Nathan Benefield

Nathan Benefield

Senior Vice President

Nathan (Nate) Benefield is the Senior Vice President at the Commonwealth Foundation.

An Ohio native, Nate holds an undergraduate degree in political science and economics and a master’s degree in public service management from DePaul University in Chicago. He also completed his doctoral studies (ABD) in political science at Loyola University, also in Chicago.

Nate joined the Commonwealth Foundation in 2005. Now as senior vice president, he provides strategic leadership as well as operational oversight spanning policy analysis, government relations, marketing, and communications.

Nate has researched and written extensively on public policy issues including the state budget, public sector labor reform, government spending and taxes, liquor privatization, education, and economic development. Under Nate’s policy leadership, the Commonwealth Foundation’s work on public sector pension law helped drive the bipartisan pension reform of 2017, heralded by the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post as an example for other states to follow.

Nate has testified numerous times before state legislative committees and is often called upon by legislators and members of the media to provide expertise. He is a frequent commentator on both television and radio, and his writings have appeared across the state and nationally in outlets including the Philadelphia Inquirer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Patriot-News, and Weekly Standard.

Nate’s favorite rock song and personal motto are both “Don’t Stop Believin.”

Of Calendars and Porn Taxes

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 7, 2008

Policy Blog may only be #6 in this weeks PA Blog Influence Ranking, but we made some noise over the weekend. The Pittsburgh Tribune Review featured a story…

Media

Read More: Of Calendars and Porn Taxes

Hold the Pork

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 7, 2008

John Fund in the Wall Street Journal on the 9,000 earmarks, and the possibility Bush will refuse to acknowledge them. Since the earmarks were dropped into a conference report,…

Media

Read More: Hold the Pork

How states encourge higher uninsurance rates

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 5, 2008

Wall Street Journal article by Tarren Bragdon questions Why does New York spend more on Medicaid — a health-care program for the poor — than every other state…

Media

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Proposed PA tax on adult businesses

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 5, 2008

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review story on the latest new tax proposal, this one on “adult businesses” from Senator Jane Orie (so much for Senate Republicans opposing any new taxes). I was…

Media

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Leading Bioenergy Crops Bad for the Environment

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 4, 2008

An analysis in Science Magazine of a finds that the environmental impact of biofuels from corn, soy and other crops may be worse than fossil fuels. More from…

Media

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Cost of Calendars

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 4, 2008

The Chief Clerks offices for both the PA House and Senate have graciously provided the cost of printing those lovely Capitol Calendars. Here is the breakdown: House:Calendars Printed:…

Media

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I Am Lawsuit Abuse

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 2, 2008

New website highlights of the worst cases of lawsuit abuse, including the infamous case of a judge suing a dry cleaner for losing his pants – for $67 million.

Media

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Taxpayer Protection Limit equal to 3.29%

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 2, 2008

With the latest population estimate from the Census Bureau (which shows continued anemic growth in PA), we can now estimate what the spending limit under the proposed…

Media

Read More: Taxpayer Protection Limit equal to 3.29%

Politics and ideology stall health-care initiatives

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 2, 2008

I thought I’d comment on this Beaver County Times Editorial that decries “politics and ideology” for stopping health care initiatives like RendellCare. They are right, you know, ideology –…

Media

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Why the “Year of Reform” Wasn’t

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 31, 2007

Russ Diamond on “Why the “Year of Reform” Wasn’t”: Nothing else has been accomplished on the reform front, though. Newspaper editors, pundits, journalists and citizens are asking: Why?…

Media

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The New Deal Jobs Myth

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 31, 2007

Amity Shlaes in the Wall Street Journal looks at how the New Deal era programs didn’t “create jobs”, but rather stifled growth. This is an important lesson for those…

Media

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Schools get no relief on pension contributions

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 26, 2007

That’s a horrible headline for the AP story in the Morning Call. Who are the “schools” anyway? It’s the taxpayers who get no relief. While the pension contribution…

Media

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Where will projected I-80 revenue go?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 21, 2007

In light of the FHWA questions to the Turnpike Commission – specifically about whether I-80 revenue will be used for debt services for non-I-80 expenses, and how payments to…

Media

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Creating a Free, Searchable Website of State Spending

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 21, 2007

Policy Note by our colleagues at theWashington Policy Center on creating a state-level, searchable online database of spending. Examples of online budget databases include Georgia, Texas, and…

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A Brief History of Christmas

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 21, 2007

This Wall Street Journal article on the History of Christmas has little to do with policy (unless there is some debate over ending Christmas as a federal holiday), but…

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‘It’s been a very difficult lesson’

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 20, 2007

Interview with Bill DeWeese in the Patriot News on his role in Bonusgate. His answers: 1) Didn’t know about bonuses ($1.9 million), 2) Will consider reforming legislative spending, 3)…

Media

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Pew Trusts on State Pension Crunch

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 19, 2007

Pew Trusts analsysis of the looming state pension and retiree health care crisis in Pennsylvania. Index to 50-state analysis here.

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Another Poor State Economy Ranking for PA

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 19, 2007

The Beacon Hill Institute has released their State Competitiveness Report 2007. Pennsylvania ranks 34th out of 50, based on Government and Fiscal Policy, Security, Infrastructure, Human Resources, Technology,…

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