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| From our President |
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Dear Friends:
Road trips through this very diverse and beautiful state reinvigorate my commitment to our goals to help make Pennsylvania an even better place to work, live and play.
Recently I traveled to Cranberry Township, Butler County, at the invitation of Dick Hadley, chair of the Cranberry Board of Supervisors. Cranberry is at the intersection of the Pennsylvania Turnpike and Interstate 79. A recipe for uncontrolled growth, traffic jams and overtaxed public services, you might think, but I found a very different scenario on my visit.
For the rest of my message, please click here.
Judy Schwank
President and CEO | |
| On the Move! |
Our Harrisburg and Philadelphia offices are in new locations.
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Harrisburg Headquarters:
200 N. Third St., 4th Floor
Harrisburg, PA 17101
Phone: 717-234-6070 |
Philadelphia Office:
1315 Walnut St., Suite 710
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Phone: 215-985-3201 |
Pittsburgh Office:
425 Sixth Ave., Suite 1740
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Phone: 412-471-3727 | |
| On the Legislative Front |
| Bill Would Modernize Earned Income Tax Collection
It's possible that the current system of collecting our earned income taxes is leaving behind as much as $237 million in uncollected taxes. That's the equivalent of 3,000 police officers and 3,000 teachers.
 Senate Bill 1063, introduced by Sen. Jane Earll, amends the Local Tax Enabling Act by consolidating earned income tax (EIT) collection from more than 560 collectors for almost 2,900 jurisdictions to 66 collection districts congruent with counties. This bill to modernize the structure of tax collection and improve collaboration helps reduce the fiscal distress that plagues many of our local governments.
If you agree, please take time now to voice your support. The Senate has passed the bill, and it's now in the House of Representatives for consideration. Please ask your Representative to support SB 1063. Click here for our brief on the subject. And for more information on the state Department of Community and Economic Development's EIT Collection Reform Initiative, click here.
Preserve Historic Buildings; Encourage Economic Development
10,000 Friends has long supported creating a state historic preservation program. It would spur community revitalization by helping to fill the financing gap for the restoration of historic buildings, and serve as a catalyst for more investment in a community. House Bill 221, introduced by Rep. Tom Tangretti, is one of several bills to provide grants for commercial and residential tax credits for historic preservation. That bill passed in the House unanimously on July 2, 2007 (199-0) and is now in the Senate Community, Economic and Recreational Development Committee. If you agree that now is the time for this legislation to be passed into law, please visit our web page for more information, and inform your Senator that this is an important opportunity!
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| In Water News |
Few factors influence development patterns more than the way we invest in transportation and water-related infrastructure, so we commend Governor Ed Rendell's creation of the Sustainable Water Infrastructure Task Force to assess needs and make recommendations to  address our water infrastructure challenges.
The challenge we face is not simply raising the billions of dollars needed to fix and improve our crumbling water and wastewater infrastructure. As we debate how to pay for these investments, we must also think carefully about how those investments are being made. In remarks to the task force, 10,000 Friends suggested four common-sense principles.
-- Investments should be efficient.
-- Reinvestment policies should be equitable.
-- Investments should be financially sustainable.
-- Reinvestment policies should be environmentally sustainable.
Fortunately, communities around the state are already taking steps to manage water infrastructure in more cost-effective ways. That was the main message of the recent workshop co-sponsored by the Environmental Law Institute and 10,000 Friends -- "Saving $ - Managing Water: Regional and Collaborative Approaches to Water, Sewer, and Stormwater Management in Pennsylvania."
For more information about the work of the Sustainable Water Infrastructure Task Force, and about the conference, click here. |
| Shrinking the Carbon Footprint of Metropolitan America |
America's carbon footprint is expanding. With a growing population and an expanding economy, America's settlement area is widening, and as it does, Americans are driving  more, building more, consuming more energy and emitting more carbon.
A new study by the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution ranked the per capita carbon footprint of the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S. The six metropolitan areas centered in Pennsylvania landed across the spectrum. Lancaster and Philadelphia led Pennsylvania with rankings of 23 and 27 respectively. Harrisburg finished a distant last with a ranking of 92. Click here for the full study, and click here for links to newspaper coverage in Pennsylvania. |
| Stay Connected |
We update our site regularly with articles, opportunities and links, so please bookmark the home page of 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania and stop by often. To find your legislator and get copies of introduced legislation, visit the State General Assembly website. As always, thank you for staying connected to 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania. Please contact us if you have questions or would like more information.
10,000 Friends has produced a pocket-sized guide to our state leaders. If you need the 2007-08 Legislative Directory, please contact us at 10,000 Friends.
Our e-newsletters are designed to keep you in the loop on all of our activities. Click Join Our Mailing List! in the top left column to choose the e-newsletters you'd like to receive. |
| 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania |
 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania works as an alliance of organizations and individuals committed to promoting land use policies and actions that will enable Pennsylvania to strengthen its diverse urban, suburban and rural communities. Through a diverse coalition focused on a positive agenda, we seek proactive solutions and options for local, regional and state leaders. Visit our website. | |
