Time for Shapiro to Ditch Corporate Welfare and Cut Red Tape

Originally published at The Philadelphia Citizen

For two years, Gov. Josh Shapiro has talked about the need for government to “move at the speed of business.” Though rhetoric is plentiful in Harrisburg, the governor has taken real action to address regulatory reform. Thus far, the Shapiro administration has inventoried all of Pennsylvania’s 2,400 plus permits, sped up processing times for occupational licenses, and — just this week — introduced a new “fast track” permitting program for selected projects.

However, Shapiro has also pursued destructive policies, like borrowing hundreds of millions for PA SITES, a program to woo big business — all while the Commonwealth faces a $4.7 billion deficit.

In 2021, PA lawmakers created the Local Resource Manufacturing (LRM) tax credit to attract businesses to the Keystone State. Shortly after, Nacero, a fuel-development company, announced its plan to build a plant in Luzerne County. At the time, politicians boasted the project would lead to thousands of construction jobs and 450 long-term, high-paying jobs.

Read more at The Philadelphia Citizen