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.”
Taxes & Economy
Marcellus Shale Job Creation Continues
A recent Williamsport Sun-Gazette article gives props to the natural gas industry for being an economic boost, and keeping unemployment relatively low in Bradford County, a central hub for…
Media
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Retiring state legislators decline comment on pensions
Media Hit
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So Long, Specter
The Washington Examiner‘s Tim Carney today reviews Democrat Sen. Arlen Specter’s farewell speech to the U.S. Senate, and characterizes it as “20 minutes of self-serving gripes, empty name-calling,…
Media
Read More: So Long, SpecterTaxes & Economy
Skewed Poll on Gas Drilling
A recent survey by the Civil Society Institute is so misleading that even professional skewed poll creators PennFuture and Gov. Rendell can pick up tips. The only…
Media
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Private Liquor Stores: A Reason for Cheers
Media Hit
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Report: School Choice Could Save PA Tax Dollars
The Foundation for Educational Choice has a new analysis out, suggesting that the federal “Race to the Top” (RTTP) funding from the stimulus bill should be used to…
Media
Read More: Report: School Choice Could Save PA Tax DollarsRegulation
Cigarette Taxes Increase Crime
Our friends at the Mackinac Center have released a study on the smuggling of cigarettes due to high cigarette taxes. While politicians often tout raising taxes as a tool to…
Media
Read More: Cigarette Taxes Increase CrimeRegulation
Private Liquor Stores: A Reason for Cheers
As many Pennsylvanians are heading to their local state liquor store to pick up holiday cheer, there are three things they won't be celebrating: Higher costs, less selection and lower…
Commentary
Read More: Private Liquor Stores: A Reason for CheersHealth Care
Medicaid: A State Budget Buster
Medicaid is gobbling up state budgets left and right, and Pennsylvania is no exception. State Medicaid costs from 2014 through 2020 are estimated to increase by $841.2…
Media
Read More: Medicaid: A State Budget BusterGovernment Accountability
Philadelphia is Number 1 “Judical Hellhole” in US
Philadelphia has been named the number one “judicial hellhole” in a new ranking by the American Tort Reform Association. Philadelphia is a source of great concern due…
Media
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Limited-government ideology supports privatizing liquor sales
Media Hit
Read More: Limited-government ideology supports privatizing liquor salesRegulation
How Many State Liquor Stores Should Pennsylvania Have?
Ben Waxman of the Philadelphia Daily News raises an interesting question about liquor privatization. Noting public support for liquor privatization, he posits whether it would be better to…
Media
Read More: How Many State Liquor Stores Should Pennsylvania Have?Education
School Choice Push Extends Nationwide
Pennsylvania Governor-elect Tom Corbett has indicated strong support support for school choice, but he won’t be alone in the fight. Joining him in this push is Governor-elect…
Media
Read More: School Choice Push Extends NationwideTaxes & Economy
Oregon Ducks Renewable Energy Failure
In 2001, Mayor Vera Katz promised Portland, Ore. would acquire 100 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2010. Today, only nine percent of Portland’s energy comes from renewables. What…
Media
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Settlement between Cabot and DEP draws criticism, praise
Media Hit
Read More: Settlement between Cabot and DEP draws criticism, praiseState Budget
Why PA State Debt is “So Low”?
Yesterday, during his mid-year budget briefing, Gov. Rendell repeated his claims that Pennsylvania state debt is pretty low, less than $1,000 per resident, and much lower (relative to state GDP)…
Media
Read More: Why PA State Debt is “So Low”?Regulation
Did Lawmakers Fix the Pension Mess?
Joe DiStefano of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes that State Representative (and PSERS Board member) Dwight Evans claims no further pension reform is needed. Evans is hardly dealing with reality.
Media
Read More: Did Lawmakers Fix the Pension Mess?