The Buckeye Institute

09/05/2026

Robert Alt has climbed Mount Everest, built one of the country’s most consequential state think tanks, and helped deliver lasting policy victories for the people of Ohio. He was recently recognized with the 2026 Thomas A. Roe Award for Excellence in Leadership for his leadership and accomplishments.

Under Robert’s leadership, Buckeye has expanded its research and legal capabilities while helping advance major reforms in taxes, energy, occupational licensing, education, and more.

But Robert’s approach to leadership may be best understood through another part of his life: mountaineering. Robert set out to climb the tallest mountain on every continent to honor his late father, who was an avid outdoorsman, rock climber, triathlete, ultramarathoner, and physics professor. That extraordinary decade-long journey eventually propelled Robert to the summit of Mount Everest in 2025.

Through his climbing, Robert learned lessons about resilience, preparation, perseverance, setting worthy goals, and the importance of having a compelling reason to keep going when the work, expedition, or project gets especially difficult.

Those lessons carry directly into Robert’s approach to public policy. Passing legislation or winning a court case may feel like reaching the summit, but the work isn’t finished until those victories endure and improve people’s lives.

Read our full release for an abbreviated list of policy and legal wins and to watch Robert’s story.

Robert Alt, president and chief executive officer of The Buckeye Institute, received the prestigious 2026 Thomas A. Roe Award for Excellence in Leadership. Established in 1992 and named after the late businessman and generous philanthropist, State Policy Network's Thomas A. Roe Award pays tribute...

09/01/2026

Buckeye filed its reply brief with SCOTUS, responding to the federal government’s filing in Ream v. U.S. Department of the Treasury—one of Buckeye’s cases challenging the federal prohibition on home distilling.

In its brief, The Buckeye Institute urged SCOTUS to resolve all of the relevant constitutional claims involved.

“Ream squarely presents the full range of constitutional justifications the government has argued at every stage of the case in defense of the federal ban on home distilling.”

The Buckeye Institute filed its reply brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, responding to the federal government's filing in Ream v. U.S. Department of the Treasury--one of The Buckeye Institute's cases challenging the federal prohibition on home distilling. In its brief, The Buckeye Institute urged...

08/31/2026

As Ohio prepares to celebrate Labor Day and Ohio’s workers, Buckeye is out with a new policy brief, Expanding Ohio’s Workforce Pipeline, that offers specific policy recommendations Ohio lawmakers can adopt to prepare workers for the in-demand, high-skilled jobs that 21st century employers need to fill, including:

1. Increase State Share of Instruction (SSI) Outcomes-Based Funding
2. Develop Public-Private Partnerships to Expand Opportunities
3. Utilize Workforce Pell Grants

As Ohio prepares to celebrate Labor Day and Ohio's workers, The Buckeye Institute is out with a new policy brief, Expanding Ohio's Workforce Pipeline, that offers specific policy recommendations Ohio lawmakers can adopt to prepare workers for the in-demand, high-skilled jobs that 21st century emp...

08/30/2026

USA TODAY features Buckeye’s two cases—Ream v. U.S. Department of Treasury and McNutt v. U.S. Department of Justice—to end the 158-year-old ban on home distilling.

“John Ream home-brews the vanilla stout his wife prefers. He’s crafted his own wine and mead. But a nearly 160-year-old federal ban on home distilling is keeping the Ohio engineer from experimenting with spirits.”

'I really want to dive in and play with some rye mash for distilling into whiskey,' says John Ream, who took his distilling passion to the Supreme Court.

08/27/2026

Robert Alt, the president and chief executive officer of The Buckeye Institute, founder of PROFOUND CLIMBING™, and honoree of the 2026 Thomas A. Roe Award for Excellence in Leadership, sits down for a conversation about endurance, responsibility, and the discipline required to lead at the highest levels.

Summiting Mount Everest is one of the most demanding achievements in the world, requiring years of preparation, discipline, and resilience.

For Alt, the journey to the top was not only a physical test, but a powerful lesson in leadership, risk, and long-term thinking. Alt leadership has driven The Buckeye Institute’s exponential growth since 2012. He is the founder of Buckeye’s Economic Research Center and Legal Center, and a distinguished scholar with expertise in constitutional law, national security, and criminal justice. His work has taken him from testifying before Congress to serving as an embedded war correspondent in Iraq.

In this conversation, Alt reflects on the mental and physical challenges of climbing Everest—including isolation, uncertainty, and extreme conditions—and draws clear parallels to leadership. He discusses the importance of preparation, building high-trust teams, managing risk, and understanding that success is not simply reaching the summit, but returning safely.

From setting audacious goals to executing over the long term, Alt’s Everest experience reinforces the same principles that guide effective leadership in law, policy, and institutional building.

Summiting Mount Everest is one of the most demanding achievements i...

08/25/2026

Good explainer by Aaron Churchill at the Fordham Institute Ohio: "The 'state share' of school funding and the 20 mill property tax floor"

Ohio’s school districts receive and spend more money than ever before. Hard to believe, given headlines about “starving” public schools, but it’s true.

08/25/2026

Buckeye offered recommendations to the Ohio Department of Aging on Ohio’s draft 2027-2030 State Plan on Aging, outlining how the Buckeye State can make Ohio the best place to age in the nation. Buckeye’s recommendations were included in its recently released report, The Cost of Aging, which offered durable and cost-effective solutions to providing long-term care for Ohio’s aging population.

Read the report at BuckeyeInstitute.org/CostofAging.
https://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/research/detail/the-buckeye-institute-to-ohio-long-term-care-crisis-demands-action

08/24/2026

61 nationally renowned organizations, public interest law firms, states, and individuals from across the country filed amicus briefs supporting Buckeye’s client John Ream in Ream v. U.S. Department of Treasury—the David v. Goliath challenge to the federal government’s unconstitutional 158-year-old prohibition on home distilling.

Thanks you to you all!

Sixty-one nationally renowned organizations, public interest law firms, states, and individuals from across the country filed amicus briefs supporting The Buckeye Institute's client John Ream in his David v. Goliath challenge to the federal government's unconstitutional 158-year-old prohibition o...

08/21/2026

Buckeye’s Rea Hederman commented on the July 2026 jobs report from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, saying,

“Ohio’s unemployment rate dropped to 3.4 percent, while its labor force participation rate fell to 61.4 percent, outpacing the national average. While the low unemployment rate is positive, in Ohio and across the nation, it is linked to declining labor force participation, with unemployed workers leaving the job market, thereby lowering the unemployment rate.”

Read Rea’s full statement
https://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/research/detail/the-buckeye-institute-ohio-job-market-outpaces-national-average-in-july

Send a message to learn more

08/20/2026

We are excited to be a finalist for Atlas Network's 2026 Templeton Freedom Award for our work on passing energy reform (HB15) in Ohio in the wake of the HB6 scandal.

And boy are we in some amazing company….
Instituto Liberal de São Paulo (Brazil)
Centre for Civil Society (India)
Fundación Libertad y Progreso (Argentina)
Liberty Justice Center (United States)
Lithuanian Free Market Institute (Lithuania)

Thanks, Atlas. Best of luck to everyone. See you in New York in November!

Atlas Network is pleased to announce the finalists for our prestigious Templeton Freedom Award, which is presented annually at our Liberty Forum & Freedom…