Nation's Top Poor Students Are Not in Nation's Top Schools

Posted by Jamar Thrasher on March 25, 2013 10:53 am
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There are significant disparities between high-achieving students from low-income families and high-achieving students from high-income families, according to a report from the National Bureau of Economic Statistics. Top high school students from poor areas are less likely to apply to America's top colleges and universities, even though they have the academic background to excel at a top tier institution. 

Third and State This Week: PA Jobs Update, Special Tax Break Bills, and How Sequestration Got Its Name

This week at Third and State, we blogged about the latest on Pennsylvania jobs, how special tax breaks are coming at the expense of classrooms and communities, and how those across-the-board federal spending cuts became known as "sequestration."

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

  • On jobs and the economy, Mark Price blogged about the Pennsylvania jobs report for February. The state's unemployment rate declined slightly, driven by a decline in the state's labor force. Mark also shared an earlier podcast where he explained that weak employment growth and strong labor force growth over the past several months in Pennsylvania meant there have been fewer new job openings available for a growing number of new job seekers.
  • On state budget and taxes, Chris Lilienthal wrote that after making deep cuts to schools, early childhood education, and health services, Pennsylvania lawmakers are now considering new tax breaks that will largely benefit a small number of higher-income earners. Sharon Ward shared another segment of her recent interview with Triad Strategies where she explained that the state cost of corporate tax cuts has more than tripled since 2002, with little to show for it.
  • On federal budget and taxes, Jamar Thrasher blogged about a primer on federal sequestration from Mother Jones magazine that includes how it got that name.

IN OTHER NEWS:

  • The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (PBPC) has more on three special tax break bills moving in the state Legislature that will come at the expense of Pennsylvania schools and communities.
  • Learn more about public pension reform in Pennsylvania at the Keystone Research Center's Pensions Issue Page.
  • Learn more about the federal opportunity to expand health coverage in Pennsylvania at PBPC's Medicaid Expansion Resource Page.
  • Learn more about education in Pennsylvania at PBPC's Education Facts Page with data on student enrollment, education funding, and school poverty.

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

PA's Unemployment Rate Drops as More Job Seekers Drop Out

Posted by Mark Price on March 22, 2013 5:07 pm
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Today, the Corbett administration released jobs data for February, and to answer your next question, yes, they did just release January jobs data on March 8. The release schedule gets a little delayed and then compressed at the beginning of each New Year as the Bureau of Labor Statistics revises data through a process called benchmarking.

So on to the numbers: Pennsylvania unemployment fell one-tenth of one percentage point to 8.1% in February. As I explained this morning, with employment growth weak and labor force growth strong, the state's unemployment rate has been rising since last March. Well half of that equation changed this month as employment as measured in the household survey fell by 6,000, and the labor force also fell by 13,000. As a result, the number of unemployed fell, and the unemployment rate fell very slightly. 

Podcast: As More People Look for Work in PA, There Are Not Enough Jobs to Be Had

Posted by Mark Price on March 22, 2013 8:30 am
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I was recently asked whether growth in the Pennsylvania labor market in recent months was a positive sign for the state's economy. It is a welcome sign, but as I explain in this two-minute podcast, there are fewer and fewer new job openings available for these new job seekers. And that has driven up the state's unemployment rate.

Three New Tax Breaks Will Cost PA Schools and Services

Posted by Christopher Lilienthal on March 20, 2013 10:16 am
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After making deep cuts to schools, early childhood education, and health and human services, Pennsylvania lawmakers are now considering new tax breaks that will largely benefit a small number of higher-income earners.

How Sequestration Got Its Name

Posted by Jamar Thrasher on March 19, 2013 10:53 am
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Automatic cuts to federal funding for a broad range of crucial services are in full effect. As the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center has written, this so-called federal sequestration will have a direct, disastrous impact on health care, education and jobs across Pennsylvania.

Podcast: PA Business Taxes Cut But Where Are the Jobs?

Posted by Sharon Ward on March 18, 2013 10:08 am
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In a recent interview with Triad Strategies, I outlined some of our concerns about state tax cuts enacted over the past decade and the Governor's plan to enact a new round of state corporate income tax cuts in the years ahead.

Business tax cuts enacted since 1999 have drained close to $3 billion this year alone from state coffers. The cost of the tax cuts has more than tripled since 2002, with little to show for it. Pennsylvania ranked 27th in job growth in 1999-2000 and 34th in 2011-12.

As I told Triad: "If the goal is to use these tax cuts to improve Pennsylvania’s ability to create jobs, it just has not worked.”

Sharon Ward of the PA Budget and Policy Center Discusses Tax Policy from Triad Strategies on Vimeo.

Third and State This Week: Budget Pie Day, Cost of Tax Cuts and an Update on State Jobs

Posted by Third and State on March 15, 2013 7:34 pm
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This week at Third and State, we blogged about the impact of corporate tax cuts on state investments in education and health care, why state lawmakers got half a pie from advocates this week, and the takeaway from Pennsylvania's latest jobs report. Plus we shared a podcast with Sharon Ward on education policy in Pennsylvania.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

  • On state taxes and the budget, Michael Wood blogged about a new Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (PBPC) policy brief showing that the skyrocketing cost of corporate tax cuts are competing with state funding for schools, the state’s colleges and universities, early childhood education, and human services. 
  • With business tax cuts taking a larger share of the budget pie these days, Chris Lilienthal wrote about how advocates with the Better Choices for Pennsylvania Coalition delivered half a pie to every state legislator this week to send a message that Pennsylvania needs real tax reform. We also shared a 3-minute video with highlights from the Pie Day press conference.
  • On jobs and the economy, Mark Price analyzed the January jobs report for Pennsylvania.
  • And on education, Sharon Ward talked with Triad Strategies about PBPC's new Education Facts Page, which presents data and analysis on public, charter and private education in the commonwealth.

IN OTHER NEWS:

  • Read PBPC's latest policy brief titled $3 Billion Bill for Corporate Tax Cuts in 2012-13: Reduced Revenue Does Little for Jobs, Undermines Schools and Human Services.
  • Learn more about public pension reform in Pennsylvania at the Keystone Research Center's Pensions Issue Page.
  • Check out PBPC's Medicaid Expansion Resource Page, with more information on the federal opportunity to expand state coverage and how you can take action.
  • And view PBPC's Education Facts Page with data on student enrollment, education funding, and school poverty.

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

Friday Video: How Tax Cuts Are Taking a Big Bite Out of the Budget Pie

Posted by Third and State on March 15, 2013 4:06 pm
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The week, advocates delivered half a pie to every Pennsylvania legislator to remind them that a decade of large tax cuts for businesses has left schools, health care services, and local communities with a smaller share of the budget pie. Watch the following three-minute video for all the highlights.

A Growing Cost for Corporate Tax Cuts in PA

Posted by Michael Wood on March 13, 2013 12:14 pm
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Over the past decade, Pennsylvania has enacted numerous corporate tax cuts, and the costs have skyrocketed, competing with state funding for schools, the state’s colleges and universities, early childhood education, and human services.

Laws to expand tax credit programs, change the way corporate taxes are assessed, reduce tax liabilities for merging mega banks, and eliminate the capital stock and franchise tax have drained a growing amount from the state treasury. The costs have more than tripled since 2003-04 from $850 million to just under $3.2 billion per year, as the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center documented in a new policy brief.

Cost of Corporate Tax Breaks in Pennsylvania

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