Public Union Democracy

Teachers Decry Unions’ “Unfair” Privilege

  • Priya Brannick
  • November 27, 2013

Ellwood City public school teacher John Cress is speaking up against the forced political speech he had to pay for via his union dues to the Pennsylvania State Education Association:…

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Public Union Democracy

Union Dues Pay for PSEA Politics (Again)

  • Priya Brannick
  • November 26, 2013

Last week we highlighted a number of election-related ads the Pennsylvania State Education Association paid for using its members’ dues money—without their permission or knowledge. The state’s largest teachers…

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Taxes & Economy

Mailbag: Is Pennsylvania Taxed Too Little?

  • November 21, 2013

In response to a blog post on Pennsylvania’s bleak budget future, a reader took issue with the claim that Pennsylvania has the 10th highest state and local tax…

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Public Union Democracy

Union Dues Pay for PSEA Politics

  • Priya Brannick
  • November 21, 2013

“If you DON’T care about funds for your school…then by all means throw this away,” reads a June 2011 insert in PSEA Voice, the magazine of the 185,000-strong Pennsylvania…

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Welfare

Protect the Poor, Not Lotto Winners

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • November 20, 2013

Jamie Frankford won $330,000 in the Pennsylvania lottery in 2012, yet continued to collect child care subsidies and Medicaid benefits. Her story, reported by Chris Papst at CBS21, caught…

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Education

Union Dues Backing Political Groups Prompted My Resignation

  • November 19, 2013

This perspective on union spending by Pennsylvania public school teacher John Cress originally appeared at Free to Teach, a project of the Commonwealth Foundation. I have been a middle school…

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Health Care

Pennsylvania’s Bleak Budget Future

  • November 19, 2013

Pennsylvania’s fiscal outlook looks bleak according to a detailed report examining state revenue and spending released by the Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) last week. The agency projects a general…

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Education

Reform Cybers Without Arbitrary Cuts

  • November 18, 2013

How will more than 35,000 cyber school students be affected by legislation pending in the state Senate this week? There’s both good and bad news on the horizon and your…

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