Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

Sunroom Cost

A sunroom costs $100 to $350 per square foot on average. A 3-season room costs $8,000 to $50,000 to build, and a 4-season room costs $20,000 to $80,000 to add. A sun porch or prefab sunroom addition costs $5,000 to $30,000, and a glass solarium costs $30,000 to $150,000.

Connect with home addition contractors near you for an accurate estimate, or view the sunroom sizes and prices below.

An all-season or 4-season room is integrated into the existing construction of the home with insulation, electricity, an HVAC. Three-season sunrooms are separate structures from the house and lack those amenities.

The main cost factors in building a sunroom are:

States like New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Florida, or the Bay Area in California have higher costs of living, which can increase sunroom prices by up to 50%.

The average sunroom costs $100 to $350 per square foot for materials and installation, depending on the quality, finishes, and foundation. The cost to build a 3-season room is $80 to $230 per square foot, while a custom-built four-season sunroom runs $200 to $400 per square foot.

A four-season sunroom costs $200 to $400 per square foot or from $20,000 to $80,000 to add on average, depending on the size, materials, finishings, and foundation. An all-season or 4-season room is integrated into the existing construction of the home to provide an extension of living space.

A four-season room addition is temperature-controlled with insulated walls, ceiling, and flooring, and openly connects to the rest of the house. Another option is adding a connecting door and separate heating and cooling system to keep utility bills down.

A 3-season room costs $8,000 to $50,000 on average, depending on the size, materials, finishing options, and foundation status. The average cost to build a three-season room addition is $80 to $230 per square foot based on whether it's a prefab porch enclosure or custom-built.

The cheapest 3-season rooms are prefab kits, screened-in porches, and enclosed patios with single-pane glass that are installed on an existing patio or deck. Costs increase for custom-built rooms with tinted, dual-pane glass windows, and a concrete foundation.

Three-season sunrooms lack insulation and electricity, which makes them hotter in the summer and colder in the winter than 4-season models. Although heating or cooling systems can be installed separately from the home.

A solarium costs $30,000 to $100,000 on average, depending on the size and whether it's a 3-season or 4-season extension. The cost of building a solarium addition ranges between $300 and $800 per square foot. A solarium is a glass room in the house with a glass roof.

A solarium needs a foundation and typically takes two to four weeks to build. Reputable contractors usually include a lifetime warranty on the glass. These high-quality sunrooms provide abundant natural light thats also ideal for plants and flowers.

A home conservatory addition costs $50,000 to $150,000 or more, with prices ranging from $200 and $600 per square foot to install. High-end residential or commercial conservatories cost $600 to $1,200 per square foot to build.

A conservatory is a deluxe sunroom with a foundation, insulation, electricity, HVAC, and glass ceilings. The roof panels are angled to form a central peak that bisects the structure. A conservatory meets all building code requirements and qualifies as a full home addition.

A greenhouse sunroom or garden room addition costs $2,000 to $30,000 on average, depending on the type. Prefab garden room kits range from $10 to $25 per square foot, depending on the size, features, and quality.

While some greenhouses are all glass, models are available with plastic panels made of fiberglass, polycarbonate, or polyethylene film. Greenhouses traditionally lack a foundation and insulation, which separates them from true sunroom living spaces. Although, you still may need a permit.

An atrium is an open interior room with a glass roof. A glass atrium addition costs $6,000 to $20,000 for the roof, which requires structural modifications, plus HVAC work for temperature control. Contractors need to review the blueprints and perform an on-site inspection to provide an accurate quote. Atrium additions are a cost-efficient way to bring natural light into the home.

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There are different types of sunrooms across a wide variety of prices. Costs increase as you add more features in each category.

Sunroom prices vary depending if they are prefabricated or custom-built.

*Additional costs may apply for shipping, assembly, and site-work.

Labor includes foundation work, construction or assembly, insulation, electricity, HVAC, and finishing work that meets building code regulations.

A sunroom foundation costs $1,000 to $6,000 or from $5 to $15 per square foot on average, depending on the type. Site-built sunrooms require a proper building foundation, while prefab sunroom kits may be assembled onto an existing wooden deck or patio with a level surface.

Sunroom foundation requirements vary depending on local building codes. Using an existing deck or concrete slab may require repairs, leveling, and reinforcing for additional support. Minor foundation repairs for a slab or deck repairs cost $500 to $2,500. Even with repairs, not all decks are suitable to support the weight of a sunroom.

Additional site preparation costs apply when building a new foundation for a sunroom such as land clearing, tree removal, excavation, and landscaping.

Sunroom framing is typically aluminum, vinyl, wood, or resin plastic. Three-season sunrooms use has cheaper frames such as aluminum, resin, and vinyl. Higher-quality 4-season sunrooms and conservatories are built with expensive wooden or insulated vinyl framing.

Sunroom insulation costs $300 to $1,500 or $1 to $3 per square foot, depending on the product used. Other ways to insulate a sunroom are curtains, insulated panels, dual-pane windows, protecting under the deck, and sealing the joints. A screen room or three-season sunroom doesnt require insulation.

A sunroom roof costs $500 to $7,000, depending on the size, style, and if it's a glass-enclosed or a solid-covered shingle roof. A glass solarium roof with a steel structure costs the most, while an asphalt, metal, or slate-covered roof costs between $500 and $3,500.

*Based on the average sunroom size of 150 to 300 square feet.

Other elaborate designs include the cathedral, curved-eave, mansard, and pyramidal roofs.

Sunroom windows cost $3,500 to $12,000 on average for 10 new or replacement windows, depending on the quality and type. Non-insulated windows for a three-season sunroom are cheaper than dual-pane insulated windows for a four-season room or solarium.

Other options are plastic film, polycarbonate plastic windows, or screens. Contractors recommend upgrading to dual-pane glass to increase the energy efficiency, which may require new window frames that seal properly.

Installing French or sliding glass doors costs $700 to $2,400, which can replace walls, provide natural light, and create stunning views to the outdoors. Other options include patio doors, single-entry, telescoping, or bi-fold doors at varying costs. Most prefabricated sunrooms come with doors.

Hiring an electrician costs $40 to $100 per hour, plus a $75 call-out fee on average. Expect to spend a total of $250 to $600 or more to install the wiring for an average sunroom. If the contractor doesnt include electrical work in their quote, other potential costs include:

Most 3-season sunrooms dont have electrical connections, but some prefabricated units come with built-in electrical components. In some cases, you may need to upgrade an old electrical panel to provide more power to the sunroom.

Adding or expanding the HVAC system costs $300 to $5,000 to bring heating and cooling into the sunroom. The cheapest options are extending the existing ductwork, installing a ceiling fan, or using a window AC unit with a space heater.

Additionally, installing a mini-split AC unit costs $660 to $4,500, which provides both heating and cooling without ducts.

When adding heating and cooling systems to 3-season rooms, be sure to install insulation first to avoid high utility bills.

After building the sunroom, extra costs of $4 to $50 per square foot may apply for painting, flooring, shutters or blinds, interior design and decor, and other interior finishes. Be sure to ask contractors what finishes are included in their bid.

Also, consider what type of furniture you want in your sunroom. Modern decor includes a couch, a few chairs, a bookcase with large shelves, or even a dining table.

Most sunroom contractors include debris removal and site cleanup in their estimate. If it's not included, dumpster rental prices are $280 to $485 per week, and cleaning a construction site costs $300 to $700 on average.

Building permits are required to build a sunroom, even for small DIY sunroom kits or custom-built room additions. A building permit for a sunroom costs $200 to $500. Also, a zoning permit, electrical permit, and a heating-cooling permit may be required to build a sunroom.

Permit rules and building codes vary depending on your location and take around one month to process. Licensed contractors should always pull the permits for you, which makes them liable for any on-site injuries and damages. After construction, an inspection verifies everything is up to building code standards.

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Converting a deck, porch, or patio into a sunroom costs $4,000 to $70,000, depending on the size and if it's going to be a 3 or 4-season room. A 3-season sunroom, also called a patio enclosure or screened-in porch, is the cheapest, while a 4-season room costs the same as a home addition.

Converting a deck into a 3-season sunroom or patio enclosure costs $8,000 to $30,000. Leveling and reinforcing the surface are required to meet building code requirements. Pouring a new concrete patio costs $4 to $12 per square foot, while building a new deck costs $15 to $30 per square foot.

Converting a 3-season room into a 4-season costs $3,000 to $20,000, which may include new windows, insulation, HVAC extension, and pouring a concrete foundation. Converting a 3-season room into a regular room or living space addition costs $20,000 to $80,000 or from $100 to $300 per square foot.

A 3-season sunroom to living space area requires removing the old sunroom and building a new 4-season room that's integrated into the existing construction, roofline, and exterior of the home. In some cases, finishing a basement costs around the same, but provides a better ROI in terms of square footage.

Converting a screened porch into a sunroom costs $4,000 to $20,000 or between $200 and $400 per linear foot. This conversion costs 30% more than converting the area to an enclosed patio. Additional costs apply for pouring a slab foundation and bringing the sunroom up to building code standards.

*Extra costs may apply for permits, insulation, and extending the HVAC system.

Merely replacing the screens with glass picture windows costs $400 to $800 per window, which includes a stronger frame with more insulation. If the current window frames are in good shape, installing new window panes cost $150 to $400 each, depending on if they are single or double-pane.

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Prefabricated sunroom additions cost $10,000 to $50,000 on average, depending on the size, brand, design, materials, customizations, and if it's a 3-season or 4-season model. Sunroom delivery, foundation, and labor costs $2,500 to $5,000. Low-end brands cost $20 to $60 per square foot, without installation.

Prefab sunrooms are built in a factory and then shipped to your home for assembly. After acquiring building permits, prefab sunrooms can be installed on top of a patio slab and sometimes on a wooden deck.

Some prefab sunroom kits are suitable for DIY assembly, but most require hiring a professional to keep the warranty in place and to pass local inspections.

Champion Sunrooms cost $25,000 to $45,000 or between $160 and $260 per square foot on average for their custom 4-season style rooms. Champion 3-season patio rooms cost $15,000 and up, depending on the design choices. Champion has a limited lifetime warranty on parts, materials, and labor.

Champion Sunrooms has showrooms in 50 cities, offers in-house financing, and employs an in-house crew for installation. Champion is Energy Star and AAMA certified with various models and customizations.

Their models come with either sloped gable roofing or flat studio roofs with various options for doors, windows, flooring, and lighting. Their tempered glass is a dual-pane Low-E coated that shields you from 95 percent of the suns harmful UV rays.

California Sunrooms cost $5,000 to $20,000, not including assembly or installation. They work in partnership with TEMO sunrooms, Sunesta awnings, and local Home Depot stores. This company offers in-house installation services plus a lifetime warranty.

Their models come with aluminum frames in 5 colors and three main window styles. Choose from a solarium style, or cathedral or flat-roof type sunrooms. For qualifying customers, they offer a 100% financing option with no money down.

SunSuites Sunrooms cost $40,000+ for 4-seasons sunrooms with low-maintenance fiberglass frames that are stronger than vinyl or wooden frames. Their models come with integrated power outlets, dual-pane glass windows, and a lifetime limited warranty. SunSuites Sunrooms are easy to customize to match your current home.

Florian Sunrooms start at $16,950 for a 10' x 13' model and up to $30,000+ for larger sizes and more features, not including installation. Florian offers upper-class sunroom kits, solariums, conservatories, and greenhouses. They are based in South Carolina but ship nationwide for extra fees.

Florian has more than 300 curved and straight-eave modelseither a lean-to or freestandingwith nearly unlimited sizes and configurations.

Florian is Energy Star compliant offering tempered, heat-repellent PPG glass that saves 58% on heating costs and blocks out 56% more heat than regular glass. Their Sunclean glass is water-repelling and self-cleaning. Warranties may not cover damage to the glass but inlcude the frames.

Brady Built Sunrooms cost $12,000 to $30,000, including assembly installation, depending on the style, design, and customizations. Brady Built offers vinyl or wood frames that come with a 25-year warranty.

Their sunrooms feature dual-pane Pella windows that are Low-E coated, tempered, and sealed to create highly energy-efficient glass. The structural designs offered are:

Sunspace sunrooms cost $10,000 for basic 3-season screen rooms or porch conversions, up to $50,000 or more for foam insulated 4-season models. Their glass frames come in 6 colors, and glass choices are clear or tinted in 5 different designs.

Sunspace offers a lifetime warranty on laminations, finishes, glass breakage, and hardware. Get a 10-year warranty on vinyl glazed windows and a 15-year warranty on insulating glass.

Patriot Sunrooms cost $10,000 to $35,000 on average, with styles including straight-eave, curved, cathedral, and conservatory. Patriot offers free design consultations, affordable financing, and transferable labor and material warranties. Plus, only experienced Patriot employees install their sunrooms.

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The many benefits of a sunroom often outweigh the disadvantages.

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A sunroom is affordable, has a 50% return on investment, provides natural sunlight, and is relaxing. Investing in a sunroom helps sell your home quicker, especially in New England or the Midwest. Plus, building a sunroom is cheaper and faster than a traditional stick-built home addition.

The most popular sunroom sizes are 12' x 12' and 16' x 24'. Custom sizes can be constructed to fit any concrete slab, deck, or porch. In colder climates, its important to place your new sunroom on the Southern side of your home to catch the most sunlight in winter.

A two-story sunroom addition costs $30,000 to $150,000 or between $100 and $300 per square foot to build. A two-story sunroom is priced similarly to a full home addition and requires a stronger foundation with higher-quality building materials than basic sunrooms.

A 4-season sunroom increases your property taxes by adding square footage to your home, which raises the property value. Many screen rooms or 3-season sunrooms are not considered living space, but instead, a non-habitable backyard patio, which increases your taxes less.

Three-season rooms have a 47% to 55% return on investment. Most three-season rooms are appraised as low as 25% of living space value on a per-square-foot basis. Four season sunrooms with a concrete slab and proper permits that converts to livable space, is valued at the home's normal $/sqft.

White, pale, and neutral colors are ideal for sunrooms to keep things bright, airy, and calming. These shades embrace the natural light coming from the outside and reflect more heat to keep the sunroom cooler in the summer.

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DIY sunroom kits cost $1,500 to $5,000 on average, depending on the type, size, and materials. Shipping costs up to $500, depending on the distance and weight. DIY sunroom and solarium kits are cheap, but limited in design and options. Most kits are 3-season with a 5-year warranty and include:

Read more here:
2022 Sunroom Costs | 3 & 4-Season Room Addition Prices

You'll love the charm of this beautifully restored farmhouse sitting back off the road, nestled among the trees on 1.14 acres, providing the peace & privacy of a country home, but conveniently located minutes from shopping, restaurants, entertainment, schools, employments centers, Hwy 421 & I-40. Open 560 sf living area plus 295 sf sun room. Original custom woodwork. Spacious closets. Almost everything is brand new: metal roofs, vinyl siding, double-hung vinyl windows, custom front door, ceilings, walls, ceramic tile & carpet floors, new lighting & plumbing fixtures, updated electrical and plumbing, two brand new energy efficient HVAC systems with all new duct work & wiring. A heat pump for the upper level & 3 remote & WiFi controlled mini-splits for the main level work great together to provide a consistent temperature throughout the home. Value range of similar size homes: $340,000 - $390,000. GPS messes up:Use 9069 Lasater next door. Security cameras in use. Realtor is part owner.

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Historical homes you can own in the Winston-Salem area - Winston-Salem Journal

AMESBURY Window Woman of New Englands work restoring windows at the former Centre School in Dracut will be featured on an episode of This Old House, airing Thursday.

The 1898 school building, which slowly fell into disrepair over the years, is being developed into affordable housing for veterans by the Coalition for a Better Acre.

Alison Hardy, owner of Window Woman of New England on Elm Street in Amesbury, happened to be watching This Old House recently when she realized she was working on the same project being discussed on the episode.

Hardy, who did a segment for the Emmy-winning home improvement series in 2011, reached out to the producers to let them know she was restoring the windows and would be happy to discuss her part in the project for the show, and they agreed.

The building is really cool. It had just been abandoned for so long and nobody could figure out what to do with it, she said, explaining that the school is in the middle of a residential district, so converting it to housing made the most sense.

The building features 50 windows and they are large, Hardy said, noting that the upper and lower sashes each weigh about 24 pounds, which is a lot as youre trying to lift it over your head.

Hardy enjoys talking about window restoration and educating the public on how different windows were designed to function.

Its always fun when something as obscure as window restoration can get national TV coverage, she said. You just dont think about it. When anybody says windows, the word replacement comes to mind.

For Hardy, its important to get people to see the other option, which is restoration.

As explained on her website, maintaining the original windows of a building is not just about preserving the character and charm of a home; they can also have a lot longer lifespan than many people are willing to believe.

Though some people worry that restoration will cost more than replacement, thats not usually the case, according to Window Woman.

With New Englands rich history, Hardy has worked on windows from multiple centuries. Her cutoff for accepting work is typically windows from the 1960s.

The oldest windows she has worked on, or at least for which she knew the year for certain, were on the Spalding House in Lowell, which was built in 1760.

To learn more about Window Woman of New England, visit http://www.window-woman.com.

In many locations, This Old House airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on PBS. For a full schedule of local listings, visit http://thisoldhouse.com/tvschedule.

Full episodes are also available online the Sunday night after each episodes original airdate at http://thisoldhouse.com/watchtoh. Recent episodes can also be viewed on PBS.org, PBS digital apps, The Roku Channel and This Old House app.

Window Woman will appear in the next issue of This Old House magazine in January.

Staff reporter Heather Alterisio can be reached via email at halterisio@newburyportnews.com or by phone at 978-961-3149. Follow her on Twitter @HeathAlt.

We are making critical coverage of the coronavirus available for free. Please consider subscribing so we can continue to bring you the latest news and information on this developing story.

Staff reporter Heather Alterisio can be reached via email at halterisio@newburyportnews.com or by phone at 978-961-3149. Follow her on Twitter @HeathAlt.

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Window Woman to appear on 'This Old House' - The Daily News of Newburyport

Apple recently released macOS Monterey 12.2 beta, and while the update isnt a big one, it does come with a Music app that has been rewritten with native technology instead of web content. Meanwhile, the same old iTunes that was discontinued on the Mac years ago is still available on Windows and its past time for Apple to replace it with something better.

iTunes is quite an old software as it was introduced in 2001, the same year Apple released the first iPod. Over the years, iTunes has been updated with several new features, which includes the iTunes Store, support for movies and TV shows, the ability to sync and restore iOS devices, a failed social network, and access to Apple Music.

In 2019, Apple finally decided it was time to separate iTunes into different apps, so the company discontinued the software and replaced it with the Music, TV, and Podcasts apps in macOS Catalina. Having a dedicated Apple Music app is great, but this never solved the main problems of iTunes since the Music app on macOS is still almost entirely based on the old software.

As reported by 9to5Mac, the company is finally rebuilding Apple Music on macOS as a native app, which should make it more fluid and less problematic. But

While macOS users at least have access to some new Apple Music features like Live Lyrics and Spatial Audio through the Music app, Windows users are still stuck in time with iTunes. Apple has never cared much about bringing its software to other platforms, but now were talking about services and Apple Music is one of the most popular music subscription services in the world.

Before iTunes was discontinued, the Windows version of the app was always updated with the same features available on macOS not only because iTunes is the only way to manage iOS devices on Windows, but also because Windows users also used iTunes to buy songs, movies, and TV shows.

Even with the company prioritizing its own computers (and thats totally understandable), its ridiculous that Apple Music subscribers still dont have access to a truly Apple Music app on Windows. More than 74% of computers worldwide run Windows, which means that many iPhone owners have a PC instead of a Mac. If they decide to subscribe to Apple Music, they wont have a good experience.

And here I can also mention other Apple services like Apple Podcast and Apple TV+, which also dont offer a native Windows experience. If Apple really wants to be taken seriously as a service company, it needs to think more about offering multi-platform solutions in situations like this.

I personally know multiple users who want to subscribe to Apple Music on iPhone, but end up subscribing to Spotify because it offers a more consistent experience on Windows. At the same time, Apple Podcasts have been considerably losing ground to other platforms.

9to5Mac heard earlier this year that Apple has been testing both Music and Podcast apps for Microsoft platforms. While it seems that these apps are primarily focused on Xbox consoles, Apple was looking for engineers with Universal Windows Platform (UWP) experience, which suggests that Apples media apps may finally be coming to Windows.

The Apple Music app is also available for Android, Smart TVs, and even PlayStation consoles, so it would be only fair that Windows users have access to a similar app with the same features. Perhaps now that the company is improving the Music app experience on macOS, Windows users may also see a new app to replace iTunes in 2022.

What are your thoughts about this? Do you miss an Apple Music app on Windows? Let us know in the comments below.

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Comment: Another year goes by and Apple still hasnt replaced iTunes on Windows with something better - 9to5Mac

Like Payton, Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin just happened to be mic'd up for a similar moment, as Larkin skated toward the net with the puck during warmups and fired a backhander on goal. Immediately after, his momentum took him into the boards, where a fan's beer was sitting on the other side of the glass. Obviously, that beer went down and it went down hard.

After an initial apology through the glass, Larkin realized the error of his ways and repeated to himself "oh no, oh no." A teammate asked him if he knocked the brewski over, and Larkin knew he did. Watch what happens next:

Damn, a 20-spot! We know arena beers are expensive, but we'd imagine they're in the $13-to-$15 range at Little Caesars Arena. Larkin going above and beyond. No wonder he was named captain last year.

By the way, apropos of nothing, but it remains hilarious how American hockey players like Larkin still manage to sound Canadian. Of course, being from Michigan, Larkin is close to the Canadian border, so his case is a little different. But watch any of those hockey slang/cliche videos and you'll find that all these guys talk exactly the same no matter where they are from. That would also explain why they're all so polite, as Larkin proves here.

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Knocking over a fan's beer and replacing it has become the hottest trend in pro sports - GolfDigest.com

Big decisions for the Armys Bradley Fighting Vehicle replacement are happening in 2022.

The armored, tracked troop carrier thats been covering ground since 1981 is on its way out. And the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle is being designed by multiple companies, all expecting the Armys design decision by early 2023, according to service officials.

But the OMFV is more than a better ride for troops. Thats kind of in the name, especially the optionally manned part.

The Army wants a vehicle that can be driven by soldiers or by a command vehicle at a distance that will also include on-board sensors and communications platforms to work in a network of ground combat vehicles.

Army Times sister publication Defense News reported in 2021 that the service had chosen five teams to compete for the OMFV design. Point Blank Enterprises, Oshkosh Defense, BAE Systems, General Dynamics Land Systems and American Rheinmetall Vehicles all put together concepts for the OMFV.

Thats after a kind of false start when in 2019 only General Dynamics was able to deliver a physical example of the prototype vehicle.

The Army plans to spend up to $4.6 billion on developing the vehicle between 2022 and 2026. The Army is giving companies until 2025 to deliver prototypes, with vehicle testing scheduled the following year.

Todd South has written about crime, courts, government and the military for multiple publications since 2004 and was named a 2014 Pulitzer finalist for a co-written project on witness intimidation. Todd is a Marine veteran of the Iraq War.

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What the Army's Bradley replacement will look like may be decided in 2022 - ArmyTimes.com

We all hoped that 2021 would signal a return to normalcy, but that never quite happened. Microsofts hardware teams enjoyed strong success this year. But for Windows, software, and services? Not so much.

Microsofts year in review has become a holiday tradition of sorts here at PCWorldrecapping Microsofts strengths, failures, and moments that made us scratch our heads and mutter, Seriously, what. So if you enjoyed our recap of 2020, grab a glass of holiday cheer and settle down.

2021. What a year, huh?

A generally pathetic sports team like the University of California Golden Bears can salvage an entire seasons worth of futility with a win over a key opponent, such as Stanford. And Microsoft made what wasnt the happiest of years into a success with an ongoing, enormous win: Microsoft continued to facilitate working from home, and arguably led the way in doing so.

Some may prefer Googles Workspace, Zoom, or Slack, but Microsoft Teams has clearly evolved into an effective meeting and videoconferencing tool as well as a collaboration solution. Microsoft has invested heavily into partnerships for Teams hardware as well as some very thoughtful ways of integrating in-office work with remote workers. Microsofts online conferences continued to set the bar. Microsoft 365 is now almost a must-have for businesses and consumers alike, because of the value all of these add. Its been an enormous success for Microsoft as a whole.

Its clear, though, that the victory party got a little out of hand. Some inebriated Microsoft M365 exec probably shouted Lets make everyone use Teams!! and Microsoft Teams for Consumers was born. Then some madman mocked up a Windows 11 taskbar with Teams Chat integrated right into it. That was pushed to production, too! Only after the hangovers had worn off did someone realize that no, no one actually wants to use Teams in their personal lives. Unfortunately, by then the damage had been done.

Microsoft

In April, Microsoft tried out a bizarre social experiment, letting users vote on which new font would be used in 2022 within Office, Windows, and more. Microsoft encouraged users to lobby for Seaford (organic and asymmetric forms!), Skeena (a humanist sans serif), Bierstadt, and more, probably hoping a heated debate would polarize the Internet. Instead, there was well, nothing. How do we go on without proper closure?

Microsoft

Months before Facebook rebranded itself as Meta and made metaverse the most overused term of 2021, there was Microsoft Mesh, Microsofts virtual-reality platform and the surprise reveal at its Microsoft Ignite conference. Looking back, its interesting to see how Mesh evolved over just this year: in March, when Microsoft launched Mesh, Microsoft technical fellow Alex Kipman characterized Mesh as a virtual-meeting platform, implying that the future of meetings was virtual reality.

Meta then adopted the same approach, to general disgust. By November, Microsofts vision of the metaverse had been recast as virtual Teams avatars in preparation for a preview to be released in 2022.

To be fair, were biased: PCWorlds review of Windows 11 concluded that Windows 11 was unnecessary, in part because Windows 10 is still an excellent operating system, and in part because Windows 11 launched with many, many rough edges. Statcounter, however, doesnt even show Windows 11 in its desktop OS market-share list. AdDuplex says Windows 11s share is 8.6 percent. LanSweeper says that its 0.2 percent. For whatever reason, Windows 11 hasnt taken off.

Microsoft

While Windows 11 may not be succeeding yet, Windows itself is. Microsoft probably cares as much as more about Microsoft 365 subscription revenue and monthly users of Edge and Bing than anything else. To Microsofts bean-counters, Windows is just a gateway to those services.

Its fair to say that we have some TPM PTSD were still working through. For a few weeks, Microsoft swung back and forth on exactly which PCs could upgrade to Windows 11, and users tried to figure out what the hardware requirements of Windows 11 were, and what they needed to do if their PC didnt meet them. Microsoft may have had the best of intentions in excluding millions of PCs for security reasons, but all Microsoft had to do was to simply sit down with reporters and clearly communicate what was going on, what consumers could expect, and the thinking behind it. They didnt.

This was clearly Microsofts worst communications debacle in years, and we can only hope that some senior executive was called on the carpet for it.

Microsoft Edge is a solid browser, adding new features all the time which is why Microsoft screwed this up so badly. Windows 11 makes it a royal pain to set up a third-party browser as the default, robbing users of the choice between any of the excellent browsers that are available to Windows users, from Brave to Vivaldi. If that decision wasnt legally anti-competitive, it sure felt like it. Even a way to redirect Edge-specific links was blocked. Taking steps to reverse the decision via a Windows 11 preview is a small step, but its one that should have never been made in the first place.

Mark Hachman / IDG

As we now know, Windows 10X was rolled into Windows 11. What we didnt know when Windows 10X leaked in January was that it was going to replace Windows 10 it would have made a drab but functional replacement for Windows 10 Home in S Mode (Windows 10 S) in Chromebooks. But nope, Windows 10X evolved into Windows 11, and the true replacement for Windows 10 S will be

Windows 11 SE and the complementary Surface Laptop SE honestly felt like Microsoft saying well, what the hell lets just throw this at the wall and see if it sticks. Remember, there is still a Windows 11 Home in S Mode, and Windows 10 S was originally designed to compete with Chrome OS. Now its Windows 11 SE, and the Surface Laptop SE is now the new Chromebook killer. Good luck with that, folks.

Microsoft

It was a little surprising to see Microsoft announce two new tablets during 2021, even if the Surface Pro 7+ was technically for businesses only. But even though both debuted among a crop of the best Windows tablets weve seen in years, our review of the Surface Pro 7+ as well as our Surface Pro 8 review simply demonstrated that Microsoft continues to be at the top of its game where full-sized Windows tablets are concerned.

While we may have expected a new Surface Book, Microsofts Surface Laptop Book Pro fusion includes an impressive pull-forward design with relatively high-performance CPU and GPU options, as our Surface Laptop Studio review shows. Can we continue the push forward and plan out an Xbox gaming laptop for 2022?

Mark Hachman / IDG

For the most part, Microsofts generally strong Surface showing continued to offset Microsofts struggles in software and services. Our review of the Surface Laptop 4 was a success both for AMDs Ryzen processor as well as Microsoft itself. Note to Microsofts design team: deepen the key travel. Microsofts keyboards were once the best in the industry, and now theyre merely good.

I kept my personal SIM in the Surface Duo 2 folding phone well after we published PCWorlds Surface Duo 2 review, but today I simply find myself instinctively grabbing other phones instead. Surprisingly, it was the Duo 2s UI that pushed me over the edge. Not the bugs, but simply how the phone keeps separate columns of apps on either screen, and theres too much pain wading through them to find what I want. In all, the Surface Duo 2 was a decent effort that fell short.

Mark Hachman / IDG

While you still cant find Microsofts Xbox Series X game console in any reasonable quantities, two things soothed the blow: the availability of the affordable Xbox Series S, and the success of Microsofts Xbox Game Pass. Microsofts game subscription is basically a must-have by this point, allowing gamers day-one access to both Microsofts AAA titles (for the PC and the Xbox!) as well as a number of indie games. Heres how to get Game Pass for cheap.

This is absolutely a gut call, but I suspect that the groundwork behind Windows 365 (Windows in the cloud) will eventually pay off. We already have streaming sticks, and some way of tucking a PC in your pocket and plugging it into an available HDMI port seems like a viable future. The question will be how users type, touch, and interact with Windows, all problems that the modalities maestros at Microsoft will eventually solve.

I never expected that tuning in on a Saturday morning to watch financial modelers work through Microsoft Excel challenges would be the most wholesome Microsoft experience of 2021, but it absolutely was. Theres a certain intersection of meme culture, pessimism, sportsmanship, and good-natured trolling that defines modern college football fandom, and the FMWC felt like a bunch of fans who had collectively tuned into the best game of the day. Click on the YouTube links in our FMWC story and youll see what we mean.

The FMWC had everything: nerd culture; insightful, live commentary (Tim Heng!), and even a knowledgeable fanbase who clearly enjoyed themselves. This was Excel as esports, and it was stunningly compelling.

So that was 2021, from Microsofts perspective a lot of head-scratching decisions, some rage, but then joy where none was expected. Heres to a better 2022 for all of us!

As PCWorld's senior editor, Mark focuses on Microsoft news and chip technology, among other beats. He has formerly written for PCMag, BYTE, Slashdot, eWEEK, and ReadWrite.

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Microsoft's wins, fails, and WTF moments of 2021 - PCWorld

Provided by Football FanCast Milan Skriniar Antonio Conte

Tottenham Hotspur are interested in a deal to bring Milan Skriniar to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the January transfer window.

Thats according to a report by The Express, who claim that Antonio Conte is keen to bolster his Spurs defence in the winter market, and has placed the Inter Milan centre-back at the top of his January wishlist.

A further report by Football Italia also suggested that the 26-year-old defender whose contract at the San Siro is set to expire in the summer of 2023 would be open to a move away from Serie A, while the arrival of Fabio Paratici in north London is also reported to have given Spurs the advantage in the race to sign the Slovakia international this winter.

It is perhaps one of the worst kept secrets in world football that Tottenham are interested in a deal to sign Skriniar, however, there is a very good reason for the Premier League sides long-term pursuit of the centre-back particularly now Conte is at the helm.

Indeed, over his 32 Serie A appearances last season, the 54m-rated defender was in imperious form, helping his side keep 12 clean sheets and scoring three goals, as well as making an average of 0.9 interceptions, 1.5 tackles, 62.6 passes, 2.7 clearances and winning 3.5 duels per game.

These returns saw the player who journalist David Amoyal dubbed a beast earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.07, ranking him as Contes seventh-best performer in Inters scudetto-winning campaign.

And, with Toby Alderweireld having left Tottenham last summer, there is very much room for another centre-back at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, particularly if one of either Joe Rodon or Davinson Sanchez, who have both been linked with a January departure, do indeed go on to leave the club next month.

As such, considering just how impressive the 90k-per-week defender who Tibor Goljan claimed has always been the leader was for Contes Inter last season, in addition to Spurs need for an upgrade in the position, it would seem a very wise move indeed for Paratici to do all he can to get a deal over the line for the 26-year-old this January.

In other news: Lost 100% duels: 25m-rated THFC dud who made just 8 passes failed Contes test v CPFC

Source

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Spurs can finally replace Toby with 90k-p/w "beast" who has "always been the leader" - opinion - MSN UK

Republic video coverage throughout 2021

Watch azcentral.com video coverage from throughout 2021.

Arizona Republic

After an unforgettable2020 marked by a worldwide pandemic and apresidential election, many people looked for a return to normalin 2021.

But many of the same issues persisted. The results of the presidential election were challenged in Arizona, and COVID-19 cases continued to surge across the state, nation and world.

Here's a look back at Arizona'stop news events in 2021.

Grant Woods, a two-time Republican Arizona attorney general who frequently bucked his political party to endorse Democratic candidates and causes, died of a heart attack in October at 67.

Woods cut his political teeth as chief of staff to fellow Republican and then-U.S. Rep John McCain in the early 1980s. He ranfor office himself in 1990.He campaigned on civil rights issues, openly supporting a state Martin Luther King Jr. holiday and opposing a GOP-backed English-only ballot measure.

Woods was remembered by friends and family during a memorial at the Orpheum Theater.

John Conlan, a religious conservative who spent four years in Congress, died in June at 90.

Conlan was a member of the Arizona Senate for eight years before going to Washington. Despite more than a decade in politics, Conlan may be most remembered for his loss in the 1976 Republican primary for U.S. Senate, a race tainted with religious bigotry and mudslinging between Conlan and fellow U.S. Rep. Sam Steiger.

Woods and Conlan were two of several notable politicians and community leaders who died in 2021. Othersincluded:

Phoenix saw a near-record number of rainy days in 2021 after an unseasonably hot and dry 2020.

Rain was measured at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on 23 days over themonsoon season that runs June 15 through Sept. 30. The most rainy days ever recorded was 24 in 1896.

The rain resulted in recharged reservoirs and brought a much-needed reprieve after a prolific wildfire season but did little to replenish the Colorado River or quell widespread drought conditions.

A massive fire at a west Phoenix recycling plant led to the largest fire response in the citys history.

The fire burned multiple recycling yards at Friedman Waste Control Systems and destroyed nearby businesses near 35th Avenue and Lincoln Street in June. It threatened surrounding homes and the smoke was visible from space.

An investigation by The Arizona Republic revealed the fire wasnt a one-time accidentand that the recycling plant owner and city knew there was a hazard.

There have been at least 20 reports of fires at the facility since 1994.

Video: Fire crews work to extinguish recycling yard fire

"Crews were on scene throughout the night using front end loaders to extinguish active hotspots," the Phoenix Fire Department tweeted

Phoenix Fire Department via Twitter, USA TODAY Handout

Theformer CEO of a Phoenix health care facility where an incapacitated woman was raped and gave birth and the former nurse who raped the woman were sentenced for their involvement in various crimes, bringing some closure to the three-year case.

William Timmons, the former head of Hacienda HealthCare, was sentenced in November to three years of supervised probationafterdefrauding the state of millions of dollars through a complex medical billing scheme.

He was ordered to pay $500,000 in restitution to Arizonas Medicaid program, plus $274,500 in fines and surcharges.

WhileTimmons was in charge, a 29-year-old patient at Haciendas intermediate care facility unexpectedly gave birth in late December 2018 in a case that garnered international attention. The patient rape put a spotlight on Hacienda and Timmons.

The surprise birth triggered reviews by state agencies, highlighted safety concerns for patients who are severely disabled or incapacitated and prompted resignations at the organization. The Arizona Attorney Generals Office launched a criminal investigation into Haciendas finances in early 2019.

Nathan Sutherland, the nurse who raped the woman and was charged with sexual assault and abuse of a vulnerable adult, was sentenced Dec. 2 to 10 years in prison.

Judge Margaret LaBianca said Sutherland was tasked with caring for and protecting the most vulnerable of patients, and his crimes were a serious breach of ethics.

"It is hard to imagine a more vulnerable adult than the victim in this case," LaBianca said.

The Arizona Coyotes proposed to build a new arena and entertainment district on the southern bank of the Salt River in Tempe.

The franchise has long wanted an arena closer to its fan base in the East Valley. After negotiations broke down this summer, Glendale said it wouldnt renew the teams lease at Gila River Arena after the season ends in April.

The Coyotes have been in talks with Tempe officials for at least two years, and the team submitted a proposal to develop 46 acres of city-owned land near Priest Drive and Rio Salado Parkway.

The $1.7 billion development would includea hockey arena, hotels, apartments and shops that the team says would be financed by billionaire owner Alex Meruelo and private investors.

Tempe's elected officials have been mum as a city committee reviews the bid.

If approved, the team could play its first season in Tempe in 2025.

The year saw a tide of municipal action to protect LGBTQ rights as more cities passed nondiscrimination ordinances that extend to the LGBTQ community as state and federal lawmakers fail to pass similar proposals.

The Glendale City Council in May unanimously approved an ordinance that prohibits discrimination in public places, housing and many workplaces and extended the protections to the LGBTQ community, becoming the third metro Phoenix city to tackle the issue in as many months.

Mesa and Scottsdale passed ordinances in March and April, respectively.

The votes come seven years after Arizona legalized same-sex marriages and more than 20 years after the first Arizona city, Tucson, passed a nondiscrimination ordinance in 1999.

City leaders have long pressed state lawmakers to provide consistent rules statewide.

Mesa Mayor John Giles, who leads a city that has been ranked the most conservative big city in the country, said without state action it was time for cities to act, saying ensuring civil rights for all is the right thing to do.

Arizona institution Bashas, which launched in metro Phoenix almost 90 years ago, announced in October that it was selling to California-based Raleys Holding Company.

Edward Basha, president and CEO of the company, said the pandemic showed the family it was time to sell the grocery chain his grandfather started in Chandler in 1932. The grocer had trouble getting products and filling orders during the pandemic and found that larger stores were faring better.

Joining forces with another family-operated chain in a competitive market would ensure the success of the grocer, he said.

Bashas operates 113 stores across Arizona, New Mexico and the Navajo Nation, including its Food City and AJs Fine Food stores.

The Tucson Police Department quickly moved to fire one of its officers who fatally shot a man in a mobility scooter in late November while confronting him for alleged shoplifting.

The decision came after videos of the shooting from a Lowes security camera showed Officer Ryan Remington firing his gun nine times into 61-year-old Richard Lee Richards back and side.

Richards died at the scene.

The officer alleged Richards pulled a knife on him. An attorney representing Remington said he had no non-lethal options.

Richards was one of at least 67 people shot by law enforcement officers in Arizona in 2021. At least 38 people died. At least 12of those people were shot by Phoenix police, and eight died.

At least eight law enforcement officers were killed this year while working in Arizona, including Drug Enforcement Administration Special AgentMichael Garbo, who was shot and killed in Tucson in October when a passenger opened fire on officers who were doing a routine inspection for illegal contraband on an Amtrak train.

Maricopa County sheriff's Deputy Juan Ruizdied after being beaten unconscious by a man he was putting in a holding cell in October.

La Paz County sheriff's Sgt. Michael Rudd was killed when struck by a vehicle after a stop on Interstate 10.

U.S. Border Patrol Agent Daniel Cox died in a head-on crash with another vehicle.

Phoenix police Officer Ginarro New died when his patrol car was struck by a driver who ran a red light.

Chandler police Officer Christopher Farrarwasstruck and killed by a suspect in a stolen vehicleduring a pursuit.

There were two deaths of officers while on off-duty assignments as well. Nogales police Officer Jeremy Brinton was hit by a vehicle on Interstate 19, and Maricopa County sheriff's Lt. Chad Brackman was struck while directing traffic in Scottsdale.

All five members of the Arizona State Board of Massage Therapy were ousted and replaced in September after a Republic investigationrevealed many massage therapists get second chances despite allegations of sexual abuse.

The members of the regulatory board are appointed by the governor and are responsible for licensing the states 10,600 massage therapists and investigating complaints against them.

A Republic analysis found that 100 massage therapists faced complaints before the board for allegedly exposing, fondling, sexually abusing or sexually assaulting clients duringthe past eight years and about half didnt have their licenses revoked. Others had their complaints dismissed or received only warnings.

Women who filed complaints with the board said the boards reluctance to discipline therapists put customers at risk.

Gov. Doug Ducey said the board needed to ensure that massage clients were protected. Three of the new members he appointed had experience in victim advocacy and support, Ducey said.

Wildfires brought devastating consequences statewide in 2021, leaving hundreds of thousands of acres burned, damaged structures and at least two people dead.

The Telegraph Fire, which ignited June 4 near Superior, merged with the Mescal Fire, which began June 1 southeast of Globe, burning swaths of landand becoming the sixth largest wildfire in the state since 2002.

Two firefighters responding to a wildfire northeast of Wikieup, about two hours northwest of Phoenix, died after their plane crashed.

Fires have grown larger and have burned more severely and the fire season is starting earlier as temperatures rise and drought intensifies.

The fires have led to more intense floods during heavy rains and havestuntedvegetation, forcedwildlife out of their habitats and contaminatedthe watershed.

A volatile day for the Telegraph Fire near Globe

Fire public information officers discuss the sudden volatility of the Telegraph Fire outside of Globe on June 14, 2021.

David Wallace, Arizona Republic

A landmark case in a nearly decadelong battle to determine whether inmatesin Arizonas prison system are getting the basic health care they are entitled to under law finally made it to trial.

Jensen v. Shinnbegan Nov. 1 in Phoenix after a federal judge scrapped a 6-year-old settlement that required the Arizona Department of Corrections to create and comply with new health care benchmarks. The judge said the state had failed to meet its responsibility despite fines and repeated judicial warnings.

Prisoners in the class-action lawsuit say the medical services they receive are inadequate and constitute cruel and unusual punishment.

The trial could affect the way Arizona administers health care in state prisons and could end with the judge taking control of the prison health care system.

U.S. District Judge Roslyn Silver is expected to rule in early 2022.

A massive fire in March destroyed two barns and killed an estimated 165,000 hens at Hickmans Family Farms.

The fire, at the companys farm in Arlington, about an hour west of Phoenix, destroyed equipment and supplies such as food, conveyor systems, watering systems and lighting. An employee was hospitalized for smoke inhalation.

A company spokesperson said it appeared the fire started while an employee was cleaning the chicken houses on a skid-steer when the equipment malfunctioned and sparked the blaze.

The Maricopa County Attorneys Office came under firefor its apparent mishandling of cases involving protesters and as questions were raised about County Attorney Alister Adels management of the third largest prosecutorial agency in the country.

The County Attorneys Officedropped its case against 15 protesters who faced criminal street gang charges for their involvement in an October 2020 demonstration against the unfair treatment of people of color by police. Protesters were arrested after Phoenix police said they marched in the road, moved barricades and resisted arrest.

Charges also were dismissed against protesters arrested at other demonstrations.

An outside review of the charges, ordered by Adel, found the October gang case was deeply flawed," with issuesinvolving misleading testimony to a grand jury, prosecutors with potential conflicts and an unreliable police informant.

The independent report also described a breakdown in communication between the cases lead prosecutor, April Sponsel, and MCAO leadership. Sponselfiled a $10 million claim against MCAO for disparagement and other damages.

Much of this happened as Adel recovered from anOctober 2020 fall that left her hospitalized for a month and as she dealt with other health issues.

In late August, Adel entered a rehabilitation center. She announced she was seeking treatment for anxiety, which she said had led to unhealthy coping behaviors including an eating disorder and alcohol use.

She returned in mid-September.

School board members across Arizona have become a target of parents and outsiders as the COVID-19 pandemic has brought on increased scrutiny of the work boards do. School boards historically were set up to function as nonpartisan entities that deal with the nuts and bolts of teaching and maintaining school facilities, but national partisanship has seeped into the local school environment.

Concerns about pandemic protocols and how race is taught in schools have led to tense board meetings throughout the year that have forced some districts to limit public participation or move meetings online.

This has been most evident in the southwest Valleys Litchfield Elementary School District and in the Scottsdale Unified School District,where dozens of community members have shown up to protest board policies, school board members have been subject of recall efforts and numerous complaints have been filed for alleged open meeting law violations.

Despite President Joe Biden's campaign promises to reform the countrys immigration system and overturn hard-line and nativist policies from the Trump administration, efforts to address issuesfrom "Dreamers'" status in the country to asylum processing have remained stagnant with the change in administration.

Bidens proposal to offer a pathway to citizenship for some of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the country has stalled in Congress. He has opted to keep or reestablish some policies and programs, such as Remain in Mexico, whichrequires asylum seekers to return or stay in Mexico while their cases workthrough the court system.

Immigration advocates say Biden set high expectations and has fallen short, leaving many of his pledges unfulfilled.

Arizona's representation in the U.S. House of Representatives is likely to shift to a Republican majority after the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission unanimously approved a transformative, GOP-leaning congressional map on Dec. 22.

The commissioners, who had met for months to create new political districts, alsoapproved a Republican-leaning but balanced map for districts in the Legislature in a contentious3-2 vote.

Arizona's current congressional delegation is made up of five Democrats and four Republicans. The new map, should it withstand legal challenges, favors Republicans in five and possibly six of the state's nine districts.

Republicans hope to flip a congressional seat from blue to red and add to their power in the state Legislature, where the party currently has a slim advantage.

Arizona and all other states redraw their political maps in a once-in-a-decade redistricting processbased on the census.

The nearly 100-year-old Mesa temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which closed in May 2018 for major renovations, reopened this fall.

Members of the public were allowed a rare look inside the temple for only the third time in its history before being rededicated and opening just to church members.Church officials allowed hundreds of thousands of people to tour the temple and hoped it brought a greater understanding of the LDS community.

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The biggest Arizona headlines of 2021, from recycling plant fire to COVID-19 to a partisan election review - The Arizona Republic

Craft time. . .

To be clear, when I say, Manchin-approved, I refer to his insistence that programs not overspend and that be fully-funded gimmick-free, and his declaration just before Christmas that he would not vote on the Build Back Better bill in its current form, or in any version that the Biden administration was willing to agree to. And Ive been critical of the structure of many of the programs in that bill not just the buy-now, pay-later thats a fundamental part of plans which claim to be balanced over a 10 year window but end the benefits themselves only a few years into that time frame, but also the fundamental design of some of those benefits such as child care and parental leave.

So heres a wish list of changes which would admittedly not get Biden the sought-after praise as a second FDR but would, it seems to me, be much more practical and, dare I say it?, bipartisan.

First, adopt Senator Mitt Romneys Child Tax Credit, or a negotiated, modified version thereof.

This proposal, which he called the Family Security Act, dates back to February of this year, would be run through the Social Security Administration as a European-style child allowance system rather than a tax credit. It would provide $350 per month for young children and $250 per month for school-aged children, up to a maximum per family of $1,250 per month. As explained by the Tax Foundation, it would not have any work requirement, but it would replace TANF (traditional welfare) for nonworking parents. It would also replace the per-child portion of the Earned Income Tax Credit, creating a simple credit-per-worker instead, partially fund it by ending the SALT (state and local tax) deduction for income taxes, and make a number of other changes. And while Democrats might find much to object to in the proposal, its a clear path towards designing a benefit which can find Republican buy-in as a pro-family move.

Heck, even Matt Bruenig, at the Peoples Policy Project, gives it the thumbs-up, pointing in particular to the fact that benefits would start four months prior to a childs due date and could serve as a sort of pseudo-parental leave benefit.

Is there hope for this? After Manchin made his announcement, Romney tweeted,

Now that its clear Build Back Better isnt moving forward & with bipartisan opposition to extending the Presidents ill-crafted Child Tax Credit, the Administration has an opportunity to actually work with Republicans & Democrats on lasting, fiscally-responsible family policy.

and in response to a question on the matter, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said,

We're going to work with anybody who's interested in taking steps to lower costs for the American people, whether it's on child care or elder care or healthcare,

which is as noncommittal as it gets but doesnt discard the possibility.

Second, develop a form of parental leave as a social insurance system, funded, Social Security-style, through payroll taxes and focused narrowly on parental leave.

Creating a paid leave program funded by a game of tax the rich is fundamentally a mistake. Yes, it will be necessary to concede that it was a mistake to promise extensive new government benefits without tax increases for incomes less than $400,000. So be it. As Ive insisted previously, paid leave is a social insurance program and that calls for a broad-based payroll tax type of funding. As it turns out, the Social Security Chief Actuary not long ago provided an estimate of the cost of a payroll tax paid leave program, 0.62% of pay (though I was skeptical of the assumptions used) for a 12-week benefit.

Yes, it may well be challenging to convince Americans to accept a tax hike, especially for those who may feel the benefits are unfair because they are past their childbearing years or have no intention to have children. But we are beginning to recognize that an early return to work is detrimental to mothers and childrens well-being. These are benefits for the good of society, not just individuals.

And it would control costs significantly to reduce the scope away from a broad program providing pay replacement for any instance of sickness (which in addition comes with greater risks of gaming the system), to a much narrower set of eligibility circumstances (and, after all, it is easy to prove fairly definitively that a child has been born or adopted).

Third well, this is where I would love to proffer a solution for the free child care! and free preschool! plans in the bill. But Ive only got a half-solution here.

Both of these programs were problematic in ways that extended beyond the gimmick of their early ending points. The child care program was deeply flawed in its design, providing a 7% copay that ended at an income level which would have created a sharp cliff, was designed to boost costs dramatically with a long list of requirements to qualify as high quality child care, and would have pushed families to put their children in full-day institutional child care.

The preschool program would have excluded faith-based programs via nondiscrimination requirements which would prevent favoring of adherents in hiring staff, for example (a requirement which, according to the New York Times, was not an oversight but intentional). In addition, despite the claims that the program would support a mixed delivery system including schools and both institutional and family child care, the split of preschool and child care only makes sense in circumstances in which a family cares for a child at home/in a home environment and wants to elect a preschool environment to provide the school-readiness experience (socialization with other children, experiences following a teachers instructions, etc.). As explained at Education Next, in an interview with expert Sue Renner,

the proposed new investments in universal pre-K are not in step with the realities of the existing mixed-delivery system and its many participants. . . . Bidens plan risks separating universal pre-K from the wider child-care sector, limiting parents choices and their access to subsidized care without fully meeting their needs.

At the same time, the Biden proposal would have required that the free preschools operate for 1,020 hours per year, which, as Reason notes, exceeds the total class time of most K-12 schools: Preschool is meant to be a bridge toward full-time school. Parents who don't want a full-time preschool program are not served well by Biden's plan.

Its all a mess.

To a certain extent, we have existing programs which provide child care and preschool to low-income families. The Child Care and Development Fund provides free or subsidized childcare to 1.3 million low-income families, but funds are limited. In some states, earnings maximums are as little as 127% of the federal poverty level, though other states have higher eligibility cutoffs or have elected to use COVID money for temporary increases. The program also has a significant welfare cliff (see analysis here for Illinois and for Florida), in which participants lose benefits at such a steep rate that they are better off avoiding income increases; a 2010 study found that 1 in 3 recipients rejected pay increases in order to keep eligibility. Head Start likewise is only for children in poverty according to federal definitions.

So should we simply shift to greater eligibility and more gentle phase outs for these programs, and simply do the math with respect to how much is affordable based on the level of tax increases were willing to accept, and count on child allowances to provide some relief for the middle class? Should we even take the existing child allowance proposals and front-load more of the money to a childs younger years? In any case, it should be a given that any such program, however much money it involves, should have neither phase-ins nor phase-outs, but be funded in line with tax revenues.

As to the rest the green spending? Heck, Ill talk about social insurance issues seemingly without stopping, but thats a subject with which I make no pretense to having any expertise.

As always, youre invited to comment at JaneTheActuary.com!

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Two And A Half Suggestions For A Manchin-Approved Build Back Better/Social Insurance Program - Forbes