Erik Telford

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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.” 

Health Care

New Wave of Obamacare Price Hikes Arrives

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • November 17, 2014

Regina Weinhardt handles benefits for her family’s plumbing business in Delaware County. In business since 1962, providing health care to their employees has always been a priority, “My father started…

Media

Read More: New Wave of Obamacare Price Hikes Arrives

Taxes & Economy

Green Jobs Threatened by EPA Regs

  • Gordon Tomb
  • November 17, 2014

John Oelbracht has managed the Westwood Generation power plant in Schuylkill County for 10 years. It’s more than a job to him—it’s an undertaking to clean up the environment while…

Commentary

Read More: Green Jobs Threatened by EPA Regs

Taxes & Economy

You’re Innocent, but Your House may be Guilty

  • Nathan Benefield
  • November 17, 2014

A recent episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver highlights the problem of asset forfeiture, with specific references to the city of Philadelphia. Philadelphia has seized more than…

Media

Read More: You’re Innocent, but Your House may be Guilty

Government Accountability

Government Unions’ Political Spending Dwarfs Natural Gas

  • Nathan Benefield
  • November 14, 2014

A rehashed report from Common Cause PA and Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania assert that Marcellus Shale drillers spent $8 million on campaign contributions and $41 million on lobbying in…

Media

Read More: Government Unions’ Political Spending Dwarfs Natural Gas

Regulation

PLCB Annual Report: Future of Government Booze Bleak

  • November 13, 2014

Last year, my colleague Dawn did us all a favor by providing a summary of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board’s (PLCB) annual report. This year, I drew the short…

Media

Read More: PLCB Annual Report: Future of Government Booze Bleak

Health Care

Bracing for Obamacare Rate Hikes

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • November 12, 2014

Only three days until the Obamacare exchanges open for 2015 enrollment. Last Sunday, the federal government released preliminary rates for window shopping. We compared the cheapest insurance plans in…

Media

Read More: Bracing for Obamacare Rate Hikes

Education

A Shoddy Attack on Charters

  • James Paul
  • November 11, 2014

My letter to the editor of the Philadelphia Daily News takes issue with the paper’s recent characterization of charter schools as “fiscal monsters.”  The Daily News editorial…

Media

Read More: A Shoddy Attack on Charters