Nathan Benefield
Chief Policy Officer
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 Chief Policy Officer , 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.”
Rendell awarded $516M in grants during campaign
Debra Erdley of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports on the handing out of grants from the Capital Budget Redevelopment Assistance Fund. Defenders of this spending say it will revitalize our…
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PHEAA releases details on board retreats
Patriot News with more analysis of PHEAA records, as they are being released.
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The Market for Medical Care
Check out this new NCPA Report: The Market for Medical Care: Why You Don’t Know the Price; Why You Don’t Know about Quality; And What Can Be Done about…
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Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying
John Fund in the Wall Street Journal writes about taxpayer-financed lobbying, which was exempted from the “ethics bill”. Also check out this site from Americans For Prosperity on…
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Walter Reed and Universal Health Care
Greg Mankiw blogs on a satire piece in which Hillary Clinton calls for Universal Healthcare based on the Walter Reed scandal: “Just think how bad it would be if…
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Turnpike Lease Information
Rep. Joe Markosek (House Transportation Committee Chair) has put up a website with Turnpike Lease info. It has a pretty good collection of info, including a letter listing…
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Road leasing backed
State Sen. Don White talks about potential road leases in the Leader Times.
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Local Pensions in Trouble Too
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review article on the trouble with Pittsburgh’s municipal pension plan, and other local plans. Many municipalities are looking for state aid, even while the state pension plans are…
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End PSAs
John Baer on taxpayer spending on lawmakers “Public Service Announcements” in the Philadelphia Daily News.
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More PHEAA Coverage
More media coverage of the outrageous expenses of PHEAA, the Governor’s call to “clean house,” and the suggestion (raised by the Commonwealth Foundation) that PHEAA be privatized: – Mario…
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Is Rendell Cutting Taxes?
Brett Lieberman of the Patriot News has an intriguing back and forth between myself and Governor Rendell and Budget Secretary Michael Masch on their tax plan. Despite a massive…
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Yes, Profits Matter
Investor’s Business Daily editorial on oil profits: Profits drive discovery and productivity in every industry, but particularly in the capital-intensive energy sector. The seismic and satellite technologies now…
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Swearing-in Parties
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review articles reviews legislator expenses for their swearing-in day parties, including who charged the meals to taxpayers, and who didn’t: “Rep. Jim Marshall, R-Beaver County, said he bought…
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PHEAA ‘housecleaning’ urged
Governor Rendell is now agreeing that PHEAA needs to “clean house”, as the Patriot News Reports. It will be interesting to see what he proposes, and whether he thinks…
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Lawmakers doubt Rendellconomics
Apparently, neither state Senators (see coverage by KYW NewsRadio) nor state Representatives (story in the Post-Gazette) believe Gov. Rendell has found a magic tax which will only tax…
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Oil companies already provide ‘windfall’
Jonathan Williams of the Tax Foundation on Governor Rendell’s “Oil Profits Tax” in Sunday’s Patriot News.
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GOP Protectionists
Jack Kemp on free trade and the so-called “conservative protectionists” in today’s Wall Street Journal.
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PHEAA’s use of state plane saves money, CEO claims
Dick Willey argued to the Patriot News that using the state plane to fly PHEAA board members (almost all of whom are state legislators) to retreats across the US…
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Socialized pensions
Richard Rowland of the Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees illustrates just how wrong-headed Governor Rendell’s “Cover All Pennsylvanians” is, in a Patriot News Editorial. Rowland argues that not only…
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Mandating Health Care?
A debate on making health insurance mandatory, from the Des Moines Register. Jack Hatch, a state senator from Iowa, takes the “pro” position, Michael Tanner of Cato the “con”,…
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