Government Accountability

Big Government Leads to Big Lobbying

  • Nathan Benefield
  • November 8, 2009

The Philadelphia Inquirer has a story today that Pennsylvania business groups – especially in natural gas, tobacco, and gambling industries – spent a lot of money lobbying during the…

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Taxes & Economy

Pennsylvania Voters Reject Property Tax Hikes

  • November 6, 2009

With an already-weakened economy that has put Pennsylvania families on a tight budget, Monroe County taxpayers finally said “enough is enough!” when confronted with two referendums on Tuesday’s ballot calling…

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Regulation

Newspapers Endorse Pennsylvania Liquor Store Privatization

  • Nathan Benefield
  • November 6, 2009

Following our report showing that moving from state-run liquor stores to licensure has little impact on alcohol consumption, underage drinking, and DUI rates, Pennsylvania papers are again joining the…

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Taxes & Economy

Lies, More Lies, and Statistics

  • November 4, 2009

On Oct 10, Pennsylvania released a preliminary report on received ARRA (i.e. “simulus”) funds.  The study concluded that “$262,592,907.68 has been spent to date and 1,408 direct full-time equivalent…

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Regulation

PA Homeowners Come Second To Horse Racing Industry

  • November 3, 2009

The Pennsylvania Legislature’s willingness to succumb to special interests has been well documented by the Commonwealth Foundation, but the amount of attention given to the horse racing industry is…

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State Budget

Pennsylvania’s October Revenues Fall Short

  • Nathan Benefield
  • November 3, 2009

The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue released October revenue collections.  Once again, the numbers fell short of projections – the state is now $160 short of estimate for the fiscal…

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Regulation

Rendell Teaches Obama How to Create Phony Jobs

  • November 2, 2009

A report released on Friday by the Pennsylvania Department of General Services shows 7,400 jobs have been either created or retained(Capitolwire Subscription) in Pennsylvania using federal stimulus dollars. Jim…

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Government Accountability

Size Isn’t Everything

  • November 1, 2009

Sen. Dave Argall has introduced another attempt to reduce the size of Pennsylvania’s General Assembly. Pennsylvania is ranked 2nd in the nation for largest state legislator size (totaling…

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