State Budget
Pennsylvanians Are in Dire Need of Tax Reform
Originally published by RealClearPennsylvania. Today is Tax Day. Each year, April 15th reminds us of the costliness of government spending – and why lawmakers must reduce this financial burden on…
Read More: Pennsylvanians Are in Dire Need of Tax ReformHigh taxes make for a slow-growing economy. And communities feel the pinch of high taxes as more and more native Pennsylvanians leave the Keystone State to prosper elsewhere. To remain economically competitive, Pennsylvania must lower state taxes and ensure businesses have the opportunity to succeed. Lower taxes will incentivize more individuals to call Pennsylvania their home, ultimately spurring our statewide economy forward.
Government Accountability
Lawmakers Send Message to Wolf on Eve of Budget Address
February 3, 2020, Harrisburg, Pa. — Today, on the eve of Gov. Wolf’s sixth state budget address, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a much-needed fiscal reform called the…
Press Release
Read More: Lawmakers Send Message to Wolf on Eve of Budget AddressTaxes & Economy
Pennsylvania Loses 54 People Every Day
How long before Pennsylvania becomes one big ghost town? New Census data shows that Pennsylvania lost a net of 19,588 residents to other states in 2019—that’s a loss of 54 people…
Commentary
Read More: Pennsylvania Loses 54 People Every DayRegulation
IFO Report: Pa. Wastes $60 Million Per Year on Underperforming Programs
Fairness is such a simple concept. We’re born with it—when treated unfairly, we seek to right the wrong and restore a level playing field. But for some reason, Pennsylvania politics…
Commentary
Read More: IFO Report: Pa. Wastes $60 Million Per Year on Underperforming ProgramsRegulation
Dairy Farms Can’t Support Prevailing Wage Mandates
Pennsylvania’s picturesque countryside is home to roughly 6,200 dairy farms. While the road trip through Pennsylvania is idyllic—the business climate for these farmers is far from ideal.
Commentary
Read More: Dairy Farms Can’t Support Prevailing Wage MandatesState Budget
The Road to Better Infrastructure
Anyone who has ever driven on Pennsylvania’s roads knows this state is filled with structurally deficient bridges—3,770 to be exact—and that the skill of artfully swerving around potholes is essential…
Commentary
Read More: The Road to Better InfrastructureState Budget
Mid-Year Budget Briefing: $779 Million Projected Overspend
This week is the midpoint of the commonwealth fiscal year, which ends on June 30. Every year, as required by law, the Office of the Budget gives a mid-year budget briefing…
Media
Read More: Mid-Year Budget Briefing: $779 Million Projected OverspendEducation
Pension Pacman Must Be Stopped
Next fiscal year Pennsylvania school districts will pay $4.9 billion into PSERS, the state teachers’ pension fund.1 Less than one quarter of that amount will fund new benefits earned by…
Media
Read More: Pension Pacman Must Be StoppedTaxes & Economy
Poverty, Energy, and RGGI
Despite living in one of the richest countries and one of the largest energy producers in the world, many Americans still struggle to pay their energy bills. Roughly 1 in 3 Americans report…
Media
Read More: Poverty, Energy, and RGGIGovernment Accountability
How to Make an Easy Six Million
A week ago the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office announced charges against Wing Tat Chiu and Ivy Hiu-Ying Li, a married couple whom they accuse of earning $6 million in illegal…
Media
Read More: How to Make an Easy Six MillionTaxes & Economy
Feds Restore Foodstamp Rules: Providing a Pathway to Independence
Pennsylvanians are experiencing the lowest unemployment rates on record and wages are rising, including wages at the lower end of the pay scale. Across the country 16 states have restored…
Media
Read More: Feds Restore Foodstamp Rules: Providing a Pathway to IndependenceRegulation
Economic Freedom and Flourishing in Pennsylvania
We live in a free country, but when it comes to our economy, Pennsylvanians aren’t free. Unpredictable regulation makes owning a business a huge risk in Pennsylvania, and when it…
Media
Read More: Economic Freedom and Flourishing in PennsylvaniaCriminal Justice Reform
Pa. Senate Passes Legislation Removing Employment Barriers
Individuals like Ericka Miller and Amanda Spillane are one step closer to having a fair opportunity to pursue success and live their American dream. On Thursday, the state Senate…
Media
Read More: Pa. Senate Passes Legislation Removing Employment BarriersState Budget
It Won’t Get Easier: Our Take on the State’s Five Year Outlook
Last week the Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) presented its annual set of fiscal and economic projections for the next five years. The full report and summary presentation are available…
Media
Read More: It Won’t Get Easier: Our Take on the State’s Five Year OutlookRegulation
The O-Zone Hole
State and national governments sometimes designate “Economic Opportunity Zones,” geographic areas wherein they give tax breaks to incentivize investment. If opportunity zones are such a great idea, though, why not…
Media
Read More: The O-Zone HoleState Budget
Pennsylvania’s Overspending: A $1 Billion-Per-Year Disaster in the Making
November 15, 2019, Harrisburg, Pa. — A new report from the Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office projects that state government will run annual deficits around $1 billion for…
Press Release
Read More: Pennsylvania’s Overspending: A $1 Billion-Per-Year Disaster in the MakingState Budget
Pennsylvania Needs the Ramsey Method
High debt, reckless spending, and impending financial ruin. That description fits both Pennsylvania and budget guru Dave Ramsey’s life before he achieved financial stability. The Ramsey method has helped millions of…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania Needs the Ramsey MethodState Budget
Pa. Voters Support the Taxpayer Protection Act
Nearly 2/3rds of Pennsylvanians support the Taxpayer Protection Act.
Poll
Read More: Pa. Voters Support the Taxpayer Protection ActTaxes & Economy
Pennsylvania’s Business Climate is a Gamble for Entrepreneurs
60, 61, 29, 45! While these might sound like Powerball numbers, they are actually state rankings that highlight just how lucky businesses in Pennsylvania aren’t. Across different measurements of the state’s business…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania’s Business Climate is a Gamble for EntrepreneursHealth Care
The Administrative Cost of Community Engagement Requirements in Medicaid
This is the first in a series of policy briefs looking at the common objections to implementing community engagement requirements, or work expectations, for healthy adults receiving benefits under Medicaid…
Fact Sheet
Read More: The Administrative Cost of Community Engagement Requirements in MedicaidRegulation
Sparks Fly Over Creating a Carbon Tax in Pa.
Walk outs, tin foil hats, and shouts from the audience characterized a tense House Energy and Environmental Resources hearing on Governor Wolf’s executive order to join the Regional…
Media
Read More: Sparks Fly Over Creating a Carbon Tax in Pa.Regulation
Wolf’s Wage Mandate will Harm Workers
Fewer jobs, reduced hours, cuts to take home pay. That’s what Pennsylvanians are facing now that Gov. Wolf’s overtime wage mandates are moving forward. Initially, Wolf wanted to increase the…
Media
Read More: Wolf’s Wage Mandate will Harm Workers