Prosperity
Reforms would reduce poverty, increase prosperity
Originally published on LNP On Tuesday, Gov. Josh Shapiro will deliver his first annual state budget address to the Pennsylvania General Assembly. While he hasn’t unveiled the details of…
Read More: Reforms would reduce poverty, increase prosperityEvery family, business owner, and taxpayer in Pennsylvania should be able to increase their financial security without undue interference from our state government. Free-market policies that limit taxes, allow entrepreneurs to innovate and create jobs, and offer stability to families will put our state on track to become a national leader. Policies that enact spending limits, cut taxes, and reduce regulations will help Pennsylvania avoid debt and restore sound fiscal planning that will benefit citizens in the years to come.
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Taxes & Economy
Liberty: The Highest Political End
Mark Twain supposedly once quipped that "No man's life, liberty or property are safe while the Legislature is in session." He must have had the Pennsylvania General Assembly in mind.
Commentary
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Taxing the Internet
Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, for the invitation to testify today on legislation concerning the “Streamlined Sales Tax Project.”…
Commentary
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Renounce the “Faith”
Politicians are fond of saying, "Government doesn't create jobs, the private sector does." Yet the machinations of state and federal government--and the news releases that follow--reveal that most politicians truly…
Commentary
Read More: Renounce the “Faith”State Budget
The High Cost of Fiscally Responsible Compassion
For the naysayers of disciplined and effective government spending, the Pennsylvania House Appropriations Committee has published “Republican Stewardship of State Government: 1995-2003.” Complete with a tagline, “Meeting the Challenge with…
Commentary
Read More: The High Cost of Fiscally Responsible CompassionEducation
Pennsylvania Needs School Board Rent Control
Pennsylvanians are once again being reminded this spring that they never actually own their homes; they only “rent” them from their local school board. As school districts across the commonwealth…
Commentary
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Referendum: School Taxes
Pennsylvania homeowners lack the right to vote on school property tax increases, while citizens in 44 other states enjoy some form of taxpayer protection. As Pennsylvania legislators debate whether or…
Fact Sheet
Read More: Referendum: School TaxesTaxes & Economy
Closing Loopholes to Tighten the Noosehole
Two leading Pennsylvania House Democrats are taking aim at the Commonwealth’s surviving corporate taxpayers. Reps. Mike Veon and David Levdansky say that legal provisions in the tax code—“loopholes” in their…
Commentary
Read More: Closing Loopholes to Tighten the NooseholeTaxes & Economy
The Rendell Strategic Sourcing Initiative: An Analysis
Executive Summary …
Fact Sheet
Read More: The Rendell Strategic Sourcing Initiative: An AnalysisRegulation
“OutFORCING”: Pennsylvania’s Real Job Loss Culprit
There’s been a great deal of political talk this election season about greedy “Benedict Arnold” companies sending jobs overseas. Gov. Ed Rendell even announced that the Commonwealth would look unfavorably…
Commentary
Read More: “OutFORCING”: Pennsylvania’s Real Job Loss CulpritTaxes & Economy
Will the Taxpayers Benefit from Rendell’s “Strategic Sourcing Initiative”?
"Government should be run more like a business." The underlying sentiment of this oft-repeated phrase is that government should be more efficient and effective when spending our tax dollars. Of…
Commentary
Read More: Will the Taxpayers Benefit from Rendell’s “Strategic Sourcing Initiative”?Taxes & Economy
Taxpayers to Subsidize Risks of Venture Capitalists
As the Republican-led Pennsylvania General Assembly considers a “compromise” version of Gov. Ed Rendell’s so-called “economic stimulus” package, The Commonwealth Foundation declared it to be another step backward for the…
Commentary
Read More: Taxpayers to Subsidize Risks of Venture CapitalistsRegulation
A Solution to the Gambling License Giveaway
It's déjà vu all over again. As Governor Rendell continues lobbying the General Assembly to expand gambling, very little attention is paid to the potential giveaway of valuable slot machine…
Commentary
Read More: A Solution to the Gambling License GiveawayTaxes & Economy
Pennsylvania’s Great Rail Disasters
Every Pennsylvanian agrees that traffic congestion and air pollution are hardly good or desirable things for our cities. But there is much less agreement on what strategies should be used…
Commentary
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Bail on These Bonds
If Pennsylvania is the next state to tax, borrow or spend its way to prosperity, it will also be the first. The historical and economic reality is that government is…
Commentary
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The Susquehanna Sailors: Taking the Liberty to Live it up on your Property
Ronald Reagan is credited for having once said: "Some people say that the government spends money like a bunch of drunken sailors. That isn't fair. At least the drunken sailors…
Commentary
Read More: The Susquehanna Sailors: Taking the Liberty to Live it up on your PropertyHealth Care
Diagnosis Litigation
Despite a number of obstacles limiting access to affordable insurance, America’s healthcare system remains the envy of the world. But as the current medical malpractice insurance epidemic raging across the…
Commentary
Read More: Diagnosis LitigationTaxes & Economy
Great Rail Disasters: The Impact of Rail Transit on Urban Livability
Abstract This paper grades rail transit in twenty-three urban areas on thirteen different criteria:…
Report
Read More: Great Rail Disasters: The Impact of Rail Transit on Urban LivabilityTaxes & Economy
Hang Up on the Cell Phone Tax!
Pennsylvania policymakers frequently talk about building and nurturing a hightech economy in the Commonwealth—yet the latest effort to raise taxes on the wireless telephone industry reveals that many of them…
Commentary
Read More: Hang Up on the Cell Phone Tax!Education
Pennsylvanias Education Funding Gap
Executive Summary…
Fact Sheet
Read More: Pennsylvanias Education Funding GapTaxes & Economy
“We refuse to learn from history, and we’re determined to repeat it!”
For the second time in a little more than a decade, Pennsylvania politicians are poised to make sure that the Commonwealth misses out on a developing economic boom by passing…
Commentary
Read More: “We refuse to learn from history, and we’re determined to repeat it!”Taxes & Economy
Restore the First Amendment at Shippensburg University
While the pursuit of diversity at our state and nation’s universities is frequently discussed by journalists and academics, its reach has not been all-encompassing. Indeed, diversity of opinion, and even…
Commentary
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