Media

Taxes & Economy

Turnpike Lease Back On The Table

• Nathan Benefield
• September 16, 2008

The Philadelphia Bulletin has an article on the Turnpike lease facing real consideration now; the Daily Collegian and the Daily Item have similar pieces (HT GrassrootsPA).

Media

Government Accountability

Great Website on Fiscal Responsibility

• Nathan Benefield
• September 16, 2008

Americans for Tax Reform has launched its Center for Fiscal Responsibility, a fantastic site dedicated to (as the name implies) fiscal responsibility in federal state and local government.  I…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Pennsylvania Turnpike Lease: Two years of deliberation

• Nathan Benefield
• September 16, 2008

An anonymous poster remarks that “we don’t want to rush into anything (like leasing the Turnpike)”, and compares it to the rush to pass Act 44. He/she is correct…

Media

State Budget

Why state governments spend too much

• Nathan Benefield
• September 15, 2008

A report from the Rockefeller Institute at SUNY (news release) looks at state and local government spending on social welfare. After adjusting for inflation, they found that expenditures…

Media

Government Accountability

New Blog: Snippets of PA Capitol Coverage

• Nathan Benefield
• September 15, 2008

Pennsylvania Legislative Service has a new blog, which will include some of their coverage of happenings at the state Capitol (previously available only to paid subscribers) such as wrap…

Media

Taxes & Economy

What now for Pennsylvania transportation funding, turnpike lease?

• Nathan Benefield
• September 15, 2008

Joe Grata has an article in the Post-Gazette on what will happen now that the federal government has rejected I-80 tolling in Pennsylvania.   As we pointed out…

Media

State Budget

Lancaster County delegation doles out $3 million in WAMs

• Nathan Benefield
• September 15, 2008

LancasterOnline breaks down the taxpayer-funded pork projects (WAMs) awarded by Lancaster County lawmakers. (HT: GrassrootsPA)…

Media

Government Accountability

DeWeese boasts about House reforms

• Nathan Benefield
• September 15, 2008

The Herald Standard has an article in which Bill DeWeese praises all the reforms the House has done under his watch. Eric Epstein and Tim Potts offer…

Media

Education

‘Tis the Season…for teacher strikes, that is.

• September 14, 2008

Saucon Valley teachers who make nearly $80K are ready to strike. Nick Falsone writes on his Bedlam in Bethlehem blog for The Express-Times about elementary school teacher Vivian Demko,…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Lease it!, says The Times-Tribune

• September 14, 2008

Editorial from The Times-Tribune makes part of the case for leasing the Pennsylvania Turnpike now that the Federal Highway Administration has rejected a key feature of Act 44…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Turnpike lease on the move…

• September 13, 2008

Toll Roads News is reporting that House Democratic Appropriations Chairman Dwight Evans is ready to move the Turnpike lease bill, and additional support is gathering. Of course, the Turnpike…

Media

Government Accountability

House Republican Caucus: Opening the Books

• Elizabeth Stelle
• September 12, 2008

The House Republican Caucus has posted a number of contracts on the Treasurer’s website and announced they will start observing the new Open…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Feds Reject Tolls on I-80

• Elizabeth Stelle
• September 11, 2008

It’s official, the Pennyslvania Turnpike Comission’s attempt to toll I-80 has been denied by the Federal Highway Administration. See our news release…

Media

Regulation

Thank You for (Not) Smoking

• September 11, 2008

Pennsylvania’s smoking ban goes into effect today and has created a cloud of controversy statewide, with a less than enthusiastic response from the smoking public. The Department of Health has…

Media

Taxes & Economy

The Reemerging Paradigm: Public-Private Partnerships

• Elizabeth Stelle
• September 11, 2008

Government officials continue to decry the terrible condition of the state’s roads, but this time real solutions like public-private partnerships are receiving some support. On Monday, the House Transportation Committee…

Media

Education

The Harriet Tubman of School Choice

• Nathan Benefield
• September 11, 2008

I’m in Phoenix for a conference of state think tanks and (with panels on education reform today), so I won’t be blogging much over the next few days. I will…

Media

Tolling of I-80 Denied

• September 11, 2008

Federal government rejects Turnpike proposal to toll I-80 drivers HARRISBURG, PA — The Commonwealth Foundation applauds the decision of the Federal Highway Administration to reject the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission’s (PTC)…

Press Release

Health Care

State Mandates Result in High Price Tags

• September 10, 2008

A recent news release from the National Center for Policy Analysis underscores the reason for soaring health coverage costs across the nation: state mandates and no national competition. The…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Extending Rate Caps is Not the Answer

• Elizabeth Stelle
• September 10, 2008

Yesterday, Govenor Rendell declared he would have “no choice” but to support an extension of the rate caps if the legislature fails to act on rising electricity rates. This…

Media

State Budget

Who opposed the Bridge to Nowhere?

• Nathan Benefield
• September 9, 2008

NTU sums up the “Bridge to Nowhere” opposition: Sarah Palin has declared she said “thanks, but no thanks” on the Bridge to Nowhere. And it’s true, that she stopped…

Media

Government Accountability

As Sentor Fumo’s Trial Begins the Spending Continues

• Elizabeth Stelle
• September 8, 2008

Senator Vince Fumo's trial began yesterday with the first day of jury selection. In the days leading up to the trial the senator was doing what he does best:…

Media