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Government Accountability

Q&A on Open Records

• Nathan Benefield
• February 22, 2008

FAQ on the new Open Records Law from the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association.

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Regulation

Corporate Welfare responsible for 125% of new jobs

• Nathan Benefield
• February 21, 2008

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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Taxes & Economy

The Running Total Of Our Taxes

• Nathan Benefield
• February 21, 2008

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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Health Care

Wal-Mart can be good for your health

• Nathan Benefield
• February 21, 2008

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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Education

Drew Carey Video on Education & Teachers’ Unions

• Nathan Benefield
• February 21, 2008

ReasonTV video with Drew Carey on union opposition to school reform in Watts Commentary on the video from NTU’s Government Bytes blog…

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Education

Curriculum reform “isn’t enough”

• Nathan Benefield
• February 20, 2008

Reason’s Lisa Snell lays the smackdown on arguments by Sol Stern in his article “School Choice Isn’t Enough” (Click here for previous post), which labels instructionist reform…

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State Budget

CAGW Names Rep. John Murtha Porker of the Year

• Nathan Benefield
• February 20, 2008

Pennsylvania’s own Congresman John Murtha was named Porker of the Year by Citizens Against Government Waste: In fiscal year 2008, he brought home 72 pork projects worth $149.2…

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Taxes & Economy

The ACLU gets it right for once

• Nathan Benefield
• February 20, 2008

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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Regulation

Legislators plan hearings on privatizing liquor stores

• Nathan Benefield
• February 20, 2008

Post-Gazette on the push for privatization of state-run liquor stores. More on State Store privatization: “Public Benefits of Private Liquor” news release and testimony from Reason Foundation…

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Government Accountability

Mickey Goes to Washington

• Nathan Benefield
• February 19, 2008

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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Regulation

Lackawanna County: Where’s the Film?

• Nathan Benefield
• February 19, 2008

Another case study on corporate welfare for the film industry was featured in the Morning Call. Lackwanna County officials are wondering what happened to the $500,000 of taxpayer money…

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State Budget

State’s economy, budget are at odds

• Nathan Benefield
• February 18, 2008

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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Taxes & Economy

JFK gives Rendell advice on “economic stimulus”

• Nathan Benefield
• February 18, 2008

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Government Accountability

‘Black ops’ in the Legislature

• Nathan Benefield
• February 18, 2008

Brad Bumsted on the “Black Ops” of BonusGate: The legality of bonuses might not be resolved for some time. But it’s clear that they were wrong, handled “off…

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Taxes & Economy

Is Rendell’s rebate legal?

• Nathan Benefield
• February 16, 2008

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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Regulation

Study: Smoking Bans increase drunk driving

• Nathan Benefield
• February 15, 2008

A new study in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Public Economics finds that “smoking bans increase drunken-driving fatalities”; reported on the Marginal Revolution blog. This effect is…

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Education

The School Choice Gold Standard

• Nathan Benefield
• February 15, 2008

The Friedman Foundation has a new report grading the various scholarship, voucher, and tax credit programs across the US on three categories – student restrictions (how many students can…

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VIDEO: Critics Say Turnpike Needs Reform

• Nathan Benefield
• February 14, 2008

NBC 5 Video on the Turnpike Commission’s dining expenses charged to drivers. They spent a mindboggling total of $1,800 at Haydn’s on Pine in Harrisburg in June 2007 (when…

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Taxes & Economy

Ethanol: Another dose of snake oil?

• Nathan Benefield
• February 14, 2008

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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Taxes & Economy

Federal “Stimulus” Rebate Calculator

• Nathan Benefield
• February 14, 2008

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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State Budget

Borrowing in 2008-09 Budget

• Nathan Benefield
• February 14, 2008

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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