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.”
Regulation
The State of Inconvenience
Walk into any supermarket in Ohio and you can see shoppers purchasing everything they need for dinner - including the wine to go with it. In West Virginia, residents can…
Commentary
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Brain Drain Strikes Again
Last weekend I attended a dinner party just over the Pennsylvania border in Ohio. Our hosts moved across the state line about a year ago and complained to me about…
Media
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U.S. to award Green Ribbon honors for schools’ environmental efforts
Media Hit
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Synopsis of Stimulus 7: Serious Spending
Obama laid out his “jobs speech” Thursday night, outlining the plot of Stimulus 7. Since few people paid attention to this, on account of flooding in Pennsylvania…
Media
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Corbett plan calling for privatizing services
Media Hit
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Senseless Regulations Cause Job Loss
Tuesday’s Pennsylvania Independent article on the new state independent contract rules demonstrates the clear need for regulatory streamlining in the commonwealth. After Deborah Webster’s husband lost his job,…
Media
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Rick Perry, Corporate Welfare and Pennsylvania
Texas Governor and Presidential Candidate Rick Perry has taken some flak recently for “job creation” funds, which largely direct taxpayer funds to corporations and special projects. This is commonly…
Media
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Tax Credit Scholarships Shown to Improve Student Performance
A new study of the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship—which provides tax credits for businesses donating to organizations offering scholarships to K-12 students, similar to Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax—finds academic…
Media
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Union targets: Education funding, vouchers, sale of liquor stores
Media Hit
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Public-private partnerships can work with state’s parks
Media Hit
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New Study Shows Wine Prices Cheaper in Surrounding States
Media Hit
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Pennsylvania Lost $5 Billion in Annual Income from Residents Movin’ Out
When it comes to interstate migration, Pennsylvania is among the biggest losers of residents and the income they earn, according to a Tax Foundation map using IRS data. Between…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania Lost $5 Billion in Annual Income from Residents Movin’ OutRegulation
Fact of the Day: Wine and Spirits Prices in Pennsylvania & Border States
Today, CF released a fact sheet on government-run liquor stores, including a comparison of average wine and…
Media
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Corbett’s parks idea worth consideration
Media Hit
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CF Study: Booze Border Bleed Loses Billions in Taxes, Sales
The Commonwealth Foundation released today a price comparison study showing average wine prices were cheaper in all Pennsylvania border states…
Press Release
Read More: CF Study: Booze Border Bleed Loses Billions in Taxes, SalesRegulation
The Failure of Government-run Liquor Stores
The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) is the exclusive wholesaler and retailer of wine and spirits in the commonwealth. A current proposal would get the government out of the business…
Fact Sheet
Read More: The Failure of Government-run Liquor StoresPublic Union Democracy
Big Labor’s Stranglehold in Pennsylvania
Here’s a depressing, if unsurprising, statistic: In a new index assessing whether states favor government union bosses or taxpayers, Pennsylvania ranks 5th worst. The Competitive Enterprise Institute ranked…
Media
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Wine Kiosks: One of These Things is Not Like the Others
Yesterday, Auditor General Jack Wagner released an audit of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board’s wine kiosk program. Following that, PLCB CEO Joe Conti talked with capitol reporters. In the…
Media
Read More: Wine Kiosks: One of These Things is Not Like the Others
AG Zaps Zinfandel Czar’s Zero
How bad is it for the beleaguered booze bosses these days? So bad Pa. Auditor General Jack Wagner was forced to foil the fermented farce of the great wine…
Media
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