State Budget

Deficit Watch: June 2025

  • June 3, 2025

Lawmakers must protect the Rainy Day Fund. Background Pennsylvania faces serious fiscal challenges. The enacted 2024–25 General Fund budget created a $3.6 billion structural deficit. Gov. Josh Shapiro’s 2025–26…

Deficit Watch

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The Race to Rebuild: How Pennsylvania Can Bounce Back After COVID-19

  • Jessica Barnett
  • January 19, 2021

Pennsylvanians continue to struggle amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and government restrictions. Small business owners face permanent closure, children’s schooling is in disarray, and job seekers have few prospects. Families need…

Report

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State Budget

Balancing the State Budget Didn’t Have to Be This Hard

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • November 12, 2020

If lawmakers had enacted the Taxpayer Protection Act in 2018, they would face a $770 million gap between revenues and spending. Going one step further, if lawmakers had enacted the…

Commentary

Read More: Balancing the State Budget Didn’t Have to Be This Hard

Energy

Op-Ed: Pennsylvania should keep fracking and oil as pro-energy policies

  • Kevin Mooney
  • October 28, 2020

The Keystone State is also the nation’s second-largest producer of natural gas, third-largest producer of coal, 16th-largest producer of crude oil, and third-largest producer of electricity in general, according to…

Commentary

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Education

Pa. has $1 billion in CARES aid left. Where should it go?

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • August 14, 2020

As the pandemic slows, it’s time to step back and reevaluate Pennsylvania’s remaining needs for coronavirus relief. How can our state government ensure that the citizens and businesses who most…

Fact Sheet

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Government Accountability

Pa?s unemployment rate down in May, but still at near-record levels

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 22, 2020

More than 13% of Pennsylvania workers were officially unemployed in May, according to U.S. Department of Labor data released Friday. That’s an improvement from April’s record-setting 15.1% unemployment rate, but still the second highest rate…

Media

Read More: Pa?s unemployment rate down in May, but still at near-record levels

Taxes & Economy

New Evidence Shows Work is the Path to Prosperity

  • Jessica Barnett
  • March 29, 2019

Poverty and unemployment are vicious cycles. The longer you remain unemployed, the harder it is to find work—and poverty becomes more entrenched. As the Urban Institute puts it, “long-term…

Media

Read More: New Evidence Shows Work is the Path to Prosperity

Taxes & Economy

Bureaucrats are Keeping Pennsylvanians Dependent on Food Stamps

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • December 13, 2018

Great things are happening in our economy, including more job opportunities and rising incomes. Yet, Pennsylvania is continuing to see near-record food stamp enrollment. The Census Bureau's newly-released American…

Media

Read More: Bureaucrats are Keeping Pennsylvanians Dependent on Food Stamps

welfare infographic

  • April 9, 2018

Bipartisan federal welfare reform in 1996 promoted independence by keeping people engaged in the workforce. Healthy adults were limited to 3 months of cash assistance benefits unless they worked 20…

Media

Read More: welfare infographic