Local legislators react to passage of House state budget
By Linda Finarelli
Ambler Gazette
Montgomery Media
May 26, 2011
Local legislators backed their respective party the day after the state House voted 109-92 to pass a $27.3 billion budget for 2011-12. All Democrats and only two Republicans voted against the bill.
Republicans said the budget reflects the reality of reduced revenues while restoring much of the governor’s proposed cuts to public education. Democrats said while some spending cuts are necessary, the Republican budget cut too deeply and failed to include unanticipated revenues, put between $500 million and $1 billion.
While keeping the total expenditure the same and calling for no tax increases, the House budget restores more than a half-billion of the $1.1 billion cut to education under Gov. Tom Corbett’s proposed budget. Included in the restored funding for K-12 schools is $100 million for the Accountability Block Grant program used by districts to fund prekindergarten, full-day kindergarten and tutoring programs; $100 million for basic education funding; and $43 million in Social Security reimbursements.
In addition, the budget puts back $387 million toward higher education, of which $195 million would go to the 14 state-owned universities that make up the State System of Higher Education. Corbett’s budget cuts funding to those schools by 47 percent; the House bill increases the level to 85 percent of the current year.
To balance the increased education funding, nearly $500 million in cuts were made to health care and human service programs, while K-12 education funding is still cut by $976 million and higher education by about $300 million.
“It was a difficult decision given some of the cuts we were forced to make due to reduced revenues but, like all households, state government must live within its means,” state Rep. Todd Stephens, R-151, said in a statement. “It was important for me that we were able to restore most of the proposed cuts to our public schools.”
Stephens termed the Department of Public Welfare “rife with inefficiency and abuse,” and said a number of reforms passed, including a bill he authored, will help the DPW save money.
“This was a difficult vote, but this budget addresses some hard financial realities,” said state Rep. Tom Murt, R-152, who also praised the restored education funding in a statement. “This will make a major difference for parents who would have faced major tuition increases.”
“It’s not a great budget, but it’s a bad year,” said State Rep. Kate Harper, R-44, Wednesday. “It took care of the people I represent. It restored most of the money K-12 that my districts were missing” and most of the higher education cuts.
The budget restores almost $3 million to the North Penn School District, which lies in her district and was particularly hard-hit under Corbett’s proposal, she said. With those funds the district will not have to cut teachers, raise taxes or lose any services.
Having introduced a bill last month to tax the Marcellus Shale drillers and use that money to fund educational and environmental programs in next year’s budget, Harper said, “Even though I would have been OK with a Marcellus Shale tax, I’m happy to be able to [have a budget] without an taxes in this budget year.”
Harper downplayed the $500 million in unanticipated state revenue, saying, “We’ve had one month where revenue exceeded expectations. We owe the federal government $3 billion to $4 billion for unemployment … we’re down $3 billion from what we had to spend with federal stimulus money. It’s crazy to claim that one month we do well so we’re sitting in clover.”
State Rep. Josh Shapiro, D-153, disputed Harper’s characterization of state revenues, calling the budget passed “fiscally irresponsible” in that it “fails to tap” a legislative surplus of $188 million controlled by the Democratic and Republican House and Senate leaders, and a $500 million revenue surplus, which Corbett has said he would put in the Rainy Day Fund.
Despite the restored education funding, he said, the Abington School District would be down 10 percent of its funding and Upper Dublin 9 percent. Though money was put back in the Accountability Block Program, it’s still been cut by 60 percent, he said.
The bill makes “devastating cuts to human services that will have a harsh impact on children, the disabled, seniors and those who need drug and alcohol treatment,” Shapiro added. The cuts will “push tough choices to the county and local governments and burden local taxpayers.”
Responding to House Majority Leader Mike Turzai’s claim that the Democrats didn’t put up a budget proposal of their own, Shapiro said, “It was impossible for us to present a balanced budget because we weren’t allowed to use those revenue sources.”
Republicans control the House, Senate and governor’s office, “they get the final say,” he said. “They’ve shown they’re unwilling to work with us.”
State Rep. Mike Gerber, D-148, called the House budget “a vehicle … a political statement by the majority party. There is no budget deal,” he said.
Several Senate leaders have already said they won’t vote for the House budget bill, Gerber said. They have asked that the budget secretary certify the surplus, “so we know how much we’re dealing with.”
Gerber said the House budget “is not dealing with all the revenues we have at our disposal,” and other revenues should be sought, such as taxing the Marcellus Shale drillers and smokeless tobacco, which he said is taxed in every other state.
The House version would lead to increases in property taxes and college tuition and a reduction in job training, Gerber said. “Hospitals will lose tens of millions each and will have to make adjustments to their workforce.”
Professions held traditionally by women — teachers, child care workers, social workers and nurses — “is where we will see jobs cut,” he said.
“This is less worse than Corbett’s budget, but it doesn’t need to be that bad.”