Right and left oppose Common Core standards in PA

By   /  May 14, 2013  /  Accountability, Education, Featured, Issues, News, Pennsylvania, State Government  /  No Comments

PASS THE TEST: A new test will determine whether high school students can graduate, but the standards used for those assessments is raising some questions.

By Eric Boehm | PA Independent

HARRISBURG – They don’t always agree on education policy, but when they do, it’s to oppose an unfunded mandate on school districts.

The implementation of the so-called Common Core standards in Pennsylvania public schools is facing united opposition from teachers unions and tea party groups – two political factions that rarely, if ever, play on the same team.

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Walker, Jindal in letter to Obama call IRS scandal ‘Big Brother come to life’

By   /  May 14, 2013  /  Accountability, Censorship, Ethics, Featured, Federal Government, News, Politics, Scott Walker, Wisconsin  /  14 Comments

IRS

By M.D. Kittle | Wisconsin Reporter
MADISON – As he prepared for his meeting Tuesday morning with the peaceful Dalai Lama in Madison, Gov. Scott Walker packed a rhetorical punch in a letter he and fellow Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana penned demanding President Obama call for a special prosecutor to investigate the Internal Revenue [...]

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NM governor to bureaucrats: no audit, no funding

By   /  May 13, 2013  /  Accountability, New Mexico, News, State Government, State Politics  /  No Comments

This is a photo of New Mexico's Roundhouse.

By Rob Nikolewski │ New Mexico Watchdog
SANTA FE – Government entities be warned: Fail to submit an audit to the state and say good-bye to some of that state money you want.
Earlier this month, Gov. Susana Martinez issued an executive order barring any governmental entity that isn’t up to date on its audits from receiving [...]

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WI Jobs committee gives WEDC reins of $25 million venture capital bill

By   /  May 10, 2013  /  Accountability, Featured, News, State Budgets, venture capital, WEDC, Wisconsin  /  1 Comment

venture capital

A bi-partisan group of legislators is one step closer to subsidizing risky startup businesses with taxpayer cash.

The venture capital bill narrowly passed out of committee Friday.

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Better transparency, clearer rules would help PA redistricting process in 2021

By   /  May 10, 2013  /  Accountability, Featured, Issues, News, Pennsylvania, Politics & Elections, Redistricting, State Government, State House, State Politics, State Senate  /  No Comments

NOW OFFICIAL: The second set of district maps (Senate map seen here) were approved by the Supreme Court this week. But should there be changes when the process begins again in 2021?

In the aftermath of a legal battle over redrawing Pennsylvania’s state House and state Senate district maps, one key player believes the commission charged with redistricting the state every 10 years can do better.

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