professor of urban planning and public policy, and research fellow in the Institute of Transportation Studies at UCLA Luskin.

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Wray-Lake Pens Commentary on Lower Voting Ages

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A Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) commentary by UCLA Luskin Professor of Social Welfare Laura Wray-Lake highlights the first time that 16- and 17-year-olds will be allowed to vote in school board elections in two California cities. Oakland and Berkeley teens will be the youngest voters in California, joining a growing number of under-18 youth nationally and internationally who have gained that right. “Policies to expand voting rights to 16- and 17-year-olds are being actively debated in cities and states across the U.S.,” Wray-Lake said. Since 1995, California has considered statewide policy to lower the voting age 12 times, including in 2023 with proposed legislation that would have lowered the voting age to 17 for all elections. Wray-Lake outlines four arguments for lowering age requirements related to capacity, rights, developmental timing and civic engagement. “Lowering the voting age could also be a catalyst for greater investment in statewide civic education.”

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Millard-Ball on Realities of Autonomous Taxis

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Visions of an autonomous car future may come with a few bumps. UCLA Luskin’s Adam Millard-Ball, professor of urban planning and director of the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies, commented in a Wired story on how a so-called robotaxi revolution could play out as self-driving vehicles are hitting the road. Promoters of a driverless future like Tesla’s Elon Musk see a promising outlook for autonomous taxis, including car sharing systems that allow self-driving-car owners to rent out their vehicles while not in use by the owner, potentially alleviating parking problems. Not exactly, say some experts like Millard-Ball, citing studies of Uber and Lyft’s effects on U.S. cities that show the introduction of these services have actually created more urban traffic. “That’s going backward for the environment and for other urban goals — whether it’s being physically active or socially inclusive,” Millard-Ball said.

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Zepeda-Millán on Anti-Immigration Campaign Rhetoric

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Chris Zepeda-Millán, associate professor of public policy at UCLA Luskin, commented in a U.S. News & World Report story on anti-immigration rhetoric used by presidential candidate Donald Trump on the 2024 campaign trail. The story suggests that while the former president’s messaging could repel Latino voters the final weeks before the general election, he could possibly sway a small group that could make the difference, notably in swing states. “His courting of the Latino vote is definitely a legitimate concern for the Harris campaign and for Democrats in general,” said Zepeda-Millán, who also holds appointments in Chicana/o Studies and Political Science. While the goal of Trump and Republicans may not be to win a majority of Latino voters, he added, “they just want to confuse enough Latino voters to either not go out and vote or to shave enough off from the Democrats in order to weaken Latinos as a voting bloc.”

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A Test of L.A. County’s Ballot Measures on Homelessness

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UCLA Luskin Professor of Public Policy and Urban Planning Michael Lens commented in an LAist story on measures meant to address homelessness efforts in Los Angeles County. Measure H, approved by voters in 2017, has a sunset date in 2027, while Measure A, on this November’s ballot, would include a half-cent sales tax intended to continue addressing homelessness. “A lot of people look around and say, ‘What has this money necessarily done for us?’” Lens said, but he noted that voters might also conclude that the crisis could be much worse if not for Measure H. In a CalMatters article by Jim Newton of UCLA’s Blueprint magazine, Lens said that whether voters can be sure that investments like Measure A will pay off is “a bit of a leap of faith.” In the same article, Zev Yaroslavsky, longtime public servant and director of the Los Angeles Initiative at UCLA Luskin, said the measure will serve as a referendum on progress achieved so far, warning, “This may be the last shot.”
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Shoup Talks Parking With NYC DOT

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UCLA Luskin’s Donald Shoup was a guest on the New York City Department of Transportation’s “Curb Enthusiasm” podcast. The distinguished research professor of urban planning and author of “The High Cost of Free Parking” shared insights on his favorite topic — parking benefit districts in which cities charge market prices for curb parking and then use all or most of the revenue to pay for added services on the metered block. Shoup also provided a bit of history behind his curb price calling, which he says started in Manhattan when he was a PhD student in economics writing his doctoral dissertation on the land market. “I did notice that almost all cars parked free on some of the most valuable land on Earth. And I thought, well, how would a land economist explain this? It is very puzzling. And I have been sort of following with that insight for about 60 years.”

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What to Do About Unpaid Bus Ridership

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Jacob Wasserman, a research project manager at the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, commented in a Washington Post story on bus fare evasion on the D.C. Metro system and what public officials are doing to address the cost of unpaid rides. Transit systems nationwide are considering the pros and cons of imposing measures to reduce nonpayment rates, including stopping collection fares. In the D.C. Metro region, unpaid fairs represent nearly 70% of ridership, according to the story. A new plan under consideration by D.C. Metro would reduce contributions from jurisdictions based on the amount paying riders contribute. “Bus operators have really mixed feelings,” Wasserman said. “Some don’t like fares because it often escalates into confrontations. On the other hand, fares are one of the few levers they have to control who is on their bus. It’s a complicated issue.”

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Manville on California’s Proposition 33

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Michael Manville, chair of Urban Planning at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, commented on a KQED podcast on California’s Proposition 33, which would repeal the 1995 Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act. The state law prohibits local ordinances that limit initial residential rental rates for new tenants as well as rates for current tenants in certain residential properties. Pro-Prop. 33 advocates cite the state’s sky-high rents, while anti-Prop. 33 proponents characterize the ballot measure as a corporate anti-housing scheme. “If we’re serious about helping our most vulnerable tenants, that’s really going to involve some combination of making housing in general just much more plentiful, and spending money in targeted subsidies for low-income people,” Manville said. In a Caló News article, Manville said that Prop. 33, while well intended, could have a number of untended consequences. “Prop. 33 does not offer rent control to more Californians. It removes a law that limits how strong a rent control law can be right now.”

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