State Budget
The Taxpayer Protection Act
Summary Pennsylvania faces a $3.6 billion structural deficit that will force lawmakers to cut spending or increase taxes. State spending growth far outpaces inflation, population growth, and economic growth. This…
Read More: The Taxpayer Protection ActHigh taxes make for a slow-growing economy. And communities feel the pinch of high taxes as more and more native Pennsylvanians leave the Keystone State to prosper elsewhere. To remain economically competitive, Pennsylvania must lower state taxes and ensure businesses have the opportunity to succeed. Lower taxes will incentivize more individuals to call Pennsylvania their home, ultimately spurring our statewide economy forward.
Prosperity
Top Unemployment Compensation Reforms for Pennsylvania
Overview Pennsylvania should reform its unemployment compensation system to pay down state debt, incentivize hiring, increase labor participation, and minimize fraudulent claims. Reforms should protect unemployment compensation for the individuals…
Fact Sheet
Read More: Top Unemployment Compensation Reforms for PennsylvaniaRegulation
Op-Ed: Pennsylvanians can’t afford Biden’s multi-trillion tax-and-spend plan
With the legislative sausage-making now underway, it’s likely Pennsylvanians would find the menu of specific tax hikes distasteful.
Commentary
Read More: Op-Ed: Pennsylvanians can’t afford Biden’s multi-trillion tax-and-spend planEnergy
Consequences of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)
The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) is a controversial compact designed to tax electricity producers for emitting carbon. The Wolf administration is attempting to join the initiative through regulation in…
Fact Sheet
Read More: Consequences of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)Government Accountability
Fiscal Earmarks Reduce State Budget Transparency
The 2021–2022 Fiscal Code contains at least $5.5 billion in federal and state funds earmarked for special projects across the state, up from $120 million last year. Most of this…
Backgrounder
Read More: Fiscal Earmarks Reduce State Budget TransparencyState Budget
TEL-Tale Heart: Crafting Effective Policies to Reduce Spending
Executive Summary Increases in state spending do not result in greater prosperity for state residents, across an array of measures. In fact, increased state spending can reduce economic growth. Reducing…
Report
Read More: TEL-Tale Heart: Crafting Effective Policies to Reduce SpendingHealth Care
How Pennsylvania Is Progressing in the Race to Rebuild
The 2021 state budget includes some policy changes to spur recovery and better governance, but much more needs to occur.
Fact Sheet
Read More: How Pennsylvania Is Progressing in the Race to RebuildState Budget
2021 Budget Takeaways
Last week, the Pa. General Assembly passed a state budget deal that includes $40 billion in the General Fund budget, increases in tax credit scholarships, and a number of policy…
Fact Sheet
Read More: 2021 Budget TakeawaysHealth Care
7 Signs Pa.’s Pandemic Recovery Is Falling Behind
Pennsylvania business closures continue to be among the worst in the nation. …
Fact Sheet
Read More: 7 Signs Pa.’s Pandemic Recovery Is Falling BehindState Budget
Wolf’s Big, Bad Budget Leaves Families Behind
Feb. 3, 2021, Harrisburg, Pa. —Following Gov. Tom Wolf’s pre-recorded state budget address, Commonwealth Foundation Vice President Nathan Benefield, who has been studying the state budget for more than a…
Press Release
Read More: Wolf’s Big, Bad Budget Leaves Families BehindState Budget
Three Takeaways on Gov. Wolf’s 2021 Budget
Our commonwealth faces a structural budget deficit. Families need education lifelines to get back on track. Small businesses need regulatory and tax relief to stay afloat. Patients need more options to access care.
Commentary
Read More: Three Takeaways on Gov. Wolf’s 2021 BudgetTaxes & Economy
Crucial Reforms Needed in End-of-Year Budget
The recently completed state budget will dig Pennsylvania into a deep hole. Lawmakers passed a 7.5% increase in spending. The General Fund budget, including billions in one-time federal funds, is $36.54 billion—up from $33.98 billion last…
Media
Read More: Crucial Reforms Needed in End-of-Year BudgetState Budget
Balancing the State Budget Didn’t Have to Be This Hard
If lawmakers had enacted the Taxpayer Protection Act in 2018, they would face a $770 million gap between revenues and spending. Going one step further, if lawmakers had enacted the…
Commentary
Read More: Balancing the State Budget Didn’t Have to Be This HardState Budget
How to Balance the State Budget without Raising Taxes in a Pandemic
Reducing spending to reflect how the pandemic impacted state agencies and balance the budget without tax hikes or borrowing is the first step. Without additional structural spending changes laid out in…
Backgrounder
Read More: How to Balance the State Budget without Raising Taxes in a PandemicEnergy
Op-Ed: Drilling and Fracking Equal Jobs. Does Biden Understand That?
In the past decade, fracking enabled drillers to reach the gas trapped in that shale quickly and cheaply, creating tens of thousands of jobs in the shale and pipeline service industries alone.
Commentary
Read More: Op-Ed: Drilling and Fracking Equal Jobs. Does Biden Understand That?Energy
Op-Ed: Pennsylvania should keep fracking and oil as pro-energy policies
The Keystone State is also the nation’s second-largest producer of natural gas, third-largest producer of coal, 16th-largest producer of crude oil, and third-largest producer of electricity in general, according to…
Commentary
Read More: Op-Ed: Pennsylvania should keep fracking and oil as pro-energy policiesRegulation
Help Restaurants by Privatizing the PLCB
Clearly, Gov. Wolf looks out of touch—and perhaps he knows it. Last week, following his veto, he released a proposal to waiver license fees collected by the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB)…
Fact Sheet
Read More: Help Restaurants by Privatizing the PLCBHealth Care
Preserving Medicaid Before It’s Too Late
Pennsylvania’s Medicaid program is a national leader in all the wrong ways. Sub-standard access to care and soaring enrollment, costs, and fraud crowd out services for people with intellectual disabilities and low-income…
Backgrounder
Read More: Preserving Medicaid Before It’s Too LateHealth Care
COVID-19 Could Change the Way Pennsylvania Does Business
Small business owners like Elvira, Jessa, and Andy deserve a fighting chance to keep their business dreams alive. That’s the only way to heal Pennsylvania’s economy.
Fact Sheet
Read More: COVID-19 Could Change the Way Pennsylvania Does BusinessState Budget
Marijuana Money Can’t Fix the Budget
The dollars involved are small and legalization would create new expenses.
Memo
Read More: Marijuana Money Can’t Fix the BudgetEnergy
Lawmakers Fight Wolf on Cap and Trade Plan
Governor Wolf is determined to pull Pennsylvania into a multi-state compact that restricts carbon dioxide emissions and raises the cost of power. But thanks to the natural gas revolution Pennsylvania…
Commentary
Read More: Lawmakers Fight Wolf on Cap and Trade PlanHealth Care
Lawmakers Push to Do Better, Rebuild Our Economy
Today the Republicans in the Pa. House attempted to override the Governor’s veto of HR 836, the bill that would end Pennsylvania’s 6-month long state of emergency and the…
Commentary
Read More: Lawmakers Push to Do Better, Rebuild Our Economy