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.”
Blogging about the Commonwealth Foundation
Here are some of the blogs who have given us some linkage on a a variety of budget-related issues over the past week. BucksRight, PA Family Institute Blog,…
Media
Read More: Blogging about the Commonwealth FoundationState Budget
PA House Democrats Against Tax Hikes
Contrary to the Rendell administration’s claims that many Republicans will support a personal income tax increase, the opposite it likely true. John Micek writes that there are maybe…
Media
Read More: PA House Democrats Against Tax HikesState Budget
Reject Rendell’s Zugzwang
Observers of the state budget process under Gov. Rendell and a divided General Assembly know that it is akin to a high-stakes chess match, replete with public relations offensives and…
Commentary
Read More: Reject Rendell’s ZugzwangTaxes & Economy
Tax Code Helped Cause Financial Crisis
Budget & Tax News reports on a new study on the effect of tax policy on the financial crisis. [Author Sam] Eddins also addresses the issue of credit default…
Media
Read More: Tax Code Helped Cause Financial CrisisState Budget
Pennsylvania Budget and Tax Updates
Here are some brief highlights on the Pennsylvania budget: Brian O’Neill editorializes angrily on “America’s Largest Full-Time State Legislature” failing to do their job, again, and includes phone numbers.
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania Budget and Tax UpdatesEducation
Could Pension Crisis Shut Down High School Sports?
Patriot-News sports reporter Rod Frisco took a look at how the looming pension crisis might impact public school athletics. Derry Township School District Superintendent Linda Brewer noted that “every…
Media
Read More: Could Pension Crisis Shut Down High School Sports?State Budget
Do Rendell’s Budget Numbers Add Up?
Mario Cattabiani and Angela Couloumbis take a look at some of Gov. Rendell’s latest budget rhetoric, namely his claim that 50% of Pennsylvanians don’t pay the Personal Income Tax,…
Media
Read More: Do Rendell’s Budget Numbers Add Up?Taxes & Economy
What Obama’s Critics Really Say
I like this post by Scott Ott, in which he challenges Obama’s comments that critics “say we are trying to do too much, that we are moving too quickly”. …
Media
Read More: What Obama’s Critics Really SayGovernment Accountability
10 Ways to Balance the Budget Without Tax Hikes
Contrary to the Governor’s rhetoric, there are a plethora of reforms and spending cuts that can balance the budget without firing our police, evicting our elderly, or dumbing down our…
Media
Read More: 10 Ways to Balance the Budget Without Tax HikesState Budget
Pennsylvania Budget Proposals – Revised Spreadsheet Now Online
The Rendell administration has released a new version of his Pennsylvania state budget proposal, unfortunately this is only available in a PDF document, and does not include the allocation…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania Budget Proposals – Revised Spreadsheet Now OnlineRegulation
Budget Facts 2009: Cigarette Taxes
Pennsylvania faces a $3 billion tax revenue shortfall in the state’s General Fund Budget. Competing proposals from Gov. Ed Rendell and the Republican-led Senate differ on raising taxes and reducing/reprioritizing…
Fact Sheet
Read More: Budget Facts 2009: Cigarette TaxesState Budget
Budget Facts 2009: Natural Gas Severance Tax
Pennsylvania faces a $3 billion tax revenue shortfall in the state’s General Fund Budget. Competing proposals from Gov. Ed Rendell and the Republican-led Senate differ on raising taxes and reducing/reprioritizing…
Fact Sheet
Read More: Budget Facts 2009: Natural Gas Severance TaxState Budget
Budget Facts 2009: Personal Income Tax and Job Losses
Pennsylvania faces a $3 billion tax revenue shortfall in the state's General Fund Budget. Competing proposals from Gov. Ed Rendell and the Republican-led Senate differ on raising taxes and reducing/reprioritizing…
Fact Sheet
Read More: Budget Facts 2009: Personal Income Tax and Job Losses
Pennsylvania House Passes Silly Bills
We are now three days in to the fiscal year without a state budget, yet the Pennsylvania House Democrats still refuse to bring any spending or revenue legislation up for…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania House Passes Silly BillsState Budget
Why Are State Budget Negotiations Secret Meetings?
With all the debate surrounding the Budget this summer, a concerned taxpayer has the right to see exactly what his representatives and legislature are doing on the people’s time,…
Media
Read More: Why Are State Budget Negotiations Secret Meetings?
Where Does YOUR Legislator Stand? | “Yes, We Can!”
Gov. Rendell is saying, “No, You Can’t!” balance the budget without raising taxes on working Pennsylvanians and job creators. But many members of the House and Senate are saying,…
Press Release
Read More: Where Does YOUR Legislator Stand? | “Yes, We Can!”
Who is Blogging about the Commonwealth Foundation
A new, hopefully regular, feature on Policy Blog will be a roundup of Commonwealth Foundation citations in the Pennsylvania blogosphere. Here are some blog posts from the past week:…
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Read More: Who is Blogging about the Commonwealth FoundationGovernment Accountability
PA General Assembly Costs $50,000 Per Day for One Hour Sessions
ABC 27 News has a story on the high cost of the General Assembly – $50,000 per day – to have sessions during the budget impasse. This is very…
Media
Read More: PA General Assembly Costs $50,000 Per Day for One Hour SessionsTaxes & Economy
Upcoming Pennsylvania Tea Parties
The are a number of upcoming “Tea Parties” in Pennsylvania coming up in the near future, many on or around July 4. Here are some listings to find the event…
Media
Read More: Upcoming Pennsylvania Tea PartiesState Budget
Pennsylvania Lawmakers Against Tax Hikes
The Commonwealth Foundation today launched a new effort to collect names of Pennsylvania lawmakers who agree with President Obama when he said “In an economy like this, the…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania Lawmakers Against Tax HikesTaxes & Economy
EPA Internal Report Skeptical of “Global Warming”
The Competitive Enterprise Institute has revealed private emails they had obtained from the EPA skeptical of the science behind the global warming phenomena. In the emails, Alan Carlin and…
Media
Read More: EPA Internal Report Skeptical of “Global Warming”