What Do You Think: 10 Random Policy Points

Often times when debating or discussing politics and policy, facts are tossed aside in favor of more emotional arguments. Even worse, when one side of a legitimate but spirited debate falters, it has somehow become acceptable to either refuse to accept the facts as accurate or point out some comparable flaw in an effort to make two wrongs make a right.

By way of experimentation, here are 10 totally unrelated facts about issues we deal with in Pennsylvania government. Let’s see what happens.

1. Currently, 11.2 million, or 88 percent, of Pennsylvania’s 12.6 million residents live within a 15-minute drive of a Pennsylvania Wine & Spirits Store. 

2. According to U.S. Census Bureau estimates, more than 467,500 rural Pennsylvanians, or 14 percent of the rural population, lived in poverty in 2010, which is a 13 percent increase since 2006. In the U.S., 46.2 million people lived in poverty in 2010, a 19 percent increase from 2006.

3. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has estimated that more than $4 billion in Pennsylvania's medical expenditures are attributable to obesity.

4. The American Society of Civil Engineers gave the U.S. an overall grade of “D” for deteriorating transportation infrastructure that will cost the U.S. economy more than $3.1 trillion by 2020.

5. It has been estimated that traffic congestion costs Pennsylvanians $2.7 billion each year. Pennsylvania’s congestion is expected to increase by 50 percent to 60 percent over the next 30 years unless a multifaceted congestion mitigation program is established.

6. Since the first game went on sale in 1972, the Pennsylvania Lottery has contributed more than $21.5 billion in services for older Pennsylvanians through Property Tax/Rent Rebate program; a free and reduced-fare transit program; the low-cost prescription drug programs; long-term living services; and 52 Area Agencies on Aging, including hundreds of senior community centers. Lottery sales have expanded more than 50 percent from $2.1 billion in 2002-03 to $3.2 billion in 2010-11.

7. A study of 10,000 participants in PA Pre-K Counts found that 21.5 percent of 3-year-old children were at-risk for problematic social and self-control behavior at the beginning of the program, but only 3.6 percent were still at-risk at the end of the program. Research shows that 60 percent of children with persistent high levels of disruptive, aggressive behaviors in early childhood will manifest high levels of antisocial and delinquent behavior later in life. Gov. Tom Corbett’s proposed budget cuts Pre-K Counts by $4.1 million or 5 percent.

8. According to a new CDC study, one in 88 U.S. kids has autism, which is almost double the number diagnosed 10 years ago. The study also found that autism disorders were almost five times more common in boys and that an increasingly large proportion of children with autism have IQs of 85 or higher, which contradicts past assumptions that most had IQs of 70 or below.

9. Students enrollment at the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education universities has increased over the past 10 years to approximately 120,000 students, 90 percent of whom are Pennsylvanians. With four out of five graduates staying in Pennsylvania, it is estimated that nearly 500,000 alumni currently live in the state. PASSHE is also the 13^th largest employer in Pennsylvania with more than 12,150 professional and support staff.

10. Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in Pennsylvania. An estimated 20,000 adults in the state die annually from smoking-related causes. The health care costs and lost productivity directly caused by smoking amount to $9.83 billion for the state each year.