With nearly 40 percent of the state's annual $27 billion General Fund budget going to Welfare programs, Pennsylvania taxpayers might want to know how the money is being spent. The state is making it easier with a new website:

Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare Launches New Transparency Portal

PA Insurance Department Levies Largest Fine in Agency's History Against AIG

Pennsylvania Signs One-Year Renewal of Multi-State Water Agreement for Delaware River

CBO: Obama stimulus may have cost as much as $4.1 million a job

Survey Shows Daily Twitter Use Doubles

President Obama and liberal Democrats in Congress oppose a bill that would ban gender-based abortions, whereby a woman can abort a female fetus because she wants a male child. (It's common in China and abortion-advocates want to bring the practice to the U.S.) Talk about the real war on women.

Anti-abortion groups turn 'war on women' charge against Democrats - The Hill's Healthwatch

I was disappointed yesterday to learn that Gov. Tom Corbett has not read House Bill 1776 (The Property Tax Independence Act), has not met with its sponsor, Rep. Jim Cox, and did not know enough about the bill to take a position on it. The elimination of school property taxes is the No. 1 issue facing Pennsylvania taxpayers ... and the governor better get up to speed on it.

Corbett talks Pa. budget with regional editors, reporters

The Obama Legacy: U.S. economy continues to flounder three years after Obama promised to work his magic.

GDP revised down to 1.9 percent for first quarter of 2012 - The Hill's On The Money

The state House of Representatives  is moving on a bill to eliminate school property taxes in Pennsylvania, but voters have to put pressure on legislative leaders to allow a vote on the bill.

A hearing is scheduled Monday, June 4, but even if the committee moves the bill to the full floor, only the Republican leadership of the House can allow a vote.

State Rep. Jim Cox - House Finance Committee to Hold Second Hearing on Property Tax Independence Act

Pennsylvania Governor Corbett Signs Senate, House Bills into Law

Planned Parenthood goes to war against Mitt Romney - HUMAN EVENTS

Pennsylvania Governor Corbett Signs Execution Warrants for Darien Houser, John Koehler Jr. and Willie Clayton

When you've presided over four of the most disastrous years in U.S. presidential history, I would imagine it would be hard to settle on a re-election theme.

Obama struggles with campaign theme - TheHill.com

Romney: Obama desperate for 'a twig to hold on to' on economy - The Hill's Blog Briefing Room

The federal government owns too much land as it is.

Government lines up $1.4 billion for conservation property purchases - HUMAN EVENTS

Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission and Partners to Host Public Meeting on Future of Brandywine Battlefield

Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare Continues Assault on Fraud; Conducts First Out-of-State Benefit Card Analysis

New Gallup Poll released on Memorial Day: U.S. veterans, about 13% of the adult population and consisting mostly of older men, support Mitt Romney over Barack Obama for president by 58% to 34%, while nonveterans give Obama a four-percentage-point edge.

Veterans Give Romney Big Lead Over Obama

AP 'Fact Check' Ignores Obama Stump Speech Claim of 'Slowest' Spending Growth 'Since I Took Office' | NewsBusters.org

Half of US Living Homes on Government Dole - 1 in 3 Homeowners Still Underwater - HUMAN EVENTS

NYT White House Correspondent: Obama 'Hates' Camp David Because There's No Golf | NewsBusters.org

Bob Schieffer Asks Obama Senior Adviser Gibbs 'Whatever Happened to Hope and Change?' | NewsBusters.org

Obama hangs on to his Bain Capital donations - HUMAN EVENTS

Top 10 examples of California zealotry - HUMAN EVENTS

Off the Charts: Obama's Spending by the Numbers | Vision to America

Justice Department Commemorates National Missing Children's Day

Everybody Blog About Brett Kimberlin Day - HUMAN EVENTS

The Washington Post's Fact Checker column catches Barack Obama in a big lie about the growth of federal spending under Obama. Fact Checker awards Obama 3 out of 4 Pinocchios for his made-up figures on federal spending.

Read the full analysis at the link below:

The facts about the growth of spending under Obama

State Civil Rights Commission Recognizes Montgomery County, State Leaders

Gov. Tom Corbett's much-maligned chief of staff has been given a promotion of sorts and the governor has replaced him with a Chester County resident (and husband of one of Corbett's cabinet members.)

Governor Corbett to Nominate William Ward to Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas; Names Stephen Aichele as Chief of Staff

"The Amateur" to debut at Number One on the New York Times bestseller list - HUMAN EVENTS

The choice is clear: Romney will keep us safer - HUMAN EVENTS

Affordable Care Act to Threaten Quality of Treatment Says Hudson Institute Report

How does Obama get away with the phony 'war on women' accusations against Republicans when he's the one always making condescending comments about women?

Editorial: Obama’s remarks won't win the women vote - delcotimes.com

First Amendment Freedoms Hang in the Balance This Memorial Day

Top Political Analyst Jay Cost: 'I'd Much Rather Be Romney Than Obama At This Stage' | Vision to America

Obama Loses 40% of the Vote in 2 More State Primaries. Continues to be Humiliated | Vision to America

Quinnipiac: Romney-Rubio Leads Obama-Biden by 8 Points in Florida

State Museum of Pennsylvania Announces June Highlights

Secretary of Commonwealth Announces Simplified Method to Obtain Photo ID for Pennsylvania-Born Voters

Governor Corbett Issues Flag Order to Observe Memorial Day

Governor Corbett Signs Four Bills into Law

PennDOT Urges Young Drivers to Avoid Distractions and 'Just Drive'

PA House Republican Caucus - House Passes Miccarelli Bill to Increase National Guard Pay

The Booker insurgency grows - HUMAN EVENTS

Global warming alarmism, anyone? The public is cooling to the rhetoric - HUMAN EVENTS

Vereb, Scavello Urge Schools With Hefty Reserve Funds to Use Money Before Raising Taxes

Pa. gun sales to stop while police replace ID system - ABC27 WHTM

Columnist: Will Pennsylvania punish Obama?

Leftist radicals have infested most American schools.

High school teacher tells student he can be arrested for disrespecting Obama - HUMAN EVENTS

Two-thirds of the states are still waiting for the recovery Obama promised four years ago.

Only 16 states increased jobs under Obama

If Obama can't win Pennsylvania, he cannot win a second term.

Columnist: Is Pennsylvania In Play for November? Maybe Roll Call Politics

Governor Corbett Announces New Nominations, Appointments

Justice Orie Melvin charged with nine criminal counts - witf.org

From a press release issued today by State Rep. Mike Vereb, R-150th Dist., on the news that Pennsylvania's 500 school districts are holding on to $3.2 billion in "reserves" at a time when many districts are raising property taxes, laying off staff and cutting programs:

"As we face another tight budget year, I am furious to find that many of the state’s school districts that are crying poor and blaming the state for their fiscal problems are sitting on surpluses, including one that totals $148 million. Simply put, hard-working taxpayers deserve an explanation of why these reserve funds haven’t been used to help ease the rising costs of education, especially at a time when some communities’ school property taxes have increased."

Gov. Tom Corbett has also called on school boards to dip into reserves to help balance their 2012-13 budgets.

From The Associated Press: "The school districts are making a concerted effort not to go into those reserves," Corbett said, adding that reserves are a rainy day fund that should be used at times like this. 

Read the full release from Rep. Vereb at the link below:

PA State Rep. Mike Vereb - Vereb Outraged to Hear Pennsylvania’s School Districts Boast Reserve Funds Totaling More Than $3.2 Billion

A Smart Politics analysis of presidential election data finds that the states consistently generating the most competitive races over the last 100 years are Missouri, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, with contests in each state decided by single digits in 16 of 26 cycles since 1908, or more than 60 percent of the time.

Battleground States of the Century: Missouri, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin - Smart Politics

Record Number of Pennsylvania Taxpayers File Electronically

Pennsylvania's Employment Situation for April 2012

Pennsylvania Office of Inspector General Announces April 2012 Welfare Fraud Adjudications

State Farm Lists Top Ten States for Dog Bite Claims

Governor Corbett Signs House Bills into Law

Michael Barone: Recent news could cause panic for Obama campaign - HUMAN EVENTS

Who has time to report real news when the mainstream media is devoting all of its resources to find out what Mitt Romney did in high school?

Networks Ignore Embarrassing Political Defeat for Obama: 99-0 Defeat of President's Budget | NewsBusters.org

American Enterprise Institute: Here are 2 devastating debt charts Romney should show at every campaign stop

The federal government is broke, but federal workers received $439 million on bonuses last year on top of their generous pay and benefit packages. No comment from the Obama White House.


GOP targets salaries, 'offensive' bonuses of federal workers - TheHill.com

17 trillion more reasons to repeal ObamaCare - HUMAN EVENTS

Gaming Control Board Releases Table Games Revenue Figures for April

First Lady Susan Corbett Announces Summer Garden Tours at the Governor's Residence

May 20-26, 2012, Is Dog Bite Prevention Week

Michelle Malkin: Obamacare's patient-dumping, privacy-meddling scheme - HUMAN EVENTS

David Limbaugh: Obama is the extremist, not conservative talkers - HUMAN EVENTS

Governor Corbett Announces Recent Nominations, Appointments

Governor Corbett Issues Flag Order in Honor of National Peace Officers Memorial Day

3 On Your Side: Pennsylvania Giving Away Free Booze At Your Expense? « CBS Philly

The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House

State Rep. Jim Cox raises an interesting question of fairness in the way Pennsylvania funds public schools. The burden is carried primarily by property owners, but only 4 million of Pennsylvania's 12 million residents are property owners.

A fairer way to fund public education is a combination of a sales tax and income tax, argues Cox.

Cox: Property Tax Independence Act creates ‘fair way’ to tax

Stan Huskey: Missouri has right idea on property tax

If you haven't figured out yet that the mainstream media is biased, you're not paying attention.

Truth in Labeling: Why Not Just Call The Media Democrats?

Romney hits home run at Liberty University - HUMAN EVENTS

Obama Camp Offered Jeremiah Wright $150,000 to Go Away in 2008 - HUMAN EVENTS

Pennsylvania State Board of Education Considers Changes to Graduation Requirements

EXCLUSIVE: Jealous Michelle Obama's 'rage' led to Oprah being shoved aside, according to Edward Klein's "The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House" - NYPOST.com

Interesting article about Barack Obama, who just might the laziest president in U.S. history.

American Thinker: President Obama's Luxurious Schedule

Daily Presidential Tracking: Romney 50%, Obama 42% - HUMAN EVENTS

Top 10 misguided energy policies - HUMAN EVENTS

West Nile Virus-Carrying Mosquito is Pennsylvania's Earliest Find

Pennsylvania Names Finalists for Teacher of the Year Award

Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare Releases Child Abuse Report to Increase Awareness, Highlight Prevention

John Hayward: An astonishing journalistic train wreck.

The Washington Post’s Romney hit piece comes apart - HUMAN EVENTS

Two striking comments from Nat Hentoff, one of the leading authorities on the Bill of Rights and civil liberties in the United States and a lifelong Democrat:

"Obama is possibly the most dangerous and destructive president we have ever had."

"Will I vote for Romney? To beat Obama, yes. How much more of who we are, though imperfect, will be left after four more years of Obama? We’re not conquered by him yet. Our most powerful weapon to remain who we are, the First Amendment, is open to everyone, whatever Obama thinks of them."

The main issue in the 2012 election

A liberal judge appointed by Barack Obama wants a Virginia school district to cut The 10 Commandments down to The 6 Commandments to eliminate any reference to God or the school district will be forced to remove a display of The 10 Commandments from school property.

A lawsuit was brought against the school district by the ACLU.

This is how crazy these left-wing activist judges have gotten.

Judge Suggests Trimming Ten Commandments to Six | Liveblog | Christianity Today

GPS Monitoring of Sex Offenders Can Cut Recidivism

George F. Will: Taxing jobs out of existence - HUMAN EVENTS

More than 3,000 Years of History Arrive in Philadelphia with "Dead Sea Scrolls: Life and Faith in Ancient Times" at The Franklin Institute

Pennsylvania Department of State Announces Disciplinary Actions Taken Against 126 Licensed, Commissioned Professionals, Organizations

My site counter has recorded 168,000 page views from 135,000 unique visitors to this blog. My main political blog TONY PHYRILLAS ON POLITICS has 430,000 pages views from 350,000 unique visitors. Throw in a couple of the other blogs I publish and it's 700,000 page views from 550,000 unique visitors. by Thanks for checking out the blogs ... and come back again.

The majority of Americans say marriage should be between a man and a woman. More than 30 states ban gay marriage. But Barack Obama today says he supports same-sex marriage. Mark this date (May 9, 2012) on your calendar. It could be the day Obama lost the election.

Obama endorses gay marriage - The Hill's Video

If the election were held today, Mitt Romney would win by a landslide, says pundit Dick Morris.

A Romney landslide - TheHill.com

What ‘The Life of Julia’ tells us about the ‘Life of Barack’

Tuesday's primary elections were a repudiation of Obama's policies.

Barack Obama’s bad night - HUMAN EVENTS

Pennsylvania Governor Corbett Signs House, Senate Bills into Law

Governor Corbett Proclaims May 9 as State Employee Recognition Day

Four in 10 voters gave a vote of no confidence to Barack Obama by supporting an inmate in West Virginia's Democratic primary on Tuesday. The Obama enthusiasm gap is widening.

Prisoner gets 41% against Obama in W.Va. primary

Santorum explains Romney endorsement to Jay Leno

David Limbaugh: Truth is major obstacle to Obama's re-election - HUMAN EVENTS

Inspector General report ends myth that TARP 'turned a profit' - HUMAN EVENTS

Santorum endorses Romney - HUMAN EVENTS

On Monday, more than 500 taxpayers rallied in Harrisburg in favor of a bill to eliminate school property taxes in Pennsylvania. The Associated Press and the Harrisburg Patriot-News did not send a reporter or photographer to the event. Today, less than 100 union members held a rally in favor of higher spending for education and welfare programs. The Associated Press has a story and the Harrisburg paper has a photo of the union members all wearing purple T-shirts. Anyone see any bias in how the liberal media covers events? And I digress, but did the 100 union members skip work to attend the rally?

PA Governor Corbett Announces Winners of School Fitness Centers Contest

Darby Borough man dies at 105, was oldest living marine (With Video) - delcotimes.com

The Big Fail: Obama By The Numbers | RNC: Republican National Committee | GOP

Rep. Warren Kampf says the Pennsylvania Legislature needs to do more to improve the state's business climate and spur job growth.

Business tax reform is critical for job growth

Consumer Reports: Unnecessary Medical Care That Can Be Hazardous To Your Health And Your Wallet

CF Applauds Use of Taxpayer Protection Act in Pa. Senate Budget

I don't understand the reluctance to support reforming the way Pennsylvania funds public education. The current system is broken. Nearly every school district in the state has had to lay off teachers and cut programs because property taxes do not provide adequate funding? So why stick with the same failed system?

State Rep. Jim Cox - Homeowners Rally for Property Tax Replacement at State Capitol

Swing states' challenges: Obama and the economy, Romney and enthusiasm – USATODAY.com

Guest column: Pre-abortion ultrasound statutes are important - delcotimes.com

Two Pennsylvania lawmakers want to change the way Pennsylvania voters elect school board members to avoid having lame-duck members make important decisions after voters have thrown them out of office.

Nonpartisan school board elections discussed in Downingtown

Something about the poor Obama is always talking about just doesn't add up.

Missing: $400 purse holding $800 cash, plus food stamp cards - HUMAN EVENTS

Homeowners Rally for Property Tax Replacement at State Capitol

Awful. Obama Officials Drafted Memo to Blame Military If OBL Mission Failed (Video) - HUMAN EVENTS

Top 10 products Obama will force us to buy - HUMAN EVENTS

"Great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, small minds discuss people."

 — Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, "father" of America's nuclear navy (1900-1986)

Don't trust the Obama Administration numbers on the jobless rate. It's really above 11 percent, but the state-run liberal media doesn't want you to know that.

The awful April jobs report: Is the ‘real’ unemployment rate 11.1%?

My site counter has recorded 165,000 page views from 132,000 unique visitors to this blog. My main blog, Tony Phyrillas On Politics has attracted 427,000 page views from 350,000 unique visitors. Throw in a few other blogs I publish and I'm over 700,000 page views from 600,000 unique visitors.

Columnist Kathryn Lopez says a successful businessman like Mitt Romney probably has a better shot at fixing the U.S. economy than community organizer Barack Obama, who inherited a bad economy but  made everything worse over the past three years.

Kathryn Lopez: Could Romney succeed where Obama has failed?

PA State Police Fingerprint Identification System to be Upgraded

Don't buy into the liberal media spin. There is nothing good about today’s job numbers.

U.S. workforce collapses to 30-year low - HUMAN EVENTS

Berks County State Rep. Jim Cox on why he introduced House Bill 1776, aka The Property Tax Independence Act:

“Many Pennsylvanians lose their homes and a lifetime’s work to sheriff’s sales each year because they can no longer afford to pay their property taxes. Senior citizens on fixed incomes are increasingly forced to sell their homes because of unrelenting increases in their tax burden.” 

Lawmaker sponsors property tax elimination bill

I've Tweeted more than 25,000 times. So how many of those Tweets were worth reading?

Study: Only 36 Percent of Tweets Are “Worth Reading” - 10,000 Words

Eliminating school property taxes is a complicated process and this bill introduced by Berks County state Rep. David Maloney is an important step.

PA State Rep. David Maloney's Property Tax Homestead Exemption Passes House

Michael Barone: Obama's Chicago politics: Thuggery not civility - HUMAN EVENTS

Pennsylvania Community Colleges First To Adopt Voluntary Framework Of Accountability State-Wide

Pennsylvania DCED Secretary Declares Altoona 'Financially Distressed' Under Act 47

Walter E. Williams: America's two-faced liberals - HUMAN EVENTS

Pennsylvania Slots Revenue Figures Released For April

How desperate are some people?

Thieves making off with West Pottsgrove sewer grates

Hundreds of Pennsylvania taxpayers are headed to Harrisburg on May 7 to send a message to Gov. Tom Corbett and the Legislature: Eliminate school property taxes now!

Residents to rally against school property taxes

New Poll: One in Four Democrats Favors Obamacare's Repeal

Supporters of voter fraud are rejoicing today as the Democratic Party, the ACLU and the NAACP have filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn Pennsylvania's new law requiring a valid photo ID to cast a vote.

Pa. voter ID law challenged in court

April is always a good month for the taxman.

Pennsylvania tax revenues in April exceeded expectations but the state is still facing a potential $288 budget shortfall for the current fiscal year, which runs through June 30.

PA Revenue Department Releases April Collections

Pennsylvania Governor Corbett: State, Federal Investment to Enhance 27 Airports

When liberals are losing a debate, they usually resort to grade-school name-calling.

How Original: Behar Makes Fat Joke About Christie | NewsBusters.org

ABC Sanitizes May Day's Communist Ties, Touts the 'Traditional Day of Protest' | NewsBusters.org

Burger flipper alert: flat income growth signals poor job quality - HUMAN EVENTS

Why do conservative authors go on liberal shows to promote their books? You know nobody watching these shows are going to buy the book.

The tyranny of Piers Morgan’s clichés - HUMAN EVENTS