Local Government

The State and Local Government Workforce in Pennsylvania is the 2nd Smallest in the Country

Posted by Mark Price on January 11, 2017 1:26 pm
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As we begin to debate the 2017-18 state budget, the anti-government spin merchants will (yet again) paint a picture of a menacing, out-of-control public sector in Pennsylvania eating up taxpayers like a great Kraken.

But facts do matter. And the picture they will paint is the opposite of the true picture, shown above. 

Boom and Bust: Lessons From the Gas Patch

Posted by Jan Jarrett on July 6, 2016 1:38 pm
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In 2011, the town of Towanda in Bradford County was at the epicenter of the shale drilling boom. A visitor would have been hard-pressed to find a vacant hotel room. There were waiting lines at the restaurants. The streets and roads were choked with big-rig diesels hauling the water, rigs, equipment, gravel, sand and chemicals needed to develop the gas wells. Rents doubled or tripled forcing some low-income families into homelessness.

October Payrolls Up Overall but Down in Mining, Logging and Schools

This morning the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the unemployment rate in Pennsylvania was down slightly to 5.1 percent, and nonfarm payrolls were up by 13,700 jobs last month, each from their respective September levels.

After two months of declines in nonfarm payrolls, the return to growth in October was  a welcome change.

A funny thing happened to our data on the way to Philadelphia

If you have been following this gubernatorial election, or just watching television, you might have noticed that the Wolf campaign has been arguing that 27,000 jobs were lost in education in Pennsylvania.  That’s a figure my colleagues and I released in late August in our annual State of Working Pennsylvania.  To generate that number we used data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to calculate education employment in local governments in the 2010-11 school year, which ran from July 2010 to June 2011.

What’s At Stake for Schools in Property Tax Plan?

The latest proposal to eliminate property taxes in Pennsylvania would leave school districts with $2.6 billion less in overall funding within five years, according to an analysis from the Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office. Matthew Knittel of the IFO presented the findings during a Pennsylvania Senate Finance Committee hearing Tuesday.

Property Tax Shift Bills on Their Way to House Floor for Consideration This Week

Posted by Shelley Aragoncillo on September 23, 2013 12:42 pm
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On the first day of the new legislative session and at the same time a number of education groups were rallying in the Capitol Rotunda for more adequate state school funding, the House Finance Committee forwarded a series of bills to the House floor that would allow local school districts to shift who pays the local share for schools. With this action, these bills could be voted on by the full House as early as this week.

How Does Job Growth in Pennsylvania Measure Up?

Posted by Mark Price on September 11, 2013 9:58 am
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In this year's State of Working Pennsylvania, we decided to look once again at the pace of job growth in Pennsylvania relative to the other 49 states. What's different about our analysis this time is that we compare Pennsylvania's job performance at comparable points in the economic recovery that followed each of the last three recessions.

Public School Employment Hits Decade Low in Pennsylvania

Employment in Pennsylvania's public schools was at a decade low in the 2011-12 school year, according to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Third and State This Week: Americans Living on $2 a Day, Mayors Talk Federal Deficit and Youth Unemployment

This week at Third and State, we blogged about the increasing number of children and families living in extreme poverty, the latest on the state revenue picture, Pennsylvania mayors on a federal deficit deal and the long-term effects of youth unemployment.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

  • On poverty, Jamar Thrasher wrote about a report on the increasing number of children and families living in extreme poverty, defined as surviving on $2 or less per day.
  • On federal budget and taxes, Chris Lilienthal blogged about a message from the mayors of Philadelphia, Allentown, York, and Reading to members of Congress as they craft a deficit reduction plan.
  • On the state budget, Michael Wood wrote about November state revenue collections and the threat new business tax cuts pose to the state's ability to invest in the fundamentals that ensure long-term growth.
  • And on jobs and unemployment, Jamar Thrasher blogged about a study showing the long-lasting damage a recession can have on young people unable to find their first job.

More blog posts next week. Keep us bookmarked and join the conversation!

Mayors Ask Congress to Enact Deficit Plan that Keeps Cities Strong

Posted by Chris Lilienthal on December 12, 2012 10:56 am
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Federal deficit reduction must include significant new revenue so that Pennsylvania cities, their residents and local economies can thrive again.

This was a critical point made by several Pennsylvania mayors during a conference call with reporters this week focused on what is at stake for cities in a federal deficit plan. The call was organized by the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center.

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