Changes

The Commonwealth Foundation has ties to the [[American Legislative Exchange Council]] through its membership in various ALEC "task forces." Director of Policy Analysis for Commonwealth, Nathan Benefield, is a member of the [[Tax and Fiscal Policy Task Force]].<ref>American Legislative Exchange Council, Tax and Fiscal Policy Task Force meeting agenda and materials, June 30, 2011, on file with CMD</ref> Senior Fellow, Rick Dreyfuss, is a member of the [[Health and Human Services Task Force]] and policy analyst, Elizabeth Stelle, is a member of the [[Energy, Environment and Agriculture Task Force]].<ref>American Legislative Exchange Council, Health and Human Services Task Force meeting agenda and materials, June 30, 2011, on file with CMD</ref><ref>American Legislative Exchange Council, Energy, Environment and Agriculture Task Force meeting agenda and materials, June 30, 2011, on file with CMD</ref> SPN, of which Commonwealth is a member, is also an ALEC member and has strong historical ties to ALEC -- several historical documents even indicate that ALEC founded SPN.<ref>Rebekah Wilce, [httphttps://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/12/12339/did-alec-found-spn-1991-report-suggests-so-exposes-spn-agenda Did ALEC Found SPN? 1991 Report Suggests So, Exposes SPN Agenda], ''PRWatch'', December 12, 2013.</ref> According to an August 2013 ALEC board document obtained by ''The Guardian'', Commonwealth terminated its ALEC membership on March 9, 2013 because, according to an ALEC note, it was considered a "former SPN member... - would like to join again if can fit in budget."<ref name="ALECboard"/>

The Commonwealth Foundation started the ''Pennsylvania Independent'', a "statehouse news" publication, in 2010 and transitioned to the ALEC-connected [[Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity]] in January 2011.<ref>Pew Research Center, [http://features.journalism.org/non-profit-news/statehouse-news-online/pennsylvania-independent/ Pennsylvania Independent], Journalism.org, organizational publication, accessed April 2013.</ref> The Franklin Center screens potential reporters on their “free market” views as part of the job application process.<ref>Franklin Center, [http://franklincenterhq.org/2376/think-tank-journalism-the-future-of-investigative-reporting/ Franklin Affiliates in Your State], organizational website, accessed October 2012.</ref> The Franklin Center funds reporters in over 40 states.<ref>The Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity, [http://www.franklincenterhq.org/2376/think-tank-journalism-the-future-of-investigative-reporting/ Think tank Journalism: The Future of Investigative Journalism], organizational website, accessed August 19, 2011.</ref> Despite their non-partisan description, many of the websites funded by the Franklin Center have received criticism for their conservative bias.<ref>Rebekah Metzler, [http://www.pressherald.com/news/watchdog-website-puts-a-new-spin-on-politics_2010-10-02.html 'Watchdog' website puts a new spin on politics], ''The Portland Press Herald'', accessed August 19, 2011.</ref><ref>Allison Kilkenny, [http://www.truth-out.org/koch-spider-web/1312231636 The Koch Spider Web], ''Truthout'', accessed August 19, 2011.</ref> On its website, the Franklin Center claims it "provides 10 percent of all daily reporting from state capitals nationwide."<ref> Sara Jerving, [httphttps://www.prwatch.org/news/2011/10/10971/franklin-center-right-wing-funds-state-news-source Franklin Center: Right-Wing Funds State News Source], ''[httphttps://www.prwatch.org PRWatch.org]'', October 27, 2011.</ref>