RSS FEEDSRecent Research
November 16, 2011 | Commentary by KATRINA CURRIE
Gas Drilling for Pennsylvania's Farms, Family and Future
Across Pennsylvania, natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale has benefited not just companies but also human beings -- by creating tens of thousands of jobs, rescuing families from foreclosure, and generating fortunes and sustainable prosperity for farmers, workers and small-business owners.
September 13, 2011 | Commentary by JAMES MILLER, KATRINA CURRIE
The State of Inconvenience
Walk into any supermarket in Ohio and you can see shoppers purchasing everything they need for dinner - including the wine to go with it. In West Virginia, residents can fill up their gas tank and replenish their wine selection in one stop. In fact, every state except Utah provides more freedom over wine and spirits sales than Pennsylvania. This lack of liquor liberty has turned average residents into bootleggers.
August 30, 2011 | Commentary by KATRINA CURRIE, LEONARD GILROY
Preserving Penn’s Woods Proven by Public-Private Partnerships
Earlier this month, Gov. Tom Corbett suggested the commonwealth consider leasing state park operations and services. Almost immediately and without thoughtful consideration, pundits launched political fire, claiming "privateers" would exploit or commercialize our natural resources beyond recognition.
Recent Blog Posts
FEBRUARY 2, 2012
Is State Corrections Spending Sustainable?
The chart below shows the unsustainable growth in Pennsylvania state corrections spending and inmate population.
The criminal justice system's goal shouldn't be to simply lock up as many people as possible, but also to ensure offenders are rehabilitated before reentering society. When the Pew Center on the States looked at prisoners released in Pennsylvania between 1999-2002 and 2004-2007, it found the rate of prisoners returning to prisons increased.
As we mentioned yesterday, we need to replace ineffective correction policies with those that lower crime rates, reduce re-offending, and control spending. To learn more about correction reforms, see our criminal justice recommendations.
posted by KATRINA CURRIE | 03:16 PM | 0 comment
FEBRUARY 1, 2012
Criminal Justice Reforms to Reduce Spending & Crime
Change is on the horizon for Pennsylvania's Department of Corrections - now the third-largest state agency in the General Fund budget - which along with state debt, pensions and welfare threatens to bankrupt the state if left unchecked.
Last week, Gov. Corbett launched Pennsylvania's Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI), a working group tasked with controlling correction costs while maximizing public safety and reducing recidivism. The new panel has support from the Council of State Governments Justice Center and the Pew Center on the States; both experienced at helping states develop meaningful criminal justice reforms.
The JRI is a step in the right direction for the commonwealth, which needs to replace ineffective policies with those that lower crime rates, reduce re-offending, and control spending. To learn more about correction reforms, see our see our criminal justice recommendations.
posted by KATRINA CURRIE | 08:00 AM | 2 comments
JANUARY 30, 2012
Debunking Severance Tax Rhetoric
Here's my letter to the editor in the Public Opinion responding to Matthew Major's fact-deficient editorial on drilling:
Matthew Major's editorial on corporate welfare and best drilling policies scrapes the bottom of the content barrel, failing to accurately explain either topic to readers.
"Corporate welfare" is taking tax dollars and giving them away to fund otherwise unprofitable businesses like Solyndra. Major is calling for singling out the drilling industry -- which is creating tens of thousands of jobs, rescuing families from foreclosure, and generating prosperity for small-business owners -- to impose yet another tax on it.
Pennsylvania already has the 10th highest tax burden in the nation, and the drilling industry pays the same taxes as every other business in the state. This amounts to more than $1.3 billion in state taxes since 2006. Other states that have natural gas taxes have friendlier business climates-for instance, Texas and Wyoming have neither income nor corporate taxes.
Major's line about legislators sacrificing the environment for drilling - straight from the anti-drilling, frackophobic handbook -- is based on emotion, not science or experience. The Department of Environmental Protection continually evaluates and improves regulations to ensure protection. Even a cursory review of the Governor's proposed drilling regulations shows the new rules are far from the industry handout Major claims. Most of the setback requirements and bonding requirements exceed those of neighboring states.
Gov. Tom Corbett is pushing for a principled natural gas impact fee where local governments can charge a fee if a driller is not paying for its impacts. Unfortunately, special interest groups, tax-and-spend politicians, and Major unwisely see the industry as a cash cow for unsustainable statewide projects. People should not lose out to bad policy and the politics of fear.
posted by KATRINA CURRIE | 05:00 PM | 0 comment
