State to Shut Down?
State House and Senate members clock long hours to get the budget in on time.
Will the state budget pass before the June 30 deadline? State House and Senate members have been clocking in long hours to meet deadlines but, as usual, partisan politics are getting in the way. Looks like the Democrats and Republicans will battle it out until the 11th hour.
Democratic state Rep. Babette Josephs accused Republicans of holding up the process but remains "cautiously optimistic" that the budget would pass on time, averting a potential shutdown of state services. (Attempts to reach GOP state Rep. George Kenney by press time were unsuccessful.)
Police and firefighters and other emergency life-saving employees would not be affected. At greatest risk are "nonessential" state employees who would be furloughed if the budget does not pass by deadline, according to a letter to workers from John Gasdaska, director of the Office of Human Resources.
"If a budget is not enacted by July 1, 2007, you should continue to report to work as scheduled until you are notified that a budget impasse has been declared," he wrote. But, "the declaration of a budget impasse may impact your position and you."
G. Terry Madonna, director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs and the Keystone Poll at Franklin and Marshall College, estimates there's a 70 percent chance crisis will be averted.
"One problem is that there is a lot of skittish new members in Harrisburg that are afraid that the press is going to beat them up if they vote for any tax increases," says Madonna. Last year, many entrenched senators and House members lost seats because of the secret, middle-of-the-night pay-raise vote which angered voters. "Remember last year, a lot of these candidates' sole campaign agenda was anti-pay raise.
"These officials are afraid of what the media will say and write. If after July 4, there is no budget, then museums and parks will be the first to shut down." (The local effects would include the closure of slots parlors, racetracks, state parks, highway welcome centers, driver's license centers and fire-academy training for first responders.)
Most Democrats want to pass Rendell's agenda. Josephs, who represents the 182nd District in Center City and South Philly, explains why she believes the GOP opposes Rendell's initiatives just because they're his initiatives.
Rendell is pushing the passage of the Jonas Salk Legacy Fund, a bioscience-research initiative funded with a portion of the state tobacco-settlement payments. The fund, named after the noted Pittsburgh medical scientist who discovered a cure for polio, would create more than 13,000 jobs and put the state on the industry's map.
Republicans, however, oppose funding the bricks-and-mortar costs for the research centers. They also say they don't want to deviate from the original use of the funding, which was earmarked for medical issues directly related to smoking. So, the Republicans are all voting straight party line against it.
Madonna pointed out that since he took office, Rendell has never passed a budget on time, unlike former GOP Gov. Tom Ridge, who passed his budgets early.
Gaming: This Year's Pay Raise
Looking ahead to next year's House elections, will those legislators who voted for the casinos be vulnerable, like their pay-raise brethren? Josephs' Democratic opponent Lawrence Farnese is already using the fact that she voted for casinos as a campaign tool.
Farnese ran unsuccessfully against Josephs last year, but is gearing up for another run. He is the beneficiary of a fundraiser next week at the Moshulu but said he does not intend to announce his candidacy at the event.
"I don't think it's any secret that I am running," said Farnese, a lawyer at Buchanan Ingersoll who is hammering Josephs for voting for casinos in 2004 and now announcing proposed legislation that would not allow casinos within 1,500 feet of residences, schools, green spaces or places of worship. "She is completely out of touch on the issues. We need someone in the district who does not flip-flop."
Josephs said that she voted with the Rendell agenda that supported gaming here in order to reduce the wage tax, which she said is a repressive, business-stifling levy. She stressed she is introducing the bill because now casinos have gained more control.
"She is politically mislead and she can't have it both ways," said Farnese.
Josephs strongly disagrees.
"Where was my opponent when Rendell was busy passing the casino legislation?" she asks. "In fact, I stopped Rendell from allowing the casinos to have control over their locations and fought to keep the power with the zoning boards."
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