In a series of end-of-administration interviews and a press conference, Gov. Rendell this week outlined his Administration's accomplishments since taking office in 2003. They included:
Economic Development
-- Invested $4.4 billion in economic development programs to help create 308,694 projected jobs and retain 101,162 projected jobs.
-- Trained 157,000 workers for high-skill, high-demand jobs that pay a family-sustaining wage.
-- A 2005 report by IBM Business Consulting Services ranked Pennsylvania 5th among the 50 states for attracting the most foreign direct investment.
Energy
-- Implemented the state’s first-ever Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards, requiring that 18 percent of all energy come from renewable or advanced energy sources by 2020.
-- Enacted conservation measures that will reduce energy consumption by three percent by 2013, including a 4.5 percent reduction in peak demand.
-- Ranked third in the nation for clean energy jobs by the Pew Charitable Trusts and second in the nation for solar industry jobs according to the Solar Foundation.
-- Recognized by the EPA as the fifth largest purchaser of green power in the nation and the only state in the top 20.
-- Click Here for more details on environmental and energy accomplishments.
Education
-- Increased student achievement for all grades in reading and math, bringing 290,000 more students up to grade level since 2003.
-- Recognized by the non-partisan Center for Education Policy as the only state in the nation making significant progress boosting achievement in all subject and grade levels
-- Implemented a school funding formula to invest in proven academic programs and take the burden off of local property taxes.
-- Provided the state’s first-ever investment in pre-kindergarten, and now 11,475 children are in the Pre-K Counts program.
Children's Health Insurance
-- Since 2003, total enrollment in CHIP has increased by 53 percent; the program now provides health insurance to 193,223 children, a 67,240 increase.
-- Enacted legislation to Cover All Kids so that every family can afford health insurance for their children by expanding eligibility and making it possible to enroll 39,454 additional kids.
Governmental Efficiency
-- Reduced the cost of operating the government by more than $1.75 billion annually through management and productivity reforms in order to better serve taxpayers
-- Reduced general government operations spending below 2003 levels.
-- Ranked seventh in the nation for fiscal stability, according to a Pew student of state finances as reported in the Wall Street Journal; Pennsylvania was the only large industrial state and the only state in the northeast to appear in the top ten.
Property Tax Relief
-- Enacted a historic property tax relief law that has reduced property taxes by an average of $200 for every household and will ultimately provide $1 billion a year in property tax relief.
-- Eliminated school property taxes for 120,000 seniors, and cut school property taxes in half for an additional 108,000 senior citizens.
-- Put in place the state’s first-ever limits on a school board’s ability to raise property taxes without voter approval.
These items were included in a more comprehensive list of Administration Accomplishments and in a separate Campaign Promises Kept summary.
