ALEC Honors Dr. Arthur Laffer for Economic Excellence

Dr. Arthur Laffer, known for the Laffer Curve, was the first recipient of an ALEC award in his honor — The Laffer Award for Economic Excellence.  Dr. Laffer received the surprise award at the ALEC States and Nation Policy Summit in Nashville, TN on December 8. (view presentation above)

Dr. Laffer has been a stalwart at ALEC for decades. He has been an advisor to U.S. Presidents and a friend/mentor to many economists and legislators.  The “ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitiveness Index’ is a yearly feature of Rich States, Poor States, a publication co-authored by him. The index ranks states on their pro-economic policies as they relate to taxes, regulations and other competitive benchmarks. Named the “Father of Supply-Side Economics, ” Dr. Laffer is the founder and chairman of Laffer Associates.

In his acceptance speech, Dr. Laffer shared his reasons for moving from California to Tennessee. a state with the lowest tax in the nation. “We have no income tax, we have no death tax, we have very low property tax and I don’t know how it happened, but we have a two billion dollar surplus,” said Dr. Laffer. “This is the way all our states should be and this is the way our federal government should be.”

Dr. Art Laffer was recognized by Time Magazine as one of “the Century’s Greatest Minds” for his invention of the Laffer Curve, which has been called one of “the advances that powered this extraordinary century.” Replicas of his “Laffer Napkin,” where he first sketched his theory, were handed out at the awards dinner.

Find out more about the Laffer Curve in the Bloomberg video below: