House Panel advances GOP budget that softens education cuts, hits DPW

The state House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations on Wednesday pThe a href="http://www.pahousegop.com/NewsItem.aspx?NewsID=11325" onclick="javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outbound-article','http://www.pahousegop.com']);return TrackClick("http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pahousegop.com%2FNewsItem.aspx%3FNewsID%3D11325','noted')"…

May 13, 2011 at 7:34 am | Comments (2)

Carriers squeeze patients to cut health care costs

Health insurance carriers are finding solutions to limiting annual increases in premiums for employers.   Stiffing their members might actually defer health care from bankrupting the economy for a few more years.

By that time the guys in the back room with green eye shades will figure out another scheme to keep employer premiums low, legitimate or not.

Over the last two decades, there have been several methods to control health care costs for employers.  In…

April 2, 2011 at 6:07 pm | Comments (4)

Corbett emerges … Local impact fees not far behind.

Saying he was “surprised” at the reaction of Penn State to his calls for 50 percent in state spending cuts, Gov. Tom Corbett’s interview and editorial board meeting at Philadelphia’s 6ABC did nothing if not further frame his mindset for the viewing audience. Still adamant about not using the “T” word, Corbett continued to trot out his new consideration for “local impact fees (aka “taxes”)” when it comes to shale natural gas drilling in the…

March 25, 2011 at 11:13 pm | Comments (1)

Those Fracking Taxes, No Fees, No Taxes …

Gov. Tom Corbett full story

March 24, 2011 at 7:32 am | Comments (1)

Corbett’s budget axe hits PaSSHE hard yet again

Disclosure: The author is a graduate of a State System of Higher Education university.

Governor Tom Corbett’s full story

March 16, 2011 at 2:07 am | Comments (7)

Is it only four months since November?

Four months later, and the November elections seem a long time ago, indeed. Anyone heard from Nancy Pelosi or Christine O’Donnell lately? And what kind of money could you have gotten that New Jersey and Wisconsin would lead an assault on public unions?

The biggest surprise in PA is that there’s been no surprise. Tom Corbett as a candidate was earnest, a little boring, and talked about cutting spending and keeping down taxes. Tom Corbett…

March 15, 2011 at 10:46 am | Comments (3)

Corbett budget features deep education cuts, tax breaks to encourage job growth #pabudget

Note: The Governor’s Budget Dashboard /em/p
pGov. Tom Corbett delivered his first budget proposal Tuesday, calling for deep cuts in education spending, government spending and economic development programs. The budget also slashes business taxes and proposes a number of targeted tax credits to encourage growth./p
pCorbett also announced that his lieutenant governor will head up a task force to study the issue of natural gas…

March 8, 2011 at 6:03 pm | Comments (5)

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett Budget Proposal – #pa2012.com 2011 Tweet log : 03 08 2011

March 8, 2011 at 2:43 pm | Comments (0)

adultBasic HealthCare ends for thousands of low-income participants…

midnight due to lack of funding.

Participants at the rally shared their stories about living with the adultBasic benefit. The program cost the state $163 million and ended up on the budget chopping block as the state faces a $4 billion deficit. Gov. Tom Corbett pUnder adultBasic, low-income adults not eligible for other government health benefits could…

March 5, 2011 at 4:49 pm | Comments (0)

Will Corbett budget mean higher local taxes?

Supporters of massive state budget cuts forget that often the costs are shifted to the local tax base, meaning little relief for taxpayers.

March 5, 2011 at 4:31 pm | Comments (2)