Education

ESAs Heading to New England

  • Colleen Hroncich
  • January 9, 2018

News of a $560 million Powerball lottery ticket being sold in New Hampshire seems to have overshadowed news of the state House of Representatives passing education savings accounts (ESAs) last…

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Regulation

Public Employee Compensation Reaches $100k

  • January 3, 2018

This post was updated to reflect a change in private sector compensation. For the first time in Pennsylvania’s history, the average cost of a state employee exceeds $100,000, according…

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Taxes & Economy

Lawmakers Seek to Restore Dignity of Work

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • January 3, 2018

In the first press conference of 2018, House Republicans introduced a package of bills aimed at breaking generational poverty. Rep. Tobash urged reform given the desperate state of…

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Public Union Democracy

2017 Labor Reform Roundup

  • Jessica Barnett
  • December 28, 2017

Is Pennsylvania a worker-friendly state? According to our updated, comprehensive report grading each state’s public sector labor laws’, the answer is no. Pennsylvania ranks a measly “D” compared to others…

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Education

Taxpayers Notch Another Win Against Ghost Teaching

  • December 22, 2017

Reading residents received an early Christmas present this week, as the city’s teachers’ union agreed to reimburse taxpayers for the costs of ghost teaching in the Reading School District.

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Public Union Democracy

Paycheck Protection Timeline

  • Jessica Barnett
  • December 22, 2017

Paycheck protection is a commonsense reform that moves Pennsylvania a significant step closer to ethical government. Though recently stalled in the House, a brief history of paycheck protection demonstrates…

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High Spending Holds Pennsylvania’s Economy Back

  • December 18, 2017

Pennsylvania holds steady in Fraser Institute’s annual report on economic freedom with a middling score of 18..Pennsylvania continues to outperform its neighbors when it comes to controlling spending, limiting…

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State Budget

Has the Wolf Administration Cured Pennsylvania’s Budget Ills?

  • December 15, 2017

Secretary of the Budget Randy Albright gave a surprisingly upbeat mid-year budget briefing yesterday. According to the state’s budget office, Pennsylvania’s structural deficit is virtually gone. Yet, reason…

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Health Care

Obamacare Exchanges Continue To Dissapoint

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • December 14, 2017

Open enrollment for Obamacare exchange plans ends on December 15. It is convenient to blame the new administration and efforts to repeal the law for dwindling choices, disappointing enrollment, and…

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