Research

Taxes & Economy

Air Quality False Alarm: An Analysis of the Natural Resource Defense Councils Heat Advisory Report

• March 23, 2005

This report shows that air pollution will decline in the future, regardless of whether there is global warming, and that NRDC exaggerates likely future temperature increases in any case. Section…

Report

Regulation

Internet Taxes

• February 10, 2005

A number of bills in the General Assembly represent the essential first step in extending the Commonwealth’s sales tax to out-of-state purchases—including those made over the Internet—through the national initiative…

Fact Sheet

State Budget

Total Cost of Pennsylvania Government: 2005 and Beyond

• February 8, 2005

The total cost of state and local government in Pennsylvania is projected to exceed $102 billion in FY 2004-05, and will likely reach more than $115 billion by the 2008-09…

Fact Sheet

Rail Transit: “Corridor One”

• November 10, 2004

Although everyone agrees that traffic congestion and air pollution are neither good nor desirable for Central Pennsylvania, regional rail transit—otherwise known as “Corridor One”—is not the solution to these problems.

Fact Sheet

Regulation

Telecommunications

• October 14, 2004

The debate over the future of high-tech communications development in Pennsylvania parallels the debate over statewide economic development policy in general: Should state government raise taxes on families and businesses…

Fact Sheet

Education

Referendum: School Taxes

• May 11, 2004

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

Taxes & Economy

The Rendell Strategic Sourcing Initiative: An Analysis

• Matthew Brouillette
• April 15, 2004

Executive Summary  …

Fact Sheet

Taxes & Economy

Great Rail Disasters: The Impact of Rail Transit on Urban Livability

• February 1, 2004

Abstract This paper grades rail transit in twenty-three urban areas on thirteen different criteria:…

Report

Education

Racial Bias in Pennsylvania Special Education

• February 1, 2004

Executive Summary…

Fact Sheet

Government Accountability

Reinventing Education in Pennsylvania: Fulfilling the Promise of Public Schooling

• December 31, 2003

For more than 250 years, Pennsylvanians have striven to bring academic excellence within reach of their children. In the mid 1700s, when Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and William & Mary colleges…

Report

Education

Pennsylvanias Education Funding Gap

• Matthew Brouillette
• December 1, 2003

Executive Summary…

Fact Sheet

Taxes & Economy

The Estimated Impact of Gov. Rendells 34 Percent Personal Income Tax Increase Proposal

• July 15, 2003

Executive Summary A major funding stream for Gov. Ed Rendell’s “Plan for a New Pennsylvania” would come from a 34 percent increase in the Commonwealth’s personal income tax (PIT), from…

Fact Sheet

Taxes & Economy

The Case for a Pennsylvania Tax and Expenditure Limitation

• June 1, 2003

Executive Summary In recent years, states across the United States with both limits on how much their governments can tax and/or spend and “super-majority” provisions that make it more difficult…

Fact Sheet

Regulation

Pennsylvanias $2 Billion Corporate Giveaway

• May 7, 2003

Executive Summary Current proposals under consideration in the Pennsylvania General Assembly would grant limited gambling licenses to horse racetracks across the Commonwealth in an attempt to bolster the struggling industry.

Fact Sheet

Regulation

Betting On Gambling: Potential Costs and Consequences for Pennsylvania

• Matthew Brouillette
• March 3, 2003

Executive Summary  …

Fact Sheet

Education

Getting More, Paying Less: Children, Taxpayers, and Public Schools Benefit from the Educational Improvement Tax Credit

• March 1, 2003

Executive Summary The public school system is one of the most expansive and expensive government monopolies in America. Yet both real-world experience and economic research suggest that this monopoly of…

Fact Sheet

Taxes & Economy

Economic Development

• February 28, 2003

Across the United States, state and local governments are locked in a constant competition to attract and retain businesses. Public subsidies, in the form of grants, loans, tax incentives, and…

Fact Sheet

Regulation

The Economic Impacts of Introducing Slot Machines at Racetracks in Pennsylvania: A Review of the Penn State Harrisburg Study

• February 21, 2003

Purpose  …

Fact Sheet

State Budget

Rightsizing State Government: Solutions to Pennsylvanias Fiscal and Economic Challenges

• February 19, 2003

Executive Summary “[W]e must find a way to make government live within its means. That is my first priority as governor. We must act now, and we cannot fail. We…

Fact Sheet

Public Union Democracy

The Impact of Compulsory Unionism on Economic Development

• November 1, 2002

Executive Summary With increasing global competition taking a toll on U.S. manufacturing jobs, and state governments and municipalities struggling to achieve greater operating efficiencies in the face of declining revenues…

Report

Education

Property Tax & School Funding Reform: The Michigan Experience and Principles for Pennsylvania

• Matthew Brouillette
• September 30, 2002

Executive Summary After decades of relative inaction, Pennsylvania policymakers may finally tackle the issue of property-tax and school-funding reform. While states such as Michigan have already substantively addressed the problem…

Fact Sheet