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Recent Posts
- Lehigh Exec Bill Hansell Resigns, 2013 Dem Exec Candidate Tom Muller Will Be Acting Exec
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- John Callahan Endorsing Willie Reynolds for Bethlehem Mayor
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- Why Might John Callahan Be Endorsing Willie Reynolds for Bethlehem Mayor? - Keystone Politics on NorCo Exec SEIU Poll: Callahan at 52%
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Categories
Category Archives: Budget/Taxes/Spending
Pennsylvania’s Tax Code is Hideously Regressive
Pennsylvania’s crazy regressive tax code is an issue I think it would be worth picking a Constitutional amendment fight over: Pennsylvania is one of the “Terrible Ten” states with the most regressive tax structures nationwide, hitting the poor hardest while taking the … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending
Pat Toomey to Hurricane Sandy Victims: Drop Dead
Just because *everybody knows* the most conservative member of the US Senate is going to reject disaster relief for families whose whole lives have just been uprooted by a freak storm doesn’t mean Pat Toomey should get off the hook for … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending
Thousands of Tiny Municipal Pensions a Huge Ripoff for PA Taxpayers
Via the new John Micek blog, a great article on the under-discussed problem of municipal pensions from Nick Malawskey. I’ve written about this issue before here, trying to get a conversation started on a progressive agenda for municipal pension reform. … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending
Life Expectancy Going Down for Many Low-SES Groups
Here is why Social Security benefits should only grow and never be cut. Increasing life expectancy is often given as a reason for increasing the SS retirement age, but some groups who really rely on that stingy monthly check have … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending, The Economy
Don’t Just Muddle Through: Expand Transit and Lower Fares
Big props to Natalia Rudiak and Pittsburghers for Public Transit for pushing an important new position into the transportation funding debate. So far the statewide debate on transit funding has two main positions: 1. Raise enough money to fund existing routes at current fares, and … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending, Transportation
Income Inequality and Regional Tax Bases
Here’s a fun tool called Rich Blocks, Poor Blocks that overlays data on household income over city maps, showing you the differences in income within regions, cities and neighborhoods. Here’s the scale: And here are the maps for the 3 Lehigh Valley … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending
Funding SEPTA With Value Capture Would Complement Existing Philly Development Goals
Here’s an example from Kellie Patrick Gates of a situation bearing out what I was saying this morning about funding SEPTA with value capture: A new Philadelphia City Planning Commission report finds that mixed-use development centered around transit stops, replacing … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending, Land Use, Transportation
Hanger Blog: Corbett Gas Tax Increase Shows Tea Party Anti-Tax Doctrine Doesn’t Work
This morning I was a little worried when I saw a post from the John Hanger for Governor blog that looked like Hanger might appeal to anti-tax politics to attack Tom Corbett’s transportation funding proposal. Now there is a new … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending, Elections
Assess Gas Tax By the Dollar, Not the Gallon?
Tanya Snyder points to another interesting idea for the transportation funding: When the federal gas tax was set at 18.4 cents per gallon, it represented 17 percent of the cost of a gallon of gas. Now it’s barely 5 percent. … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending, Transportation
Fund SEPTA With Value Capture
We’ve known for a while that SEPTA is badly in need of more revenue, and yesterday Christine Fisher reported that they’re declaring a capital funding crisis. The agency already has a $4.7 billion backlog of state-of-good-repair projects waiting for funding, … More after the jump
Posted in Budget/Taxes/Spending, Land Use, Transportation
