Media

News Release: Last Year’s State Budget Killed Nearly 100 Vape Shops

• June 20, 2017

Facing a budget shortfall last year, lawmakers and Gov. Tom Wolf slapped a massive 40 percent wholesale tax on vaping products, forcing vape shop owners to pay the tax retroactively…

Press Release

Education

Will Philly Union Contract Require State Bailout?

• James Paul
• June 20, 2017

Philadelphia’s new teacher contract could be so expensive as to require teacher layoffs to pay for it. But there’s another way the $395 million pact could be financed: with…

Media

State Budget

Stop Calling for Higher Taxes

• Nathan Benefield
• June 20, 2017

In comments at the Pennsylvania Press Club yesterday, Sen. Jay Costa addressed the state deficit and called for tax increases. Costa said, “A year from now, someone will be standing…

Media

Education

Philly Union Contract Underscores Need for Transparency

• James Paul
• June 19, 2017

On Monday evening, members of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (PFT) voted to approve a new labor contract with the School District of Philadelphia. Scant details have emerged on…

Media

State Budget

The Solution to Pa.’s Perpetual Deficit Problems

• June 19, 2017

Pennsylvania is rapidly approaching the June 30 budget deadline. Over the next two weeks, lawmakers will decide how to balance the 2017-18 budget. But they’ll also need to settle old…

Media

Health Care

One Step Towards Redesigning Human Services

• Elizabeth Stelle
• June 15, 2017

Governor Wolf’s proposal to merge four state agencies into the Department of Health and Human Services has the potential to benefit taxpayers and beneficiaries by eliminating bureaucratic redundancies and providing…

Media

Health Care

Obamacare’s Cost Increase Aren’t “Just Fine”

• Nathan Benefield
• June 15, 2017

This week, Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller sent a letter suggesting that an 8.8 percent increase in insurance premiums next year was a good thing, and…

Media

Regulation

Pennsylvania Ranks Poorly…Again

• Colleen Hroncich
• June 14, 2017

Redesigning state government has never been more important. For evidence, check out Pennsylvania’s poor performance in U.S. News & World Report’s recent Best States Rankings. Overall, the study puts the…

Media

Education

Are Pennsylvania Schools Underfunded?

• James Paul
• June 13, 2017

New figures from Pennsylvania's Department of Education refute the persistent myth that Pennsylvania public schools are underfunded. See the charts below for 2015-16 statistics on school spending,…

Media

Regulation

Making the Most of Philadelphia’s Upswing

• Elizabeth Stelle
• June 13, 2017

Last week I blogged about Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto’s misplaced confidence in government energy mandates to grow the Steel City. On the other side of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney…

Media

Regulation

Gov. Wolf Signs Historic Pension Reform

• Elizabeth Stelle
• June 13, 2017

Yesterday Governor Wolf signed transformative pension reform. SB 1 will establish a side-by-side hybrid plan for new employees, greatly reducing taxpayer risk and laying the foundation for further reform.

Media

Education

Non-Teacher Staffing Surge Fails Students

• June 12, 2017

Students have not benefited from large increases in public school staffing, according to a new study from EdChoice. Dr. Ben Scafidi, director of the Education Economics Center at Kennesaw…

Media

Education

Growing Chorus Urges School Boards to Protect Taxpayers

• James Paul
• June 9, 2017

In response to CF’s research on school district reserve funds, reporters and editorial boards have weighed in on the question: Why are districts holding millions in reserve while seeking…

Media

Health Care

PA’s Unaffordable Health Care Act Premiums

• Colleen Hroncich
• June 9, 2017

If there’s ever a contest for least accurately named law, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would certainly be in the running. In the aftermath of the ACA, more commonly called…

Media

Health Care

Saving Medicaid

• Elizabeth Stelle
• June 9, 2017

Obamacare proponents insist the American Health Care Act (AHCA) will cut $800 billion from Medicaid and jeopardize care for the disabled and children. This claim is oft-repeated, but it is patently false.

Media

Regulation

Historic Pension Reform: Thank You!

• June 8, 2017

Today's pension reform passage—and Gov. Wolf's support—mark a historic moment for our state. Pennsylvania is about to enact the most significant pension reform in the nation. You can read much more…

Media

Regulation

News Release: Pa. to Enact Nation’s Most Significant Pension Reform

• June 8, 2017

In an overwhelming, bipartisan vote, the state House today voted 143-53 to approve transformative pension reform legislation hailed as a part of a “major turn-around among states” by the…

Press Release

State Budget

Three States Offer a Glimpse into Pennsylvania’s Three Possible Futures

• June 7, 2017

Raising taxes on the wealthy is the answer to Pennsylvania’s fiscal problems. At least, that’s what we’re told by government union executives and their allies. But Connecticut's experience paints a very…

Media

Government Accountability

Lawsuit Seeks to End Ghost Teaching in Reading

• Jessica Barnett
• June 6, 2017

Across Pennsylvania, school districts are struggling to keep pace with the rising cost of education driven by unsustainble penion expenses. Yet, a special perk built into over 20 percent…

Media

Regulation

Can Environmental Mandates Reverse Pittsburgh’s Decline?

• Elizabeth Stelle
• June 6, 2017

President Trump summed up his opposition to the Paris Climate Accord by saying he was elected to represent Pittsburgh, not Paris. In response, Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto issued an…

Media

Regulation

Making Sense of Pension Reform Legislation

• June 6, 2017

Yesterday, the state Senate passed pension reform legislation—Senate Bill 1—which begins to transform the state’s pension systems into a sustainable model for public employees and taxpayers. We have already…

Media