Taxes & Economy
Governor Rendell Earns a D on Fiscal Policy
Cato’s 2010 Fiscal Report Card on America’s Governors is out. Not surprisingly, Pennsylvania ranks low. With a score of 40 points, Gov. Ed Rendell earns a D for his…
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Severance Tax Legislation: The Process Stinks Too
The Pennsylvania House amended legislation to impose a severance tax on natural gas last night, and will likely vote on the bill tonight. We wrote yesterday about the merits…
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Grassroots Activists Battle Special Interest Agenda
Earlier this year, we blogged on HB 2246, which would have allowed trial lawyers in auto cases to suggest the amount of compensation their plaintiffs should receive for their…
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Fact Check: Severance Tax Proposal Would be Highest in US
SB 1155 would impose a severance tax rate of 39 cents per MCF. At the August estimated average wellhead price of $4.22 per MCF, this is an effective…
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Report: PA School Spending Not Linked to Performance
A new study from the 21st Century Partnership for STEM Education (STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) finds little relationship between education spending and performance. Specifically, the…
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Democrats Natural Gas Jobs Tax is Off the Charts
Just how high is the PA House Democrat’s proposed natural gas jobs tax? It would represent the highest tax in the…
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Shale Gas is Revitalizing Communities
Cliff Wehrmen has a new pickup truck, thanks to the booming economy in Williston, North Dakota. In North Dakota, companies are fighting over workers via bidding wars, state unemployment…
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Where to Find Ideas to Balance the PA Budget
John Micek of the Morning Call has a piece today noting that the two candidates for Governor — Dan Onorato and Tom Corbett — have promised no, or few, new…
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Why Do We Need a Severance Tax?
Proponents of a natural gas severance tax have been offering several arguments supporting a tax, here are the three main talking points used by tax advocates: 1) Higher taxes will…
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