Barry Goldwater Institute For Public Policy Research

DRIVING RESULTS BY WORKING DAILY IN COURTS, LEGISLATURES, AND COMMUNITIES TO DEFEND AND STRENGTHEN THE FREEDOM GUARANTEED TO ALL AMERICANS IN THE CONSTITUTIONS OF THE UNITED STATES AND ALL FIFTY STATES.

PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION: THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE LITIGATES CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES OF CONCERN TO THE PUBLIC, PARTICULARLY UNDER THE STATE CONSTITUTIONS, ON BEHALF OF AMERICANS WHO WOULD NOT BE IN A POSITION TO DEFEND AGAINST THE HEAVY HAND OF GOVERNMENT WITHOUT ASSISTANCE OR EXPERTISE. WE DEFEND TAXPAYER AND PROPERTY RIGHTS, FREE SPEECH AND FREE ENTERPRISE, AND EDUCATIONAL CHOICE. WE ENFORCE CONSTITUTIONAL LIMITS ON GOVERNMENT POWER. OUR CASES SEEK TO SET BROAD LEGAL PRECEDENTS TO PROTECT THE FREEDOMS OF OUR CLIENTS AND ALL AMERICANS. THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE ALSO MANAGES A SUCCESSFUL "LITIGATION BY LETTERHEAD" EFFORT, WHERE WE INDUCE GOVERNMENT TO CEASE UNLAWFUL ACTIONS BY PROVIDING THEM WITH INFORMATION BY LETTER, WITHOUT HAVING TO GO TO COURT. IN 2021, THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE'S ACTIVE CASELOAD AVERAGED 30, WE ADVANCED CUTTING-EDGE LEGAL SCHOLARSHIP IN THE COURTS BY FILING 23 AMICUS CURIAE BRIEFS. AND WE SENT 22 LETTERS DEMANDING GOVERNMENT CEASE UNLAWFUL BEHAVIOR (ALL OF WHICH WERE SETTLED FAVORABLY OUT OF COURT).

POLICY ANALYSIS, RESEARCH AND EDUCATION, EXTERNAL AFFAIRS: THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE CONDUCTS SCHOLARLY RESEARCH AND IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS OF STATE-LEVEL PUBLIC POLICY ISSUES AND COMMUNICATES THAT RESEARCH TO THE PUBLIC. OUR PRIMARY AREAS OF RESEARCH INCLUDE CONSTITUTIONAL LAW, EDUCATION REFORM, AND HEALTHCARE POLICY. IN 2021, WE DELIVERED 84 PUBLIC SPEECHES, DISTRIBUTED 10 POLICY REPORTS, AND TESTIFIED REGULARLY BEFORE LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEES. IN 2021, WE HAD 46 POLICY AND LITIGATION VICTORIES IN COURTS AND LEGISLATURES NATIONWIDE. NINE STATES ADOPTED GOLDWATER'S UNIVERSAL RECOGNITION LAW, ALLOWING WORKERS LICENSED IN ONE STATE TO CONTINUE WORKING WHEN THEY MOVE TO A NEW STATE WITHOUT HAVING TO SPEND TIME AND MONEY GETTING ANOTHER (TO DATE, NEARLY HALF STATES HAVE ENACTED VERSIONS OF THIS GROUNDBREAKING LAW). OTHER VICTORIES INCLUDE STATE LAWS THAT: PROTECT PEOPLE'S RIGHT TO OPERATE AN UNOBTRUSIVE HOME-BASED BUSINESS WITHOUT BEING UNFAIRLY TARGETED BY ONEROUS AND UNNECESSARY REGULATIONS; EMPOWER FAMILIES WITH GREATER EDUCATIONAL OPTIONS THAT FIT THEIR CHILDREN'S UNIQUE NEEDS; PROTECT PEOPLE FROM ARBITRARY AND ABUSIVE ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCIES; AND SHIELD NON-PROFIT DONORS FROM HAVING THEIR NAMES AND PERSONAL INFORMATION PUT ON A GOVERNMENT LIST, THUS EXPOSING THEM TO POTENTIAL HARASSMENT AND INTIMIDATION. THIS WORK WAS SUPPORTED IN PART THROUGH OUR RONALD REAGAN FELLOWS PROGRAM, WHICH DEVELOPS YOUNG TALENT BY TEACHING AND EMPLOYING 25 INTERNS AND LAW CLERKS.

COMMUNICATIONS: IN 2021, THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE CONTINUED TO CAPTURE NATIONAL MEDIA ATTENTION WITH INTERVIEWS AND NEWS REPORTS ABOUT OUR SUCCESSFUL EFFORTS TO DEFEND INDIVIDUAL LIBERTIES. THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE'S MEDIA RELATIONS EFFORTS ARE BUILT ON A MULTI-LEVEL STRATEGIC APPROACH THAT HARNESSES THE POWER OF ITS IN-HOUSE DIGITAL PLATFORMS, THE REACH OF TRADITIONAL MEDIA, AND THE VIRALITY OF SOCIAL MEDIA TO REACH AUDIENCES ACROSS THE COUNTRY. THE RESULTS ARE SEEN BY COUNTLESS AMERICANS ON THE PAGES OF THE NATION'S MOST NOTABLE NEWSPAPERS AND MOST-WATCHED NEWS NETWORKS. GOLDWATER INSTITUTE EXPERTS AND CLIENTS PUBLISHED 55 OP-EDS AND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR IN 2021, IN OUTLETS THAT INCLUDED THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, USA TODAY, DAILY CALLER, WASHINGTON EXAMINER, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, AND THE HILL, WHOSE COMBINED DAILY ONLINE CIRCULATION APPROACHES 7 MILLION READERS. OUR EXPERTS WERE ALSO A REGULAR PRESENCE ON NATIONAL CABLE TV NEWS NETWORKS, NATIONALLY SYNDICATED RADIO SHOWS, AND LOCAL BROADCAST TV AND RADIO, HELPING TO SHARE GOLDWATER'S WORK WITH AN EVEN WIDER AUDIENCE. ALL TOLD, GOLDWATER HAD 26 APPEARANCES ON NATIONAL CABLE TELEVISION, MORE THAN 100 LOCAL AND NATIONAL RADIO AND PODCAST APPEARANCES, AND MORE THAN 4,400 MENTIONS IN TRADITIONAL (PRINT, RADIO, TELEVISION, AND ONLINE) AND SOCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS. THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE DOES NOT JUST RELY ON OUTSIDE MEDIA OUTLETS TO DISSEMINATE ITS MESSAGE. WITH OUR MAIN WEBSITE AND OUR IN DEFENSE OF LIBERTY BLOG, THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE PUBLISHES ORIGINAL ARTICLES, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS, AND VIDEOS, WHICH IT THEN SHARES ACROSS SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS. LAST YEAR, MORE THAN 89,500 VISITORS CAME TO OUR BLOG OVER 136,000 TIMES FOR TIMELY INSIGHT AND ANALYSIS OF A WIDE VARIETY OF POLICY TOPICS. IN THE MONTH WITH THE HIGHEST READERSHIP - AUGUST - THE BLOG RECEIVED 16,120 VIEWS FROM 12,075 VISITORS. OUR PRIMARY WEBSITE, GOLDWATERINSTITUTE.ORG, WAS VIEWED BY NEARLY 131,200 VISITORS MORE THAN 226,000 TIMES. AND THE GOLDWATER INSTITUTE CONTINUED TO HARNESS THE POWER OF SOCIAL MEDIA TO BOLSTER ITS INFLUENCE. OUR FACEBOOK POSTS REACHED MORE THAN 263,000 PEOPLE, AND OUR CONTENT RECEIVED MORE THAN 1,379,000 IMPRESSIONS ON TWITTER. ADDITIONALLY, OUR VIDEOS RECEIVED 12,500 VIEWS ON YOUTUBE.