Gordon Tomb
Energy Senior Fellow
Gordon Tomb is an Energy Senior Fellow with the Commonwealth Foundation.
Gordon is senior advisor for the CO2 Coalition in Arlington, Virginia, and the primary editor of the best-selling book Inconvenient Facts: The Science That Al Gore Doesn’t Want You to Know.
As an energy writer and consultant, his clients have included the natural gas and nuclear power industries and the operator of the nation’s largest high-voltage transmission system.
Gordon has spoken on behalf of the International Atomic Energy Agency on lessons of the Fukushima and Three Mile Island nuclear accidents and is a winner of the Cicero Speechwriting Awards.
As an executive in the electric utility and nuclear power industries, Gordon led communications teams in the recovery from the TMI accident, the development of an electric transmission project, and the reorganization of a FORTUNE 500 company. He has worked as a newspaper reporter and columnist and as a director with an international management consulting firm.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and attended Grove City College.
Taxes & Economy
Disco Governor Wants Money, Money, Money
Money, money, money/Always sunny/In a rich man’s world. Sung by ABBA in 1976. A governing mantra of Tom Wolf in 2018. More tax dollars seem to be Gov. Wolf's answer…
Media
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Coal and Nuclear Subsidies Rejected, Time to End All Energy Subsidies
Government subsidies for so-called green energy are contributing to the closings of coal and nuclear plants that keep Pennsylvania’s electricity system reliable. In response, the U.S. Department of Energy…
Media
Read More: Coal and Nuclear Subsidies Rejected, Time to End All Energy SubsidiesGovernment Accountability
Inconvenient Facts: Debunking Climate Alarmists
Governments should focus on supporting economic prosperity to enable better adaption to climate changes instead of controlling carbon footprints. Consider the contrast in hurricane recoveries between Florida, where an…
Media
Read More: Inconvenient Facts: Debunking Climate AlarmistsTaxes & Economy
Could Gas Go the Way of Foxconn?
One company’s decision not to locate in Pennsylvania foreshadows the migration in capital and jobs the commonwealth would suffer under a higher gas tax. Wisconsin Governor Scott…
Media
Read More: Could Gas Go the Way of Foxconn?Regulation
A Double Whammy for PA Job Creators
The governor continues to insist on hiking natural gas taxes to balance the budget, while bureaucrats are heaping regulatory burdens on Pennsylvania’s most dynamic industry of the past decade.
Media
Read More: A Double Whammy for PA Job CreatorsTaxes & Economy
Pennsylvania’s ‘Economic Iron Curtain’
Imagine discovering buried treasure on your property. Suddenly, you can provide for your family, send your kids to college debt-free, pay off your parent’s mortgage, or fund your retirement. It…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvania’s ‘Economic Iron Curtain’Regulation
Don’t Wait on Washington for Manufacturing Jobs
During his campaign stops in Pennsylvania, President-elect Donald Trump touted his intention to bring manufacturing jobs back to the state. That’s a worthy goal, but the truth…
Commentary
Read More: Don’t Wait on Washington for Manufacturing JobsTaxes & Economy
PA’s Conflicted Relationship with Natural Gas
The government giveth, and the government taketh away. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Pennsylvania’s relationship with the natural gas industry. On the one hand, Gov. Wolf offers a…
Media
Read More: PA’s Conflicted Relationship with Natural GasEnergy
Lessons from Fracking’s Borderlines
New Yorkers shouldn’t have to eye secession to tap the riches beneath their feet. Pennsylvanians shouldn’t have to worry that taxes and regulations will drive away opportunity and raise energy…
Commentary
Read More: Lessons from Fracking’s BorderlinesTaxes & Economy
PA Manufacturing Withers Under High Tax Load
As Harrisburg searches for politically acceptable tax hikes to fund a record-breaking budget, Pennsylvania’s attractiveness to manufacturers continues to decline. According to a study reported by the Central…
Media
Read More: PA Manufacturing Withers Under High Tax LoadTaxes & Economy
PA Business Climate isn’t Winning any “Miss Congeniality” Contests
Why would one of Pennsylvania’s largest natural gas producers suddenly switch from selling all non-Pennsylvania assets to purchasing a $3.3 billion Houston company that operates exclusively in…
Media
Read More: PA Business Climate isn’t Winning any “Miss Congeniality” ContestsTaxes & Economy
Press Pause on Clean Power Plan
In a historic move, the US Supreme Court stayed the EPA's Clean Power Plan, otherwise known as Obama's energy tax or stealth cap and trade. The court’s actions halt implementation…
Media
Read More: Press Pause on Clean Power PlanTaxes & Economy
Pennsylvanians Prosper as New Yorkers Pine
They are similar in size, resources and population, but the past few years have brought prosperity to Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania and stagnation to Delaware County, New York. The big difference?…
Media
Read More: Pennsylvanians Prosper as New Yorkers PineRegulation
The EPA’s Plan Will Hike Your Electricity Bill
A new analysis from NERA Economic Consulting projects Pennsylvania electricity bills will increase between 10 and 19 percent from 2022 to 2033…
Media
Read More: The EPA’s Plan Will Hike Your Electricity BillRegulation
The Mirage of Green Jobs
Promoters of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s carbon-emission regulation attempt to playdown the jobs it would kill with promises of “green jobs”. Yet these positions pay less and are largely…
Media
Read More: The Mirage of Green JobsRegulation
Could Coal’s Savior be PA’s Legislature?
180 workers in CONSOL Energy’s coal division recently lost their jobs. Now, Pennsylvania’s legislature may be the only thing standing between the Obama administration and complete destruction of the…
Media
Read More: Could Coal’s Savior be PA’s Legislature?Taxes & Economy
A Cooked Goose Lays No Golden Eggs
Gov. Wolf continues to promote a severance tax on natural gas, even as Pennsylvania energy companies report financial losses and job reductions. This week, Consol Energy projected…
Media
Read More: A Cooked Goose Lays No Golden EggsEnergy
Gas Tax Critics Champion, not Oppose, Progress
Recently, Gov. Tom Wolf sent a letter to 17 business advocacy groups opposing his proposed severance tax on natural gas, accusing them of siding “with corporate special interests who simply…
Commentary
Read More: Gas Tax Critics Champion, not Oppose, ProgressState Budget
Natural Gas Severance Tax: An Economy Killer
From labor unions to local chambers of commerce, community leaders are expressing a lot of anxiety over Governor Wolf’s natural gas severance tax proposal. The proposed tax “is a Wyoming…
Media
Read More: Natural Gas Severance Tax: An Economy KillerEducation
Could Schools Be Harmed by a Severance Tax?
As odd as it might sound, some rural schools could actually be harmed by Gov. Wolf’s efforts to increase education funding by imposing a severance tax on natural gas.
Media
Read More: Could Schools Be Harmed by a Severance Tax?Taxes & Economy
Families Benefit from Natural Gas Without Tax
Of the many tax hikes in Gov. Wolf’s budget proposal, the natural gas severance tax on the surface seems less damaging to Pennsylvania families. But a severance tax could hit…
Media
Read More: Families Benefit from Natural Gas Without Tax