State Budget

2024–25 State Budget Analysis

  • July 12, 2024

Key Points Pennsylvania’s $47.6 billion 2024–25 budget creates a $3.6 billion structural deficit. This will exhaust General Fund reserves, which will require draining from the Rainy Day fund—illegally—or raising taxes…

Fact Sheet

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Energy

Pa. Travelers’ Guide: Summer Gasoline Prices

  • Hanna Bechtel
  • July 5, 2024

Pennsylvania’s June average gasoline price was higher than all its neighbor states except New York. While Pennsylvania’s gasoline price has decreased from its 2022 record high, the long-term picture shows…

Backgrounder

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Public Union Democracy

New Yorkers are Moving to Florida—and Government Unions are to Blame

  • Andrew Holman, David Osborne
  • May 22, 2024

Originally published at RealClearPolicy What do former President Donald Trump, Derek Jeter, Jennifer Lopez, and millions of New Yorkers have in common? They all packed their bags and moved…

Media Hit

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Public Union Democracy

State of the Unions: Examining Union Membership in State Government

  • Andrew Holman, David Osborne
  • March 11, 2024

Key Findings Public sector labor unions in 33 states represent state government employees, a segment of overall public sector employment, for purposes of collective bargaining. For this research, 27 of…

Executive Summary

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Government Accountability

Stefano: Tired of politics? Stand by these values.

  • February 21, 2024

Philadelphia Inquirer columnist and Commonwealth Foundation Executive Vice President Jennifer Stefano, in her column this week, called on readers to resist politicians who “subvert democratic norms” for political purposes. Stefano writes:…

Media Hit

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State Budget

Key Takeaways from Governor’s 2024 Budget Proposal

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 7, 2024

Key Points Gov. Josh Shapiro’s startling spending increases and myriad of new initiatives would explode the budget deficit and invite massive tax hikes on working families in the coming years.

Backgrounder

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Energy

Gov. Shapiro wants unilateral power to commit the state to climate agreements

  • Nathan Benefield
  • December 13, 2023

Originally published at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette During a recent black-tie affair in a Manhattan ballroom, Gov. Josh Shapiro encouraged Pennsylvania lawmakers to embrace bipartisanship. “It doesn’t just last a weekend,…

Media Hit

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Energy

Assessing Gov. Tom Wolf’s Tenure

  • Nathan Benefield
  • January 12, 2023

Key Points During Gov. Tom Wolf’s eight years in office, Pennsylvania ranked below the national average in income growth, job growth, and population growth.State government spending increased significantly under Wolf,…

Backgrounder

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