Headshot

Robert O’Donnell

Education Senior Fellow

The Honorable Robert W. O’Donnell is an Education Senior Fellow with the Commonwealth Foundation.

Bob is a Philadelphia-based attorney and a former Democratic Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. As a member of the House for 19 years, Bob rose through the ranks of leadership, serving as caucus chairman, majority whip, majority leader, and Speaker of the House. While in public service, he developed a reputation as a thoughtful, dynamic, and intellectually honest member of the House. He has been a consistent advocate for equality of opportunity including supporting school choice throughout his tenure in the legislature.

Bob has served as a member of Public Employees Retirement Study Commission, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh, the Board of Trustees of the University of Pittsburgh, the Mayor’s Tax Budget and Advisory Committee (Philadelphia), the Chesapeake Bay Commission, the General State Authority, the Mayor’s Economic Recovery Task Force (Philadelphia), the Millrite Council, and the Philadelphia Port Corporation Board of Directors.

He is a graduate of Temple University and its law school and attended The Hague Academy of International Law. Arcadia College and Philadelphia University awarded Bod honorary degrees, and he has received several public awards including citations from the Pennsylvania League of Cities Service and Common Cause.

Bob resides in Chestnut Hill with his wife, Dr. Donna Gentile O’Donnell.

Taxes & Economy

Severance Tax Benefits the Powerful at Citizens’ Expense

  • Gordon Tomb
  • May 6, 2014

Washington County farmer Shawn Georgetti was living paycheck to paycheck before the Marcellus Shale boom. Thanks to a natural gas lease, he’s finally been able to upgrade his 30-year-old equipment.

Commentary

Read More: Severance Tax Benefits the Powerful at Citizens’ Expense

Public Union Democracy

Paycheck Protection Debate Heats Up

  • May 2, 2014

In the statewide debate over paycheck protection, a pair of dueling letters to the editor in Lancaster County cut to the chase. First, a Mount Joy resident who received a…

Media

Read More: Paycheck Protection Debate Heats Up

Health Care

Five Reasons the Exchanges are Failing

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • May 2, 2014

Over 8 million Americans and 300,000 Pennsylvanians signed up for health insurance on the Obamacare exchanges according to data released by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)…

Media

Read More: Five Reasons the Exchanges are Failing

Public Union Democracy

CBS Investigates: Government Unions & Politics

  • April 30, 2014

Last night, CBS 21’s Waste Watch program investigated how government unions use public resources to collect their members’ dues and spend that money on politics. Chris Papst reports: “Government…

Media

Read More: CBS Investigates: Government Unions & Politics

Regulation

Will More Choice and Convenience Really Kill Your Kids?

  • April 30, 2014

In a move that reeks of desperation, the United Food and Commerical Workers Union (UFCW) released a new ad with a ridiculous message: liquor liberalization will kill your kids.  …

Media

Read More: Will More Choice and Convenience Really Kill Your Kids?

State Budget

Tax Cuts To Blame for Pennsylvania’s Budget Deficit?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 30, 2014

As we have pointed out in the past, Pennsylvania’s legacy of overspending has created a looming deficit, threatening to destroy our fiscal house. Yet, some lawmakers and public officials…

Media

Read More: Tax Cuts To Blame for Pennsylvania’s Budget Deficit?

Health Care

Poverty Isn’t a Partisan Problem

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • April 29, 2014

Here’s a sobering fact: 13.1 percent of Pennsylvanians live in poverty despite billions spent every year on the social safety net. Simply throwing more money at the problem won’t make…

Media

Read More: Poverty Isn’t a Partisan Problem

Share Your Obamacare Story

  • April 28, 2014

Hi, my name is Priya. I battle fibromyalgia, a chronic pain condition. Only one drug dulls my pain, but without insurance, it costs $400 every month. I thought Obamacare…

Media

Read More: Share Your Obamacare Story

Public Union Democracy

What’s Paycheck Protection Really All About?

  • April 28, 2014

A lot of ink has been spilled on paycheck protection already, but few people have summarized its essence as well as my colleague Katrina Anderson, CF’s Director of Government Affairs,…

Media

Read More: What’s Paycheck Protection Really All About?

State Budget

S&P Worried About Pennsylvania’s Overspending

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 25, 2014

Standard & Poor’s is sounding the alarm, once again, on Pennsylvania’s record of overspending. A new S&P report singles out the commonwealth for not putting our fiscal house in order,…

Media

Read More: S&P Worried About Pennsylvania’s Overspending

Government Accountability

Happy Tax Freedom Day, Pennsylvania!

  • Bruce Cornibe
  • April 21, 2014

Happy Tax Freedom Day! It took from January 1 until today for Pennsylvanians to have earned enough income to pay off their federal, state, and local taxes for the year. …

Media

Read More: Happy Tax Freedom Day, Pennsylvania!