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.
Health Care
Burdens of Obamacare – Commentary
Say you’re working your way through college, supplementing student loans with a part-time job managing inventory at Wegmans. You make a decent hourly wage, but your health insurance benefits are…
Commentary
Read More: Burdens of Obamacare – CommentaryHealth Care
Want to Help the Poor? Don’t Expand Medicaid
Yesterday, we talked about why Michigan’s plan to expand Medicaid was a bad deal for taxpayers. But expansion is a bad deal for patients too. Advocates of expansion make…
Media
Read More: Want to Help the Poor? Don’t Expand MedicaidHealth Care
Michigan’s Medicaid Mistake
Michigan’s decision to expand Medicaid leaves Pennsylvania and four other states to decide if putting more individuals into a government program is the best way to offer “affordable health…
Media
Read More: Michigan’s Medicaid MistakeHealth Care
Free Market Benefits, Big Government Burdens Obvious in Obama, Sebelius Visits
President Obama and one of his cabinet members are making separate trips to Pennsylvania this week. Their reasons for visiting couldn’t be more different. Today, the President will speak on…
Media
Read More: Free Market Benefits, Big Government Burdens Obvious in Obama, Sebelius VisitsHealth Care
Obamcare’s Premium Shock
Young adults who purchase their health insurance are in for rude awakening under the Affordable Care Act. The ironically-named law will force premiums to spike in order to pad insurance companies’ pockets. Is this what…
Media
Read More: Obamcare’s Premium ShockRegulation
Repeating Detroit’s Error in Pennsylvania
Much has been said about why Detroit lies in critical condition, but one serious wound has been festering for decades: the unsustainable pension and health benefits that were secured for…
Commentary
Read More: Repeating Detroit’s Error in PennsylvaniaHealth Care
Podcast: Medicaid Expansion with AFP
Does Medicaid really help the poor? What are the consequences of expanding the program? What are the costs involved for taxpayers? How can you make your voice heard on this…
Media
Read More: Podcast: Medicaid Expansion with AFPPublic Union Democracy
Who’s Strangling Whom?
Jodi Hirsh wants you to believe that a shadowy, deep-pocketed, Washington-based organization called the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has a “stranglehold on our statehouse.” That’s the claim Ms. Hirsh,…
Media
Read More: Who’s Strangling Whom?Government Accountability
New Video: CF President on FOX Business
This morning, CF President & CEO Matthew Brouillette appeared on FOX Business’s Varney & Co. to highlight the public pension crisis facing Pennsylvania and cities and states across the…
Media
Read More: New Video: CF President on FOX BusinessRegulation
Copycat Union Letters Repeat Pension Myths
In July, a commentary by Matt Brouillette on why pension reform failed in our state legislature ran in several newspapers across Pennsylvania. Now response letters from teachers have been…
Media
Read More: Copycat Union Letters Repeat Pension MythsPublic Union Democracy
Government Unions Break Cities
An article in today’s Wall Street Journal illustrates how government union leaders halted any reforms that may have prevented Detroit’s bankruptcy: A major expense for Detroit is the…
Media
Read More: Government Unions Break CitiesHealth Care
States Use Federalism to Protect Poor
The debate in the Keystone State on the question of whether to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act looks to be ending. Governor Tom Corbett has successfully pointed out…
Commentary
Read More: States Use Federalism to Protect PoorTaxes & Economy
Drilling Moratorium Handcuffs Landowners, Stunts Economy
The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) continues to stymie development of the Marcellus Shale in all or parts of 13 Pennsylvania counties even as Governor Corbett, Senator Pat…
Media
Read More: Drilling Moratorium Handcuffs Landowners, Stunts EconomyRegulation
“Failure” Leads to Downgrade for Pennsylvania
This latest look at Pennsylvania’s fiscal house shows the urgency of pension reform and spending restraint. Fitch Ratings yesterday downgraded Pennsylvania’s bond rating. This effectively sends a sign to…
Media
Read More: “Failure” Leads to Downgrade for PennsylvaniaTaxes & Economy
We’re 39th! We’re 39th!
CNBC just released its ranking of the top states for business in 2013. In case you missed the subtle wording in this blog’s title, Pennsylvania languishes near the bottom.
Media
Read More: We’re 39th! We’re 39th!Taxes & Economy
Gasland Part II: New Name, Same Propaganda
Remember the frackaphobic film Gasland (2010) directed by Pennsylvania native Josh Fox? Although a documentary in name, we proved the film to be largely fictional. Despite critical acclaim and…
Media
Read More: Gasland Part II: New Name, Same PropagandaHealth Care
Obamacare Failure: Goodbye Jobs
Last week, the Obama administration tried to sneak through an Affordable Care Act (ACA) bombshell—the delay of the employer mandate. What does this mean? Basically, it acknowledges that as…
Media
Read More: Obamacare Failure: Goodbye JobsState Budget
New Video: Budget Season Wrap Up
Gov. Corbett signed a more than $28 billion budget at the end of June—but was it a win for you the taxpayer? CF policy experts offer answers on this and…
Media
Read More: New Video: Budget Season Wrap UpTaxes & Economy
EPA Quietly Drops Flawed Fracking Study
With all of its enormous resources, the federal government’s capacity to influence exceeds even that of Hollywood and Madison Avenue. That is why it is so disconcerting when Washington…
Media
Read More: EPA Quietly Drops Flawed Fracking StudyPublic Union Democracy
Big Government Party Blocks Bold Reforms
Why haven’t liquor privatization and pension reform passed yet here in Pennsylvania? The reason is that the true divide in the General Assembly is not between the Republicans and Democrats,…
Commentary
Read More: Big Government Party Blocks Bold ReformsPublic Union Democracy
Government Unions Torpedo Agenda
The state budget deadline came and went without passage of any of the “Big Three” policy items—liquor store privatization, pension reform, or transportation tax and fee increases. It was clear…
Media
Read More: Government Unions Torpedo Agenda