Goldwater Institute

The City of Phoenix is at it again... and so are we.

Phoenix is trying to sell a parcel of downtown land to a private, out-of-state developer at a $3.3 million discount with no real public benefit in return.

That's Illegal, and Goldwater is suing the city to put a stop to it.

The Arizona Constitution requires government entities to receive a direct and proportionate return when they sell public assets. But Phoenix leaders are attempting to give Pennrose, LLC a massive discount on prime downtown real estate, agreeing to sell property worth at least $4.8 million for only about $1.5 million.

That’s not proportionate, and there are no other public benefits in the agreement to make up the difference.

Simply put, Arizona law does not give way just because city officials find a particular project desirable.

Public property belongs to the public. When government officials transfer millions of dollars in public value to a private developer, the Arizona Constitution requires a genuine public purpose and a proportionate exchange—not deep discounts justified by speculative or illusory benefits that taxpayers will never see.

History is being buried, and it's all because of political correctness.

A new Goldwater Institute report shows how ideological activists are twisting a federal law with disastrous consequences for science.

Anthropologist Elizabeth Weiss, Ph.D., writes in the report that activists are stretching the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, or NAGPRA, beyond its intended purpose.

That's restricting research, removing artifacts from public view, and burying evidence that helps us understand the ancient Southwest.

Museums and universities should preserve and study history, not hide it. The past belongs to future generations and should be protected from political pressure and ideological agendas.

Read The Reburial of the Southwest: Closing Off Native History and Archaeology in the link below.

Goldwater Institute | Defending and Strengthening Freedom The Goldwater Institute is the nation’s preeminent liberty organization working to defend our freedoms nationwide.

Can the government force a private business to fund speech it disagrees with?

The Constitution says no.

But Santa Barbara County has created a mandatory wine "Business Improvement District" requiring wineries to pay a 1% assessment and join a private trade association that controls how those funds are spent.

For Flying Goat Cellars, a family-owned winery that has spent decades building its own brand and business model, that means being compelled to support marketing and advocacy efforts it does not endorse.

The Supreme Court has long recognized that Americans cannot be forced to subsidize speech they disagree with or compelled into private associations against their will.

That's why Flying Goat Cellars, represented by the Goldwater Institute, has filed suit to defend its First and Fifth Amendment rights.

Government should protect freedom of association and free expression—not force citizens to bankroll someone else's message.

This Memorial Day weekend, we remember the men and women who sacrificed everything to defend American freedom and liberty.

“America was founded on the revolutionary truth that our rights are inherent and inalienable – they do not come from government, but belong by nature to every person,” writes Jon Riches, a commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve and the Goldwater Institute’s vice president for litigation.

“The Constitution was established to secure those liberties, and every servicemember swears an oath not to a ruler or political party, but to support and defend that Constitution and the freedom it protects.”

Throughout American history, brave heroes have given their lives to ensure that freedom would endure. Memorial Day is an annual reminder that freedom is never free.

Liberty In Action: They Sacrificed All for Freedom This Memorial Day weekend, we remember the men and women who sacrificed everything to defend American freedom and liberty. “America..

A permit application shouldn't disappear into a bureaucratic black hole.

With the signing of House Bill 2552, Tennessee has taken a major step toward restoring accountability and common sense to its permitting process.

It's a win for housing, property rights, and good government.

Tennessee Cuts Red Tape and Speeds Up Housing Permits Red tape has long been one of the most stubborn barriers to increasing the housing supply and reducing costs in..

"Liberty means the individual’s right to make the operative choices in his or her own life without interference from other people or from the state."

Goldwater's Timothy Sandefur spoke with USA Today about his new book, "Proclaiming Liberty" and America's 250th.

"We often in today’s world speak of government as if it’s our parent — that it’s government’s job to keep us good and mind what we do and all these sorts of things," Sandefur said. "The American revolutionaries would have said, no, government is not our parent. Government is our child. It’s our job to supervise it. It’s our job to teach it the right things to do. After all, we’re the ones paying its bills."

Arizona has an incredible opportunity to strike a decisive blow to DEI in higher ed, but it requires one important step from House Speaker Steve Montenegro and Senate President Warren Petersen. It's time to put HCR2044 to the voters!

This is incredibly important for Arizona's students today and for the future of our state. Let's save our universities!

The Arizona Two-Step May Save Your University | National Review Red states are beginning to grasp their legitimate, yet largely neglected, power over graduation requirements.

Taxpayers should never be forced to backstop a private corporation’s profits.

This week, the Goldwater Institute sent a demand letter to Columbia, Missouri, challenging a taxpayer-backed deal with American Airlines. Under the arrangement, the city pledged public funds to help guarantee revenue targets for a new airline route between Columbia and Charlotte.

If private businesses want to invest in the route and assume the risk themselves, that is their choice. But government officials should not use taxpayer money—or promises backed by taxpayers—to subsidize a multi-billion-dollar corporation.

Missouri’s Constitution prohibits public entities from lending credit or granting public money to aid private corporations. The Goldwater Institute is working to ensure that constitutional protections actually mean something.

Tax dollars should fund essential public services—not corporate welfare.

It's a great day in Oklahoma! Governor Kevin Stitt has signed TWO big reforms for freedom into law.

Rare-disease patients have new hope with the signing of Goldwater's Right to Try for Individualized Treatments, a cutting-edge law that empowers patients to seek personalized treatments designed just for them.

And in a major win for property rights and the rule of law, Gov. Stitt signed legislation that holds local governments financially accountable when officials allow homelessness to grow unchecked and harm neighborhoods.

We have linked the stories about these two victories below.