Regulation

Fishing in Barrel Lands Union Support

  • December 4, 2012

Unnecessary, unfair and un-American? Welcome to the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, the government liquor monopoly that union boss Wendell Young has made a lucrative career defending. As papers across the commonwealth continue…

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Education

More Strikes, More Staff, No Solution

  • Priya Brannick
  • November 19, 2012

If you thought the Chicago teacher strike was bad—spawning strikes elsewhere in Illinois—you should take a look at Pennsylvania. Mother Jones has compiled a fascinating map of teacher strikes…

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Regulation

Pennsylvania’s Tax Burden Ranks 10th (Again), but Pension Bomb Ticking

  • Priya Brannick
  • November 16, 2012

Last week, America kept its president and Congress, and Pennsylvania’s legislature stayed largely the same too. There’s another thing that Pennsylvanians can count on—ranking 10th in the United States for…

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State Budget

Debt or Prosperity? It’s Our Choice

  • November 2, 2012

Can Americans afford slower economic growth and a lower standard of living in the future? That will be the impact of growing government debt on the economy, according to a…

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Regulation

How Big is the Pension Bomb?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • November 1, 2012

Taxpayers will have to pay $1,385 more each year for 30 years to fully pay off pension liabilities, according to a new study on the cost of pension plans…

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Education

Pa. Teachers Unions Among America’s Most Powerful

  • Priya Brannick
  • October 31, 2012

Pennsylvania’s teachers unions rank fourth among all U.S. states in their strength and influence, according to a report released this week from the Fordham Institute. We trail only Hawaii,…

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Taxes & Economy

Pa. Job Growth Triples National Rate

  • Nathan Benefield
  • October 22, 2012

Last week saw the release of September state jobs data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Media coverage of this jobs report focused on the unemployment rate only, which…

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Education

“Won’t Back Down” Captures Heart of Education

  • Priya Brannick
  • October 2, 2012

“Won’t Back Down” is a movie about education that fittingly begins and ends with a close-up of a child reading aloud. Education debates in America frequently whirl…

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Education

Parental Choice + Competition = Better Schools

  • Nathan Benefield
  • October 1, 2012

A new study of academic performance in Ohio finds that traditional public schools facing competition from charter schools experience greater gains in student learning.  In summarizing the findings, the…

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