Erik Telford
Senior Vice President of Public Affairs
Erik Telford is the Senior Vice President of Public Affairs at the Commonwealth Foundation.
Erik is a senior public affairs and communications executive with more than 15 years of diverse experience across public policy, advocacy, and public affairs institutions. Before joining the Commonwealth Foundation, Erik served as the senior vice president at Stand Together Communications, the Koch network’s marketing and communications capability. Erik has also served as the president of the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity, a state-based watchdog journalism organization. And at Americans for Prosperity, he was the executive director of RightOnline (an initiative he founded) and the director of membership and online strategy. He is currently on the board of the American Commitment Foundation.
In 2013, Campaigns & Elections Magazine honored Erik as an “Advocacy Innovator” and in 2011 as a “Rising Star in American Politics.” Politics Online named him one of the “Top 10 Who Are Changing the World of Internet and Politics.”
Public Union Democracy
Pension Reform to Protect my Kids
Legislative leaders have rightly rejected a so-called pension reform “compromise,” a plan that fails to address the problems in our pension system and continues to put our kids and grandkids on…
Media
Read More: Pension Reform to Protect my KidsEducation
Wolf to Chester Families: “There is No Escape”
Tom Wolf’s record on public education is well documented. The governor is hostile to schools of choice, cozy to union interests, and wedded to…
Media
Read More: Wolf to Chester Families: “There is No Escape”Regulation
Wolf’s ‘Compromise’ Rings Hollow
Wolf’s ‘Compromise’ Rings Hollow Who’s Really Being ‘Disingenuous’ During Budget Talks? As budget negotiations continue, Gov. Wolf recently called Republicans “disingenuous” for criticizing his pension “compromise.” But…
Press Release
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The Most Liberal Governor in America: Tom Wolf and the Income Tax
Topics on this page LiberalismTom WolfUnited States…
Media Hit
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Union Leader Still Flouting the Law
Yesterday’s Post-Gazette featured a story highlighting the fact that Wendell Young still isn’t registered to lobby, and UFCW 1776 is underreporting their expenses: Mr. Young isn’t registered as…
Media
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What Our Towns Pay: Suburban cops dominate list of top earners
Media Hit
Read More: What Our Towns Pay: Suburban cops dominate list of top earnersRegulation
Gov. Wolf’s So-Called Compromise
Gov. Wolf proposed a new “compromise” on pensions and the budget last week, according to news reports. Here is what that compromise includes: A defined contribution plan for new…
Media
Read More: Gov. Wolf’s So-Called CompromiseEducation
Pension Reform to Protect my Kids
I chose teaching because I enjoy interacting with students and helping them learn. My science classes show students that certain actions yield predictable results. With this in mind, I am…
Media
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What does state law require for lobbying reports? Good question
Media Hit
Read More: What does state law require for lobbying reports? Good question
Make Dave’s Voice Heard in Harrisburg
Dave Smith, a Phoenixville resident, has muscular dystrophy, which has left him wheelchair-bound and in need of 24-hour care. Don Lambrecht has been Dave’s homecare provider…
Commentary
Read More: Make Dave’s Voice Heard in HarrisburgGovernment Accountability
New Contract, Still no Transparency
The newest state contract with AFSCME—the union representing more than 30,000 state workers—was signed earlier this week. The contract was agreed to in April, then ratified by…
Media
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Wolf property tax plan a sour vintage (letter)
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Letter to the Editor: Gov. Tom Wolf glosses over biggest source of new revenue: sales and income tax hikes
Topics on this page Tom Wolf…
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Read More: Letter to the Editor: Gov. Tom Wolf glosses over biggest source of new revenue: sales and income tax hikes
Letter to the Editor: Gov. Tom Wolf glosses over biggest source of new revenue: sales and income tax hikes
Topics on this page Tom Wolf…
Media Hit
Read More: Letter to the Editor: Gov. Tom Wolf glosses over biggest source of new revenue: sales and income tax hikes
4.6 Billion Is the Loneliest Number
Gov. Tom Wolf and the state legislature have agreed on legislation 39 times this year, the Pittsburgh Tribune notes. But when it came time to vote on Wolf’s $4.6…
Media
Read More: 4.6 Billion Is the Loneliest NumberState Budget
Audio: Gov. Wolf’s Budget Blindspot
CF’s Nate Benefield joins Dom Giordano on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT to discuss the budget impasse and Gov. Wolf’s misleading claims. During their conversation, Nate shed light on Gov.
Media
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Gov. Wolf’s complaints with the Republican budget
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Read More: Gov. Wolf’s complaints with the Republican budget
Seattle Hospital Cuts Cost of Outpatient Services 35 Percent
Media Hit
Read More: Seattle Hospital Cuts Cost of Outpatient Services 35 PercentRegulation
Entrepreneurs Speak Out Against the PLCB
Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) partisans are quick to defend the agency as an asset for the state, but the PLCB’s finances—and the entrepreneurs who deal with the booze bureaucracy—tell a different story. On the financial front, the board reported $117 million in net…
Media
Read More: Entrepreneurs Speak Out Against the PLCB