Washington, D.C. – Club for Growth Foundation has released its 2025 State Economic Scorecard in Pennsylvania, offering residents of the Keystone State details on how every state legislator evaluates limited government policies.
The Scorecard analyzes policies and votes to assign an Economic Growth Score from 0 to 100, with 100 representing the highest support for pro-growth policies. In 2025, the Foundation’s study examined over 975 floor votes and, in the end, included 19 Pennsylvania House votes and 15 Pennsylvania Senate votes.
“Pennsylvania squandered real fiscal wins in 2025,” said Club for Growth Foundation President David McIntosh. “After legislators repealed the RGGI carbon tax scheme that cost taxpayers up to $1.5 billion annually, tightened unemployment insurance eligibility, and streamlined regulatory review, they reversed course. The $50.1 billion General Fund budget increases spending by 5.3%, tacking on an $850 million hike in K-12 spending, and permanently extending Medicaid provider tax schemes despite $2.3 billion in improper payments. The result is a $5.1 billion structural deficit that Pennsylvania taxpayers will be left to shoulder. Legislators in Harrisburg must reevaluate how they approach legislation or risk Pennsylvania’s economic future.”
Click here to view the full 2025 Pennsylvania State Economic Scorecard from the Club for Growth Foundation.
Key Highlights from the 2025 Pennsylvania Scorecard:
Pennsylvania House:
- Average Republican Score: 49%
- Average Democratic Score: 1%
- Highest Rated Republican(s): Rep. Dallas Kephart (HD-73): 100%
- Highest Rated Democrat(s): Rep. Greg Vitali (HD-166): 20%
- Lowest Rated Republican(s): Rep. Thomas Mehafie (HD-106): 10%
- Lowest Rated Democrat(s): 95 Democrats scored 0%
Pennsylvania Senate:
- Average Republican Score: 53%
- Average Democrat Score: 8%
- Highest Rated Republican(s): Sen. Jarrett Coleman (SD-16): 100%
- Highest Rated Democrat(s): Sens. Lisa Boscola (SD-18) and Mick Miller (SD-14): 28%
- Lowest Rated Republican(s): Sen. Lynda Schlegel Culver (SD-27): 39%
- Lowest Rated Democrat(s): 12 Democrats scored 0%
Notable Pro-Limited Government Policies:
SB 153 – MODEST UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE REFORMS
- Implements new conditions for terminating UI payments, including attempts by recipients to discourage their own employment
- Prohibits claimants from refusing to participate in an interview offered by an employer, or refusing to accept employment or listen to job details offered by an employer, without good cause
SB 444 – MODEST REGULATORY REFORMS
- Defines an “economically significant” regulation as one that imposes a direct or indirect cost of at least $1 million annually and, after three years, requires the relevant agency to report the regulation’s total impact to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC)
- Requires public comment for at least 30 days, followed by an IRRC report on whether the regulation meets the requirements of the Regulatory Review Act and whether statutory changes are warranted
SB 1068 – ELIMINATING GREEN CLIMATE SCAM
- Repeals statutory regulations perpetuating onerous provisions under the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) cap-and-trade climate scheme
- The RGGI imposes a carbon tax on electricity producers that costs taxpayers between $780 million and $1.5 billion annually
- Over Pennsylvania’s six years participation, the RGGI has caused a 65% drop in natural gas generation projects, a loss of more than 3,800 megawatts of lost generation capacity
Notable Anti-Limited Government Policies:
HB 416 – PROFLIGATE FISCAL CODE OMNIBUS
The FY2025-26 Fiscal Code creates:
- $10 million Affordable Housing Credit program to subsidize more government housing projects
- Establishes a $200 million Working Pennsylvanians Tax Credit carveout as a state supplement for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit welfare handout
- Authorizes a $60 million transfer from unexpended taxpayer funds to the Enterprise and Technology Fund for myriad pet projects
- Implements a $160 million federal “Solar-For-All” Green New Deal slush fund
- Expands government-subsidized pre-K grants by 2.4 percent per child
HB 640 – PERMANENT MEDICAID FUNDING TRIGGER
- Permanently extends the Medicaid provider tax schemes within the state’s managed care organizations, long-term care facilities, nursing homes, and hospitals by tying the sunset for these assessments to what is permitted under federal law
- Improper payments under the state’s Medicaid program have totaled at least $2.3 billion
SB 160 – MISSED OPPORTUNITY GENERAL FUND SPENDING
- Spends $50.1 billion for the FY2025-2026 fiscal year, a 5.3 percent increase in General Fund spending over the previous budget that includes:
- $850 million increase in K-12 spending
- $1.1 billion in increased welfare spending
- 9% annual increase for the state’s destructive and fraud-prone Medicaid program
- Expansion of the state’s crony economic development programs
- Small wins include exiting the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and streamlining state permitting procedures
- The bill perpetuates a $5.1 billion structural deficit
Note: This Scorecard is based on selected votes and does not reflect a legislator’s entire voting record. The Club for Growth Foundation does not endorse or oppose any legislator for public office.