Government Accountability

Union Advantages Yield Undue Influence

October 11, 2017

In today’s political landscape big money is usually associated with corporations and industries like oil or gas, however, government unions are the most advantaged special interest in Pennsylvania. CF’s Nathan…

Media

Education

Gov. Wolf Reverses Unlawful Moves

Jessica Barnett
October 11, 2017

Admist the budget stalemate, there is some welcome news out of Harrisburg. Within a single week, thousands of home care workers, educators, and taxpayers were relieved from the governor’s punitive…

Media

Health Care

Wolf’s Wrongheaded Veto Threat

Elizabeth Stelle
October 9, 2017

Governor Wolf intends to veto Pennsylvania’s welfare code (HB 59) due to a reform contained within the bill—even though the reform can reduce poverty and stimulate economic growth. The modest reform instructs the…

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Education

What to Make of the PSSA Results

Colleen Hroncich
October 6, 2017

Newly released Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) scores show little to no change in academic achievement across the commonwealth. What do these scores mean? The PSSAs posted on…

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Regulation

An Inhospitable Tax Increase

Elizabeth Stelle
October 4, 2017

Another day, another tax. The newest plan to fill a $2.2 billion budget hole includes a 5 percent increase to the hotel tax, along with a new tax on fireworks and third-party online…

Media

State Budget

Four Alternatives to the Warehouse Tax

Elizabeth Stelle, Nathan Benefield
October 3, 2017

The latest tax proposal to balance the $2.2 billion budget shortfall is receiving a cool reception. The tax hike under consideration would extend the sales tax to commercial warehouses. The…

Media

Public Union Democracy

Good News for Forced Union Fee Payers

Jessica Barnett
September 29, 2017

For public employees forced to subsidize union politics—or lose their jobs—a U.S. Supreme Court announcement yesterday signals a potential end to this workplace coercion. The Court indicated it will…

Media

State Budget

What’s Next for the 2017-18 Budget?

Nathan Benefield
September 28, 2017

What does the Senate's vote to non-concur mean? How does a conference committee work? How does the credit downgrade affect the budget? Negotiations over the 2017-18 budget have raised interesting…

Memo

Education

Gov. Wolf’s Indefensible Decisions Continue to Hurt Students

September 28, 2017

Pennsylvania’s successful scholarship programs—the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC)—are in danger once again. The Wolf Administration has delayed the programs’ approval letters, which…

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