Lawyer-brain, NECTAs, marriage penalties, and the trouble with normal

A weekend policy potpourri

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Hey folks, had a little extra time this week and wanted to try something a little bit different — instead of a full article, something like a little potpourri of relevant policy and politics information that’s more substantive than random tweets and available exclusively for subscribers.

I don’t know if this will be a permanent thing, but if you guys like it at all, it will at least become a sometimes thing.

So let me know what you think.

No more NECTAS?

This is extremely nerdy, but fun for people who like data and urban policy. Right before Inauguration Day, the Office of Management and Budget put out a proposed rule that would, among other things, get rid of NECTAs.

What’s a NECTA? It’s a New England City and Town Area. In most of America, most of the land consists of unincorporated areas and a lot of government functions are performed by counties. But in New England, essentially all of the land except for some uninhabited parts of Maine is part o…