Josh Barro is the Walter B. Wriston fellow at the Manhattan Institute focusing on state and local fiscal policy. He is the co-author of the Empire Center for New York State Policy's "Blueprint for a Better Budget." He writes weekly on fiscal issues for RealClearMarkets.com and has also written for publications including the New York Post, Investor's Business Daily, the Washington Examiner, City Journal, and Forbes.com. His commentary has been featured on CNN, Fox News Channel, CNBC, the Fox Business Network, and Bloomberg Television.

Prior to joining the Manhattan Institute, he served as a staff economist at the Tax Foundation, where he wrote the 2009 "Tax Freedom Day" report. He also wrote several critical analyses of state tax and budget proposals and gave testimony on tax reform before officials in Arkansas, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and South Carolina. Previously, he worked as a commercial real estate finance analyst for Wells Fargo Bank. Barro holds a B.A. from Harvard College.

Select Media

• FOX 5 News 7-22-10
• WPIX News 6-2-10
• The Kudlow Report, CNBC 5-21-10
• NY1 News, 4-14-10
• Glenn Beck, FOX News 2-5-10

Articles/Op-eds

• It's a Good Time to Index Taxes On Capital, RealClearMarkets, 08-31-10
• New Jersey's Pension Misdeeds Are Real, But Not Unusual, RealClearMarkets, 08-24-10
• Happier Public Union News from New Jersey, RealClearMarkets, 08-17-10
• Tax Reform Can Alleviate State Budget Crises, RealClearMarkets, 08-10-10
• Conservatives for a More Capricious Landmarks Bureaucracy, National Review Online, 08-03-10
• Reform Bond Subsidies to Improve States' Behavior, RealClearMarkets, 08-03-10
• Making New York City More Efficient, RealClearMarkets, 07-27-10
• How Much Do UI Extensions Matter for Unemployment?, National Review Online, 07-27-10
• Of Course Oakland Can't Afford These Cops, RealClearMarkets, 07-20-10
• LeBron Isn't The Only Thing NYC's Taxes Drive Away, New York Post, 07-11-10
• States: The New Strategic Defaulters, RealClearMarkets, 07-06-10
• Smokers Lose, but Other "Sinners" Win, RealClearMarkets, 06-29-10
• Mend the Fed, National Review Online, 06-22-10
• Is Illinois the New California?, RealClearMarkets, 06-22-10
• Beware of Fake Property Tax Reform, RealClearMarkets, 06-15-10
• Sen. Coburn Tackles Runaway Defense Spending, RealClearMarkets, 06-08-10
• Tax Cap Proved Its Worth in Massachusetts, Can Work in New Jersey, The Star-Ledger, 05-26-10
• Great Britain's Roadmap to Fiscal Restraint, RealClearMarkets, 05-25-10
• Governor Freeze, National Review Online, 05-18-10
• Millionaire's Taxes Hit a Reality Roadblock, RealClearMarkets, 05-18-10
• California: Mediterranean Climate, Mediterranean Budget, RealClearMarkets, 05-11-10
• Is Public Sector Wage Growth Moderating?, RealClearMarkets, 05-04-10
• Teacher Pensions Are a Ticking Time Bomb, Washington Examiner, 04-28-10
• Britain Leads the Way On Wage Freezes, RealClearMarkets, 04-20-10
• Taxes Are Low--For Now, Forbes.com, 04-15-10
• The Teacher Pension Nightmare, Forbes.com, 04-14-10
• Film Tax Credits Are An Unaffordable Luxury, RealClearMarkets, 04-06-10
• Christie Taking On Garden State Spending, National Review Online, 03-30-10
• States Are the Canary In the Fiscal Coal Mine, RealClearMarkets, 03-23-10
• What's the Matter With Illinois?, RealClearMarkets, 03-16-10
• Rep. Mike Pence Assumes a Can Opener, RealClearMarkets, 03-09-10
• "Innovation" Isn't Enough to Fix Entitlements, RealClearMarkets, 03-02-10
• Dude, Where's My Healthcare Cadillac Tax?, RealClearMarkets, 02-23-10
• Rep. Ryan's Economic Road Map Is a Good Start, RealClearMarkets, 02-16-10
• Empire of Excess, Wall Street Journal, 02-12-10
• Broader Sales Taxes Can Be a Good Thing, RealClearMarkets, 02-09-10
• NY Taxes: Headed For a New High, New York Post, 02-04-10
• Obama Giveth and Obama Taketh Away, RealClearMarkets, 02-02-10
• A "Scaled Back" Health Bill Won't Work, RealClearMarkets, 01-26-10
• It's Time to Freeze Government Wages, RealClearMarkets, 01-19-10
• Time to Get Serious In California, RealClearMarkets, 01-12-10
• Cut the Strings on the Stimulus, Washington Examiner, 01-06-10
• A Roadmap to a Better New York Budget, RealClearMarkets, 01-05-10
• Schwarzenegger Seeks The Right Bailout, RealClearMarkets, 12-29-09
• 2010: A Good Year to Die?, RealClearMarkets, 12-22-09
• Medicare Buy-In Is the Wrong Prescription, RealClearMarkets, 12-15-09
• Green Jobs Myths at the White House Summit, RealClearMarkets, 12-08-09
• Why Tax Botox?, Forbes.com, 12-07-09
• State Taxes Produce Wild Revenue Swings, RealClearMarkets, 11-24-09
• 'Jobs Saved' Stats Are Worse Than Meaningless, RealClearMarkets, 11-19-09
• Give Up Abortion for Nationalized Health Care?, Washington Examiner, 11-18-09
• Conservatives Must Rethink Spending Caps, RealClearMarkets, 11-10-09
• Why Middle Class Tax Hikes Are Coming, RealClearMarkets, 11-03-09
• The Senate Health Bill Is Less Economically Damaging, RealClearMarkets, 11-01-09
• America Celebrates Tax Freedom Day, Tax Foundation, 03-31-09
• Christie Moves Boldly to Fix Jersey's Budget, RealClearMarkets, 03-30-09
• Testimony before Maryland Legislature on the Compliance Costs of Estate Taxes, Tax Foundation, 02-18-09
• NYC May See Higher Income, Sales and Property Taxes, Tax Foundation, 11-12-08
• Arizona's Special Interest Laundry List, Tax Foundation, 06-24-08
• Congress Poised To Worsen State Budget Gaps, Washington Examiner, 00-00-00

Reports

• DO PROPERTY-TAX CAPS WORK? Lessons for New Jersey from Massachusetts, Josh Barro, Civic Report 62, May 2010
• Underfunded Teacher Pension Plans: It's Worse Than You Think, Civic Report 61, April 2010

Issue Briefs

• New Health Care Taxes to Slam Tri-state Area, No, 2, February 2010
• TWO AMERICAS: Public Sector Gains in Recession, No. 1, February 2010