Third and State This Week: A Missed Opportunity, Unpaid Internships, Expanding Medicaid and Mother's Day

This week at Third and State, we blogged about a missed opportunity in the House to close corporate tax loopholes, the troubling trend of employers taking on unpaid interns to do work once performed by paid staff, the public health benefits of expanding Medicaid coverage, more on Pennsylvania's job growth ranking, and a Mother's Day look at the number of Pennsylvania moms who benefit from key federal tax credits that may be at risk.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

  • On state budget and taxes, Sharon Ward shared her statement on the passage of a House bill enacting hundreds of millions in new corporate tax cuts. The bill represented a missed opportunity to close tax loopholes, Sharon wrote. We also posted our live Twitter coverage of the House floor debate on that bill.
  • On higher education and the economy, Jamar Thrasher blogged about the troubling trend of employers recruiting unpaid interns to perform duties that were once performed by paid staff.
  • On health care, Chris Lilienthal wrote that expanding Medicaid in Pennsylvania will make Pennsylvanians healthier and more financially stable — and even save lives.
  • On jobs and the economy, Stephen Herzenberg delved a little deeper into Pennsylvania's job growth performance in light of recent remarks by the Governor.
  • And with Mother's Day this weekend, Sharon Ward blogged about the hundreds of thousands of working moms in Pennsylvania who rely on the Earned Income and Child Tax Credits to make ends meet. 

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

MARK YOUR CALENDAR:

  • Join the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center on Tuesday, May 14 from 4 to 5 p.m. for a webinar on making the Medicaid expansion a reality in Pennsylvania. Learn more and register to participate.
  • Join the Keystone Research Center and Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center on June 13 for our Annual Awards Dinner at the Hilton Harrisburg. Learn more and purchase tickets.

670,000 Working Moms in PA Rely on Key Federal Tax Credits

Posted by Sharon Ward on May 10, 2013 12:16 pm
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With Mother's Day approaching this weekend, we are highlighting new research showing that 670,000 working moms in Pennsylvania rely on the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC). Both tax credits also lifted nearly 118,000 Pennsylvania children out of poverty annually between 2009 and 2011.

Unpaid Interns Doing Full-time Work

Posted by Jamar Thrasher on May 9, 2013 4:49 pm
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As American colleges and universities wind down another school year, many students will be seeking out summer internships. Interning at the right place can help new grads gain valuable experience and build a professional network, both of which are as key to future success as earning good grades in the classroom. But more and more, interns are doing work that was once performed by full-time paid staff — without the compensation.

Expanding Medicaid Coverage in PA Will Save Lives

Posted by Christopher Lilienthal on May 8, 2013 9:51 am
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I have written about the economic benefits of expanding Medicaid health coverage in Pennsylvania, but what often goes unmentioned in this debate is just how critical the expansion is to the commonwealth's public health. It will make Pennsylvanians healthier and more financially stable — and even save lives.

A Missed Opportunity to Close Corporate Tax Loopholes

Posted by Sharon Ward on May 7, 2013 10:37 am
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The Pennsylvania House voted 129-65 Monday to approve legislation enacting hundreds of millions in new corporate tax cuts in the years ahead.

Live Tweeting House Debate on Corporate Tax Cut Plan

Posted by Third and State on May 6, 2013 4:47 pm
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The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center is live-tweeting the debate on the floor of the state House over legislation that will cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars annually within just a few years. The result will be less money for the investments that boost Pennsylvania’s economy, such as a strong education system, roads and bridges, and safe schools, streets, and communities. Follow along below.

Don't Like to Look at Percents? Then PA's Job Rank Is Even Worse

Posted by Stephen Herzenberg on May 6, 2013 10:42 am
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When it comes to evaluating Pennsylvania's job growth performance, Governor Tom Corbett said last week, "I don't like to look at percents." (Watch this clip about 1 minute 15 seconds in for that quote.)

OK, let's compare what Governor Corbett does like to look at — "how many people got on payroll" (actual job growth) before he came into office and since then.

Third and State This Week: Revenue Update, Assessing PA Job Growth, Expanding Health Care, Pensions Webinar & More

This week at Third and State, we blogged about a new Independent Fiscal Office report showing state revenues lagging earlier estimates, a study on salaries at nonprofit and for-profit human service providers, the budget and economic benefits of expanding Medicaid health coverage, a webinar on the public pensions debate, and job growth in Pennsylvania.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

  • On state budget and tax policy, Michael Wood blogged about a new report from the Independent Fiscal Office forecasting over $500 million less available for the next budget than revenue estimates in the Governor’s February budget proposal. Sharon Ward wrote about a new Legislative Budget and Finance Committee study of the salaries of nonprofit and for-profit human service providers.
  • On jobs and the economy, Mark Price wrote that policy decisions made by governors impact whether a state’s economy takes on more water, or bails successfully, as it rides the wave of the national economy.
  • On health care, Chris Lilienthal blogged about two studies demonstrating that Pennsylvania’s economy and state budget will get a big boost if the commonwealth accepts federal funding allocated to expand Medicaid health coverage.
  • Finally, we shared a webinar hosted this week by the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center titled "Untangling Pennsylvania's Pension Reform Debate."

IN OTHER NEWS:

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Pennsylvania Job Growth Continues to Slide

Posted by Mark Price on May 3, 2013 9:02 am
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Acknowledging complexity in economic and jobs data always runs a certain risk. I was reminded of that this week when I spoke with a reporter at PoliticsPA about Pennsylvania’s job growth during Governor Corbett’s administration. After spending an hour on the phone with the reporter laying out the data, the resulting story largely missed the forest for the trees.

Watch Webinar to Untangle PA's Pension Reform Debate

Posted by Third and State on May 2, 2013 7:19 pm
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Everywhere you turn, you hear about the public pension debate unfolding in Pennsylvania, but what is it all about? How did we get where we are? What are the proposals under discussion in Harrisburg and how do you interpret them? In this webinar, hosted by the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center on April 30, pension experts broke it all down, explaining what is fact and what is fiction in the pension debate.

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