Nathan Benefield
Senior Vice President
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.”
Bush: Time for a New Course
With Democrats in control in Congress, President Bush has decided to practice fiscal conservatism. In a letter to the Wall Street Journal, he promises to keep spending in check…
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Minimum Wage Impact
Coverage of the new Pennsylvania minimum wage and its impact on local businesses in the Carlisle Sentinel and the News Item. While local businesses feel the pinch and…
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Legislative Reform on Tap?
Regardless of who is elected Speaker of the House (see here), both the Pennsylvania House and Senate have promised to take up reforms to make the legislative process more…
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Pension gap fix may not be easy
Part 4 of Mark Scolforo’s series.
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Federal income tax data
In response to the commenter on my last post here are some numbers on federal income tax receipts: for 2000 and 2004 from the Tax Foundation and 2006…
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The Top 1% Pay 35%
Wall Street Journal article on how much “the rich” pay in taxes.
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Health tab for public Pa. retirees nears $34 billion
AP Story on the liability for health coverage for retired state workers. Preliminary estimates are that state taxpayers will have to contribute $1.125 billion annually to pay off the…
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To lease or not to lease
From Capitolwire.com (subscription): While Gov. Ed Rendell waits for a Dec. 22 deadline for private firms to submit “expressions of interest” to lease the Pennsylvania Turnpike, public policy…
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Leasing of turnpike worth consideration
Reading Eagle Editorial ponders a turnpike lease.
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Unless spending can be curbed, real tax relief will remain elusive
Patriot News Editorial notes that addressing the spending side of the equation is the key to property tax relief. They also note that the looming crisis in school…
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Read More: Unless spending can be curbed, real tax relief will remain elusive
Gambling board perks add up to $25M
No wonder the Gaming Control Board is asking for a bigger budget: Brad Bumsted and Andrew Conte expose the waste on perks, in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
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Pension crisis on the horizon
The Scranton Times-Tribune looks at the looming crisis in our state pension systems, and how lawmakers bolstering pension benefits exacerbated this crisis. Also, Mark Scolforo of the AP with…
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Leasing the Turnpike
Sunday’s Patriot News looks at the potential terms of a turnpike lease, and the affect potential limits and mandates would have on the price of a lease. Also, check…
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Ending high school at 10th grade?
A new report calls for ending high school after 10th grade (students could then enter community college or have two years of college prep work, paying teachers a higher starting…
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Dubai firm to sell U.S. ports
Dubai Ports World is selling their US Ports operations to AIG. Here are all the changes planned after a year of the Dubai firm and several years of a…
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The Price is Wrong: Most Americans Significantly Underestimate Health Care Costs
A survey by HealthMarkets shows that prices doctors charge for the same procedure vary dramatically, an dmost consumer have little idea what the service costs.
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The Top 1% . . . of What?
Wall Street Journal article looks at the PR campaign against the “top 1%”. Two points to note: 1) Using tax return as a measure of income misses a lot…
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How to Help the Poor
John Stossel on how rich business leaders can help the poor… Great business creators like Duncan and Turner waste their skills if they just give money away.
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The Education Market Index
The Cato Institute release a report, The Education Market Index, which ranks states on the freedom and choice in their K-12 education markets. Pennsylvania ranks 9th, but only with…
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Turnpike Lease is Win-Win for Taxpayers, Lawmakers
Governor Rendell’s recent announcement that the state would seek “expressions of interest” on a lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike is a recognition of the potential benefits of public-private partnerships (P3s)…
Commentary
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How do state taxes effect entrepreneurship?
A report by the SBA Office of Advocacy looks at state taxes and the effect on entrepreneurship (measure as the number of sole proprietors). While much of their analysis…
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