Media

The Case Against Tax Hikes

• December 22, 2016

Pennsylvania’s financial condition is challenging policymakers to change how state government operates. For example, House Majority Leader Dave Reed recently called for a “restructuring” of government as an…

Media

State Budget

An Early Christmas Present from Gov. Wolf

• Nathan Benefield
• December 22, 2016

Yesterday, Gov. Tom Wolf indicated he would not propose an income tax or a sales tax increase as part of his next budget. This comes as something of…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Pennsylvania is Shrinking

• Elizabeth Stelle
• December 21, 2016

For the first time in 31 years, Pennsylvania's population is shrinking. The Census Bureau reports Pennsylvania’s total population fell by more than 7,600 last year. In state-to-state migration,…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Pa. Population Drops for First Time in 31 Years

• December 21, 2016

Pa. Population Drops for First Time in 31 Years Thousands Leave for Friendlier Tax Climates December 21, 2016, HARRISBURG, Pa.— For the first time since 1985, Pennsylvania’s…

Press Release

Education

School Choice: Helping One Student at a Time

• December 20, 2016

As a recent graduate from PA Leadership Charter School (PALCS), I’m familiar with school choice. In fact, for the past five years, I have joined my Student Government on an…

Media

Taxes & Economy

One of the Worst Run States in America?

• December 15, 2016

Pennsylvania is in a slump. The latest grades from 24/7 Wall St. have the Keystone State ranked 42nd in terms of The Best Run State in America. This is…

Media

Regulation

A Turning Point in Pennsylvania?s Budget Debate?

• December 14, 2016

Pennsylvania must confront a $604 million deficit, according to Budget Secretary Randy Albright. This sober assessment was offered during the mid-year budget briefing earlier today. The Independent Fiscal Office (IFO)…

Media

Public Union Democracy

Watch for Sweeping Changes Outside the Beltway

• Elizabeth Stelle
• December 13, 2016

The political landscape has experienced a seismic shift, and it isn't centered in Washington DC. This past weekend Kyle Peterson of the Wall Street Journal highlighted Pennsylvania and six other…

Media

State Budget

State Spending to Blame for Low Economic Opportunity in Pa.

• December 13, 2016

State Spending to Blame for Low Economic Opportunity in Pa. New Report Shows Need for Government Spending Restraint December 13, 2016, HARRISBURG, Pa.—When it comes to controlling…

Press Release

Regulation

The PLCB: A Winner in a Race with No Competitors

• December 12, 2016

In 2013, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) released its first annual report, emphasizing record sales and “profits.” Neither of these is impressive when analyzed in context, but the…

Media

Education

Will Lower Standards Help Pa. School Performance?

• James Paul
• December 9, 2016

Pennsylvania’s primary tool for grading schools—the School Performance Profile (SPP)—is being overhauled. The current SPP is not particularly straightforward, but it’s based mainly on test scores and academic…

Media

Taxes & Economy

No Doubt About it: PA has a Severance Tax

• Elizabeth Stelle
• December 8, 2016

What do Christmas festivities, a new office building, and a Ford Explorer have in common? They were all paid for with impact fees on natural gas, raising doubts about the necessity of…

Media

Regulation

What Pennsylvania’s Budget Trends Mean for You

• December 8, 2016

State government is growing at a startling rate. Since 1970, spending has risen by $4,010 per person—an inflation-adjusted increase of 189 percent. This is one of many findings in our…

Media

Education

Magnum, P.I. Comes to Bethlehem

• James Paul
• December 7, 2016

Bethlehem School District employs private investigators to track down students with fraudulent home addresses. According to The Morning Call, DBM Investigations and Consulting has identified 35 students…

Media

Taxes & Economy

PA’s Conflicted Relationship with Natural Gas

• Gordon Tomb
• December 6, 2016

The government giveth, and the government taketh away. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Pennsylvania’s relationship with the natural gas industry. On the one hand, Gov. Wolf offers a…

Media

Education

Hits and Misses from the 2015-16 Legislative Session

• Elizabeth Stelle
• December 5, 2016

That's a wrap. The 2015-16 legislative session is officially in the history books. Despite a $650 million tax hike, Pennsylvanians have a lot to celebrate from the past two years.

Media

Regulation

Pennsylvania Deficit Watch: December 2016

• December 2, 2016

State revenue collections came in at $79.5 million below the official estimate for November, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Lackluster collections wiped away the little progress made during October when revenue collections…

Media

Education

Details Emerge on Philly Union Negotiations

• James Paul
• November 29, 2016

Intrepid reporter Kristen Graham of the Philadelphia Inquirer unearthed several details from contract negotiations between the school district of Philadelphia and the local teachers’ union, the Philadelphia Federation of…

Media

Public Union Democracy

Government Unions’ Election Impact

• Elizabeth Stelle
• November 22, 2016

One can't understate the scope of government unions' financial involvement in some of the key Pennsylvania races this fall. While final campaign finance numbers are still a few weeks away,…

Media

Public Union Democracy

The Rust Belt’s Labor Reform Wave

• Elizabeth Stelle
• November 18, 2016

Lagging job growth, rising taxes and coercive union tactics created an appetite for labor reform throughout Rust Belt states. Transforming Labor, our latest policy report, ranks states on their…

Media

Big Budget Deficits Show Need for Big Changes

• Elizabeth Stelle
• November 16, 2016

Pennsylvania is in a pickle unless lawmakers make fundamental changes. That’s the message of yesterday’s Independent Fiscal Office Economic and Budget Outlook report. Each November the IFO looks at…

Media