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Government Accountability
Pa. Supreme Court Protects Private Property in New Ruling
Harrisburg, Pa., July 22, 2026 — In a 7–0 unanimous decision, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, in Punxsutawney Hunting Club v. Pennsylvania Game Commission, sided with Pennsylvania landowners and ruled against warrantless searches on open fields. Under previous case law, the open…
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Education
Commonwealth Foundation Releases Analysis on 2026-27 Budget Deal
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation Releases Analysis on 2026-27 Budget Deal
Education
Pa. Lawmakers Pass 2026-27 State Budget, Blocking Shapiro’s Tax Hikes and Preserving Emergency Savings
Read More: Pa. Lawmakers Pass 2026-27 State Budget, Blocking Shapiro’s Tax Hikes and Preserving Emergency Savings
Education
Commonwealth Foundation Applauds Senate Republicans for Advancing Tax Relief and Expanding Educational Opportunity
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation Applauds Senate Republicans for Advancing Tax Relief and Expanding Educational OpportunityHealth Care
States Push Back Against National Healthcare
With the health care debate still brewing on the floor of the US Senate, states are pushing back against the prospect of a government-run healthcare system. The American Legislative…
Media
Read More: States Push Back Against National HealthcareRegulation
Pennsylvania Pension Resources
Commonwealth Foundation senior fellow Rick Dreyfuss will be on PCN’s call in show tonight, discussing the looming fiscal crisis in state pension. Click here for a recent news…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania Pension ResourcesTaxes & Economy
Cap and Trade Creates Green Jobs, Destroys Others
It is true that if the government levies heavy taxes on carbon dioxide emissions and then provides grants, subsidies, and tax credits to renewable resource development, it will create more…
Media
Read More: Cap and Trade Creates Green Jobs, Destroys OthersHealth Care
The Forgotten Health Care Tax
The Tax Foundation highlights a disturbing trend among states – new taxes on health care providers. Significant taxes on health providers and hospital taxes are on the books in…
Media
Read More: The Forgotten Health Care TaxRegulation
Earmarks in Table Games Bill
I mentioned previously that the legislation authorizing table games at Pennsylvania casinos included a number of earmarks (directing funds to a specific project) and WAMs (creating a pot of money…
Media
Read More: Earmarks in Table Games BillState Budget
The Condition of the PA Budget According to Rendell
Governor Rendell, in his mid-year budget briefing, provided an optimistic if not misleading outlook. The Governor claims the commonwealth ended…
Media
Read More: The Condition of the PA Budget According to RendellGovernment Accountability
Tweet Pennsylvania: Latest Updates from PA Lawmakers
The Commonwealth Foundation has a new project page, where you can follow all the Pennsylvania state lawmakers on Twitter, even if you don’t have a Twitter account yourself. Check…
Media
Read More: Tweet Pennsylvania: Latest Updates from PA LawmakersState Budget
Pew Study Says Little about Pennsylvania’s Fiscal Health
In his budget mid-year briefing, Gov. Rendell cited, repeatedly, a Pew study on states’ fiscal outlook. While it is true that Pennsylvania is in better shape than states like…
Media
Read More: Pew Study Says Little about Pennsylvania’s Fiscal HealthState Budget
Time for Real Spending Reductions
HARRISBURG, PA — As Gov. Rendell delivers his mid-year budget briefing, with General Fund collections $217 million below projections, now is the time to consider the causes of…
Press Release
Read More: Time for Real Spending ReductionsHealth Care
National Health Care Could Bankrupt Pennsylvania
The US Senate health care bill includes a mandate to increase the cut off level for Medicaid eligibility. This increased cut off for Medicaid will increase costs for Pennsylvania and…
Media
Read More: National Health Care Could Bankrupt PennsylvaniaGovernment Accountability
Qualifications for Governor (HB 2083)
Testimony of Joe Sterns, Director of Communcations, Commonwealth Foundation to the Pennsylvania House State Government CommitteeDecember 14, 2009 Chairwoman Josephs, Chairman Benninghoff, Members of the Committee: The Commonwealth Foundation…
Testimony
Read More: Qualifications for Governor (HB 2083)Taxes & Economy
Podcast: Rich States, Poor States
If you missed last week’s luncheon, you can down the latest podcast, in which Matt Brouillette talks with Jonathan Williams of the American Legislative Exchange Council about their report,…
Media
Read More: Podcast: Rich States, Poor StatesState Budget
Revisiting a Natural Gas Severance Tax
The state budget passed in October did not include a severance tax on natural gas. The tax would’ve impeded the development of…
Media
Read More: Revisiting a Natural Gas Severance TaxEducation
Revamp Charter School Laws To Increase School Choice
Pennsylvania came in 11th among 40 states in the annual ranking of state charter school laws by the Center for Education Reform. While the Commonwealth has been better in…
Media
Read More: Revamp Charter School Laws To Increase School ChoiceEducation
New Higher Ed Proposals are More of the Same Failed Policies
Gubernatorial candidate Dan Onorato has proposed a series of higher education policies aimed at increasing the amount of college grads by 6% in 4 years and improving affordability. All…
Media
Read More: New Higher Ed Proposals are More of the Same Failed PoliciesGovernment Accountability
Talking Constitutional Convention
Tim Potts talks about a Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention with Ron Morris on Pittsburgh Business Radio.
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Read More: Talking Constitutional ConventionGovernment Accountability
CF Around the Blogs
Here are some of the recent blogs mentioning or citing the Commonwealth Foundation: Students for Liberty comments on our back-and-forth with Gov. Rendell on education spending and performance and…
Media
Read More: CF Around the Blogs
Convention is overdue to remodel statehouse
Media Hit
Read More: Convention is overdue to remodel statehouse