Regulation
Cutting Red Tape in Pennsylvania
This report presents findings from Mercatus Center’s State RegData database, analyzing regulations in the Pennsylvania Code as of 2022. The report provides an overview of state regulations, how Pennsylvania’s regulatory…
Read More: Cutting Red Tape in PennsylvaniaPennsylvania’s notoriously high level of regulation is a burden on our state economy. To make the Keystone State a competitive place to live, work, or grow a business, reforms are needed to rein in the regulatory process. Taxpayers deserve a streamlined regulatory process that scrutinizes proposed regulations to ensure frivolous reforms do not overburden the state economy and do not prevent job-seekers from accessing employment.
Regulation
Who is Wolf Giving Your Tax Dollars To?
Next week Gov. Tom Wolf will unveil a “new” budget, with all expectations that it will be just like his first proposal—calling for new taxes on working families. In fact, you…
Media
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Wolf to Pension Commission: ‘You’re Fired!’
Wolf to Pension Commission: “You’re Fired!” Governor’s Pattern of Eliminating Opposition Defies Claims of Accountability February 3, 2016, HARRISBURG, Pa.—The latest casualty of Gov. Tom Wolf’s “my…
Press Release
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Wolf to PERC: “You’re Fired!”
Gov. Wolf has a history of trying to fire individuals who won’t kowtow to his agenda. He tried to remove Erik Arneson as head of the independent Office of Open…
Media
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PPA Picks Cartels over Consumers
Jon Brennan’s Audi S4 was impounded by Philadelphia police because he’s an UberX driver. Emails uncovered by the Philadelphia Inquirer reveal that the Philadelphia Parking Authority (PPA) has thrown…
Media
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Fiscal Code Packed with Earmarks
Pennsylvania's fiscal code is intended to provide lawmakers with instructions for spending funds appropriated in the state budget. But it is also ground-zero for a host of earmarks that funnel limited…
Media
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A Governor’s Resolution List for 2016
Last year, Gov. Tom Wolf promised he would take state government in a “different direction” and grow the middle class. He pledged to do this by making Pennsylvania a magnet for…
Media
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Is Gov. Wolf Ignoring Credit Rating Agencies?
Last week, Gov. Wolf once again resorted to defending his latest budget vetoes citing the fear of credit rating downgrades. Oddly, he seems to miss that pension reform and…
Media
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The EPA’s Plan Will Hike Your Electricity Bill
A new analysis from NERA Economic Consulting projects Pennsylvania electricity bills will increase between 10 and 19 percent from 2022 to 2033…
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Government Liquor is a Liability
Liquor privatization came dangerously close to reality this year with a true privatization plan passing both houses of the legislature in June only to be stonewalled by the governor. So…
Media
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Tax Hike of Christmas Past?
Given the rumblings of an imminent vote on higher income taxes, it's important to remember what happened 12 years ago (nearly to the day!) with our state budget. Ed Rendell was…
Media
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House Pension Compromise Is Step in Right Direction
The pension reform bill is quickly making its way through the Pa. House. The latest iteration, SB 1071, mirrors the Senate's version (SB 1082; read our summary here),…
Media
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Latest Pension Bill a Mixed Bag
Yesterday the State Senate passed a revised pension reform bill (SB 1082) including a side-by-side hybrid, with a smaller defined benefit pension and a defined contribution…
Media
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With Details, Wolf Budget “Framework” Looks Even Worse
Now that the Pennsylvania Senate has begun passing legislation, taxpayers can finally see what’s in Gov. Wolf’s “framework” for a new budget. Based on the passage of SB 1073 and…
Media
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Prohibition Never Ended
Tomorrow marks 82 years since the official end of Prohibition. Yet, Pennsylvania is still dealing with its own version of Prohibition in the form of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. The…
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Pension Reform Saves Another City
A few weeks ago Clairton became the second Pennsylvania city to leave the Act 47 program for distressed municipalities. Nanticoke was the first city to leave earlier this year. Instrumental…
Media
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10 Reasons to Banish the Booze Bureaucracy
Gov. Wolf is committed to protecting the government's monopoly on the sale of wine and liquor. When talking to reporters this past Monday, the governor’s spokesman said of Wolf…
Media
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How is Property Tax Relief Doled Out?
Among the many questions in a tentative state budget deal is how revenue from the sales tax increase would be distributed. The Associated Press notes this will be…
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Philly Union Priorities: Politics over Teachers
How would you feel if your employer took funds meant for your health insurance and spent them on partisan politics? Sadly, this is a reality for thousands of teachers in…
Media
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Pa. Could Face 2nd-Highest Sales Tax in America
Pa. Could Face 2nd-Highest Sales Tax in America Latest Budget Plan Seeks Biggest Sales Tax Hike Since 1956 November 10, 2015, Harrisburg, Pa.—Pennsylvanians may soon pay more for…
Press Release
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Backdoor $600 Million Tax Increase in Rumored Deal
Backdoor $600 Million Tax Increase in Rumored Budget Deal Sales Tax for Property Tax Swap Rumor Leaves Taxpayers on the Hook November 9, 2015, Harrisburg, Pa.—The…
Press Release
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Corporate Welfare and Cronyism in Bethlehem
Election day was a quiet affair in most communities, but in Bethlehem residents used the a local election to protest the appearance of cronyism in connection with a new corporate…
Media
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