Taxes & Economy

The Key to Property Tax Relief

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • May 1, 2006

The failure to pass a property tax “relief” plan in Harrisburg has everything to do with politics—politicians can’t agree on whose ox to gore. Current proposals require some taxpayers to…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Tax Freedom Day in Pennsylvania

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 24, 2006

Happy Tax Freedom Day, Pennsylvania! If you are looking for a reason to celebrate, you need look no further than Tax Freedom Day.

Commentary

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Regulation

Corporate Welfare No Boon for Philadelphia Job Market

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 19, 2006

Despite receiving large corporate "welfare checks" to spur job growth in manufacturing and technology, the Philadelphia region still lags behind other areas of the Commonwealth in employment. The region has…

Commentary

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State Budget

Breaking Pennsylvania’s Budget Tradition

  • April 17, 2006

Traditionally in Pennsylvania’s “budget season,” the governor has submitted his spending plan for the coming fiscal year, and the General Assembly has accepted it as the starting point for the…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Renouce the “Faith”

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • April 10, 2006

NOTE: This commentary was originally published on June 15, 2004. Politicians are fond of saying, "Government doesn't create jobs, the private sector does." Yet the machinations of state and federal…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

China’s Economic Development Lessons for Pennsylvania

  • April 8, 2006

NOTE: This commentary was originally published on April 19, 2004. Tax Day 2004 has come and gone, and as Pennsylvanians wrote their annual big checks to big government, they should…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Gov. Rendell and PA’s Business Climate: Rhetoric Doesnt Match Reality

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • March 20, 2006

As election time draws nearer, Gov. Ed Rendell is issuing a flurry of press releases to convince voters that his administration has improved Pennsylvania’s competitiveness and economic growth. To that…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Close the Loopholes

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • March 15, 2006

Few issues get politicians more exercised than the issue of tax “loopholes” – provisions in the tax code that allow affected taxpayers to reduce the amount of money they must…

Commentary

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Education

Let Common Sense Prevail on School Construction Projects

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • March 14, 2006

In the current debate over school property tax reform in Pennsylvania, all of the plans under consideration in Harrisburg focus solely on the revenue side of the school finance equation…

Commentary

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Regulation

The Laws of Economics are Sovereign, Even in Pennsylvania

  • March 13, 2006

It’s a shame that King Canute never ran for office in Pennsylvania. King Canute was the mighty English ruler who, tired of the ceaseless flattery of his advisors, had them…

Commentary

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Regulation

Pennsylvania Pensions: Man-Made Financial Disasters

  • Richard Dreyfuss
  • March 7, 2006

The “Process Improvement Theory” relates to the timing in a process when errors are diagnosed and fixed. As the theory goes, at each ensuing interval in which a problem is…

Commentary

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State Budget

State Spending Limits: The Real “Road Less Traveled”

  • March 6, 2006

In his 2006-07 budget address, Gov. Ed Rendell claimed to be taking the “road less traveled.” But in unveiling his new spending plan, the governor revealed that he is speeding…

Commentary

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State Budget

The Rendell Budget: Would Your Family Spend Money Like This?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • March 1, 2006

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania had a good tax year – that is, in government collection terms. General Fund revenues will exceed expectations this year by a projected $353 million. But…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Letter to Gov. Rendell on the Minimum Wage

  • January 23, 2006

January 23, 2006 Governor Edward G. Rendell225 Main Capitol BuildingHarrisburg, Pennsylvania 17120 Dear Governor Rendell, I understand that politicians sometimes change their policy positions. And I probably don’t…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

From Hopeless to Hopeful

  • November 30, 2005

On November 16, the legislators handed Gov. Rendell a bill to repeal the General Assembly’s July 7 pay and pension grab. The Governor promptly signed the measure without fanfare. Only…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Private Property & Liberty

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • November 22, 2005

Good afternoon. My name is Matt Brouillette, and I am president & CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation, a public policy research and educational institute based in Harrisburg. We develop and…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

President’s Address: Advancing Ideas Whose Time Have Come

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • November 16, 2005

"As we celebrate these first recipients of our Speaker Franklin Awards, I’m reminded of the great British Statesman Edmund Burke who once said: “All that is necessary for the triumph…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Protect Private Property from Eminent Domain Abuse

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • October 26, 2005

Thank you for the opportunity to address the issue of Eminent Domain. My name is Matt Brouillette, and I am president & CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation, a research and…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Minimum Wage Politics, Bad Economic Policy

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • October 3, 2005

It wasn’t a corporate executive who said, “Right now Pennsylvania businesses carry a very high tax burden compared to states we compete with. We’re [a] very heavily taxed business state….

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Reform Government’s Claim on Your Domain

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • September 19, 2005

Pennsylvanians never really own their homes—they only “rent” them from the government. Don’t believe me? Just stop paying your school and county property taxes and you’ll find out who actually…

Commentary

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