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.
Regulation
How to Shrink an Economy
Penn State Altoona econ professor John McGinnis writes on how Pennsylvania’s “economic development” spending shrinks our economy – first by taxing to pay for this corporate welfare, then by…
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PA Budget Historical Numbers
I’ve received a couple of requests for historics Pennsylvania state budget numbers, so I thought I’d post the data here. The figures represent actual final spending from 1970-2007, while…
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Daylight Saving Wastes Energy
A new study show that daylight savings time result in higher energy use, reports the Wall Street Journal, examing the effect of Indiana’s recent move to DST. Daylight Savings…
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Wages Are a Price, Too
A good chart of wages vs. inflation on the CARPE DIEM blog, along with a criticism of today’s Wall Street Journal article on inflation (and a humorous transposition…
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Foreigners Create Jobs
With transportation funding from last year's Act 44 looking increasingly unlikely to materialize, Gov. Rendell is wisely continuing to push for a private-sector lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike as part…
Commentary
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Bio-Foolish Behavior
IBD Editorial on the lack of common sense in pushing for additional bio-fuel mandates and taxpayer subsidy: In 2005, America used 15% of its corn crop to replace…
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Obama v. McCain on Health Care
Cato Daily Podcast with Michael Tanner on the differences between McCain and Obama – and the constrast of market-based reform vs. expansion of government – on health care.
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The Laffer Curve, Part II
Second part in the video series on the Laffer Curve – this video looks at real examples of how tax cuts result in economic and revenue growth.
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RendellCare: What Would Jesus Do?
Remember the passage in the Bible where Jesus called upon the Roman Empire to provide universal, government-run health insurance? What! There’s no such passage? Perhaps someone should point that…
Commentary
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Semonizing on RendellCare
Morning Call article and Post-Gazette piece on the planned “CAP Sunday” and campaign to use sermons to promote RendellCare. (HT: GrassrootsPA) I’ve written on Jesus and…
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Corporate Welfare responsible for 125% of new jobs
A new study and press conference today by the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association (PEDA) takes credit for helping to “create” 186,000 jobs in PA from 2003 through…
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The Running Total Of Our Taxes
One blog I have been following is Taxation With Representation, in which “Danny” keeps a running total of the total taxes his family has paid – income, Social Security,…
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Wal-Mart can be good for your health
Salon.com article on the growth of retail clinics in providing low-cost health care services – and the opposition from entrenched special interests.
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The ACLU gets it right for once
Tony Phyrillas on the ACLU’s defense of property owners’ right to put campaign signs in their yard in South Park (not that South Park).
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Mickey Goes to Washington
Washington Post article on Walt Disney and other lobbyists pushing for taxpayer subsidies for tourism. If you don’t want to know how the sausage is made, don’t read this…
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State’s economy, budget are at odds
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review question the Rendell administration’s glorious reviews of the state’s economy. The size of the state’s economy grew about 20 percent from 1997 to 2006, but…
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JFK gives Rendell advice on “economic stimulus”
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Is Rendell’s rebate legal?
John Micek in the Morning Call raises some key issues as to Governor Rendell’s proposed “rebate” for low-income Pennsylvanians. First, that the using the Budget Stabilization Reserve (or “Rainy…
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Ethanol: Another dose of snake oil?
Another article, from the Star-Tribune, on the hype of ethanol, which summarizes the issue pretty well: 1)Ethanol results in more carbon emissions – “By clearing forests and grasslands…
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Federal “Stimulus” Rebate Calculator
Here is a tool to calculate for federal rebate under the federal “stimulus” package, courtesy of Consumerism Commentary Blog. (You will need to have or know your 2007 federal…
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Read More: Federal “Stimulus” Rebate CalculatorState Budget
Borrowing in 2008-09 Budget
Below is some more analysis of the proposed borrowing in Governor Rendell’s proposed budget – $2.6 billion in debt will be issued in 2008-09. (More on PA’s Total Debt…
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