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Taxes & Economy
New Poll: Voters Demand Affordable Energy, More Educational Options, and Lower Taxes
Affordability is top of mind for Pennsylvanians, with 58 percent of voters naming either rising prices and inflation or the economy and jobs as the single most important issue…
Read More: New Poll: Voters Demand Affordable Energy, More Educational Options, and Lower Taxes
Education
U.S. Treasury Releases Final Guidelines on Federal Scholarship Program
Read More: U.S. Treasury Releases Final Guidelines on Federal Scholarship Program
Government Accountability
Shapiro Administration Rescinds Dept. of Health Rule Due to Public Pressure
Read More: Shapiro Administration Rescinds Dept. of Health Rule Due to Public Pressure
Government Accountability
Commonwealth Foundation Comments on Gov. Shapiro’s Executive Overreach
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation Comments on Gov. Shapiro’s Executive OverreachHealth Care
Pa. House’s Passage of HB 1512 Is a Victory for Patients
Harrisburg, Pa., April 10, 2024 — Today, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed House Bill (HB) 1512 by a vote of 197 to 3. The Commonwealth Foundation applauds the passage of the…
Press Release
Read More: Pa. House’s Passage of HB 1512 Is a Victory for PatientsTaxes & Economy
Commonwealth Foundation Survey Finds Inflation-Weary Voters Oppose Higher State Spending and Taxes
Harrisburg, Pa., April 9, 2024 — Inflation tops the list of Pennsylvania voter concerns in a new survey released today by the Commonwealth Foundation. The poll found taxpayers are weary of state…
Press Release
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation Survey Finds Inflation-Weary Voters Oppose Higher State Spending and TaxesEducation
Commonwealth Foundation Launches Billboards Spotlighting Need for Lifeline Scholarships
Harrisburg, Pa., April 1, 2024 — The Commonwealth Foundation today launched several digital billboards across Philadelphia promoting the Lifeline Scholarship Program that would allow students to escape Pennsylvania’s lowest-performing schools. Kicking…
Press Release
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation Launches Billboards Spotlighting Need for Lifeline ScholarshipsEnergy
Pennsylvania Governor Flirts with Reckless ‘Green’ Initiatives
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is attempting to rebrand big-government environmental programs that threaten “the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians and the economic vitality of one of the nation’s…
Press Release
Read More: Pennsylvania Governor Flirts with Reckless ‘Green’ InitiativesPublic Union Democracy
Governor Shapiro’s ‘Project Labor Agreements’ Nothing More Than Another Campaign Donor Handout
Harrisburg, Pa., March 27, 2024 — Today, Gov. Josh Shapiro announced an executive order to require project labor agreements (PLAs) for government projects—a move that, once again, prioritizes campaign donors over Pennsylvania’s…
Press Release
Read More: Governor Shapiro’s ‘Project Labor Agreements’ Nothing More Than Another Campaign Donor HandoutEnergy
Pa. Voters Hit Hard by High Energy Costs, Say Energy Affordability is Important to their 2024 Vote
Harrisburg, Pa., March 19, 2024 — A significant majority of Pennsylvania voters (80 percent) say their household energy bills have increased over the past two years, including 34 percent who say…
Press Release
Read More: Pa. Voters Hit Hard by High Energy Costs, Say Energy Affordability is Important to their 2024 VoteEnergy
Governor Shapiro’s Disastrous Carbon Tax Hurts Families, Breaks Promises
Harrisburg, Pa., March 13, 2024 — Today, Gov. Josh Shapiro announced plans for an economy-wide “cap-and-invest” carbon pricing program, the Pennsylvania Climate Emissions Reduction Act (PACER)—a massive new tax that would substantially…
Press Release
Read More: Governor Shapiro’s Disastrous Carbon Tax Hurts Families, Breaks PromisesPublic Union Democracy
Public Sector Unions are Most Prominent Where Workers’ Rights are Limited
Harrisburg, Pa., March 11, 2024 — Overall union membership is declining in America, but the same is not true for public sector unions. Across the United States, 43.5 percent of state government…
Press Release
Read More: Public Sector Unions are Most Prominent Where Workers’ Rights are LimitedState Budget
Corporate Welfare Is Rampant Throughout Governor Shapiro’s Proposed Budget
Harrisburg, Pa., March 7, 2024 — Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposed 2024–25 budget funnels $1.49 billion of taxpayer money to corporate welfare programs that have repeatedly failed to improve Pennsylvania’s economic competitiveness,…
Press Release
Read More: Corporate Welfare Is Rampant Throughout Governor Shapiro’s Proposed BudgetRegulation
Stefano: Occupational licensing holds Pennsylvania back
Hairdressers and make-up artists alike have to deal with excessive and onerous government regulations to earn a living, explains Commonwealth Foundation Executive Vice President and Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Jennifer Stefano in her recent …
Press Release
Read More: Stefano: Occupational licensing holds Pennsylvania backState Budget
Governor’s Proposed Budget Would Balloon Deficit to More Than $6 BILLION
Harrisburg, Pa., February 28, 2024 — Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposed $48.3 billion budget would expand Pennsylvania’s structural deficit to more than $6 billion by 2028 and lead to major tax increases,…
Press Release
Read More: Governor’s Proposed Budget Would Balloon Deficit to More Than $6 BILLIONState Budget
State Law, Financial Experts, and the Governor Himself Condemn Budget Plan to Raid Rainy Day Fund
Harrisburg, Pa., February 19, 2024 — Pennsylvania significantly improved its fiscal standing over the last few years by making deposits into the Rainy Day Fund. Pennsylvania has gone from among the…
Press Release
Read More: State Law, Financial Experts, and the Governor Himself Condemn Budget Plan to Raid Rainy Day FundState Budget
Commonwealth Foundation’s Nathan Benefield Releases Analysis of the Governor’s 2024 Budget Proposal
Harrisburg, Pa., February 8, 2024 — The spending increases proposed by Gov. Josh Shapiro in his recently released 2024 budget proposal “would explode the budget deficit and invite massive tax hikes on…
Press Release
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation’s Nathan Benefield Releases Analysis of the Governor’s 2024 Budget ProposalState Budget
Gov. Shapiro’s Proposed Budget Demonstrates Startling Fiscal Irresponsibility
Harrisburg, Pa., February 6, 2024 — Today, Gov. Josh Shapiro delivered his 2024 Pennsylvania budget address in the Capitol rotunda. His speech, lasting approximately an hour and a half, included proposals…
Press Release
Read More: Gov. Shapiro’s Proposed Budget Demonstrates Startling Fiscal IrresponsibilityState Budget
Stefano: Do-nothing Dems in the Pa. House hold bipartisan reforms hostage
Pennsylvania is losing people and industries to other states as a result of the state’s “crippling economic policies,” writes Philadelphia Inquirer columnist and Commonwealth Foundation Executive Vice President Jennifer Stefano in her Monday Inquirer …
Press Release
Read More: Stefano: Do-nothing Dems in the Pa. House hold bipartisan reforms hostageState Budget
Spice Up Gov. Shapiro’s 2024 Budget Speech with Budget Address BINGO
Harrisburg, Pa., February 5, 2024 — Ahead of Gov. Josh Shapiro’s second annual budget address, the Commonwealth Foundation invites you to spice up the governor’s upcoming speech with a game of Budget…
Press Release
Read More: Spice Up Gov. Shapiro’s 2024 Budget Speech with Budget Address BINGOState Budget
Commonwealth Foundation Releases Video and Materials from Nathan Benefield’s 2024 Budget Briefing
Harrisburg, Pa., January 25, 2024 — Commonwealth Foundation’s state budget expert Nathan Benefield yesterday provided reporters background on the state’s current financial situation and budget projections in anticipation of the 2024 Pennsylvania…
Press Release
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation Releases Video and Materials from Nathan Benefield’s 2024 Budget BriefingEnergy
Commonwealth Foundation Urges Gov. Shapiro: Reject New Energy Taxes
Harrisburg, Pa., January 23, 2024 — Today, the Commonwealth Foundation launched a new ad campaign holding Gov. Josh Shapiro accountable for his broken promise on the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The…
Press Release
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation Urges Gov. Shapiro: Reject New Energy TaxesState Budget
Commonwealth Foundation to Brief on Gov. Shapiro’s Upcoming Budget
Harrisburg, Pa., January 18, 2024 — Commonwealth Foundation’s budget expert Nathan Benefield will host a media conference call on January 24, 2024, to discuss Gov. Josh Shapiro’s upcoming budget…
Press Release
Read More: Commonwealth Foundation to Brief on Gov. Shapiro’s Upcoming BudgetEducation
Stefano: Can Cherelle Parker deliver justice for Philly kids?
Philadelphia Inquirer columnist and Commonwealth Foundation Executive Vice President Jennifer Stefano wrote in her column this week that Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker can be a force to help enact school choice policies,…
Press Release
Read More: Stefano: Can Cherelle Parker deliver justice for Philly kids?Education
Basic Education Funding Commission’s Adopted Report Is a Partisan Misfire
Harrisburg, Pa., January 11, 2024 — Today, the Basic Education Funding Commission released its funding recommendations for Pennsylvania’s 500 public school districts. The commission, comprised of a bipartisan group of lawmakers and Shapiro…
Press Release
Read More: Basic Education Funding Commission’s Adopted Report Is a Partisan Misfire