Nonrival

March 19, 2026

Human experts + AI summaries - on public policy, economics, and technology.

Florida Tried to Modernize Public Notices. Democracy Took a Hit.

promarket

• When Florida allowed local governments to stop publishing public notices in newspapers and move them to county websites in 2023, newspaper publications dropped 37% while website traffic didn't increase—suggesting citizens weren't finding the notices online.
• Public meeting attendance fell 14% and commercial zoning permits increased 28% in areas that switched away from newspapers, indicating reduced citizen oversight of local government decisions.
• The shift appears to have made it easier for officials to avoid public scrutiny rather than modernizing transparency, as governments systematically chose the less visible option for announcements likely to generate pushback.

The Corporate Housing Ban That Won't Fix Housing

yale_som

• Trump's ban on large institutional investors buying homes targets companies that own less than 5% of single-family houses, making it unlikely to meaningfully reduce prices
• The policy could backfire by helping smaller "mom-and-pop" investors snap up more starter homes, further limiting inventory for first-time buyers
• Other proposed fixes like retirement account down payments and mortgage bond purchases may actually push prices higher or create new financial risks

EPA's Carbon Disclosure Rules Accidentally Sparked a Business Boom

yale_som

• Federal requirements forcing companies to report greenhouse gas emissions led to 3% more new business creation in regulated industries
• Two mechanisms drove this: incumbent firms reduced production to cut emissions, creating market opportunities, and mandatory disclosures revealed proprietary information competitors could exploit
• The finding complicates the EPA's plan to end the program, suggesting it may have unexpected economic benefits even as its environmental impact remains unclear

In the News

The Strait of Hormuz Has Become an Economic Clock of War

lse_business_review

• The Strait of Hormuz carries 20% of global oil and 19% of liquified natural gas, making any disruption a worldwide inflation and growth crisis, not just a regional energy problem
• Strategic oil reserves could cushion a closure for only 1-3 months realistically, despite holding over 1.8 billion barrels globally, because the most vulnerable Asian importers would face political and economic pressure long before reserves run dry
• A short Hormuz closure creates an oil shock, but a prolonged disruption becomes a broader crisis affecting diesel, shipping insurance, transport costs, and global growth

Analysis

How a College Board CEO Saved America's Broken Student Aid System

statecraft

• FAFSA, the federal financial aid system used by 17 million students annually, completely collapsed during its 2023 redesign, leaving millions unable to access college funding
• The disaster stemmed from overly prescriptive congressional requirements, outdated government contractors using obsolete programming languages, and lack of internal technical expertise at the Department of Education
• The Biden administration borrowed the Obama playbook from the healthcare.gov crisis, bringing in private sector tech leaders for six months to rebuild the system using modern software practices

Also Worth a Look

• Why Congress Can't Kill Crypto Interest Rates (promarket)
• Why AI Makes Google's Search Monopoly Harder to Break, Not Easier (promarket)
• When Executives Cross Enemy Lines, Collusion Follows (promarket)
• Why Government Data Is Driving Policy Wonks Crazy (statecraft)
• The Art of Making America's Master Plan (statecraft)
• The Best Climate Policies Aren't What You Think They Are (policy_impacts)
• AI's Job Impact Starts Later Than Expected, but It's Accelerating (stanford_digital_econ)