PA lawmakers may be too far apart to meet budget deadline

Now that Governor Rendell has called for a personal income tax increase, Democrats and Republicans are further apart than ever on budget negotiations.

Now that Governor Rendell has called for a personal income tax increase, Democrats and Republicans are further apart than ever on budget negotiations.

One caucus leader says there’s no way lawmakers will have a spending plan by the June 30 deadline.

For more than a month, Governor Rendell and Democrats have hammered the budget passed by Senate Republicans as too drastic.
They said it reduced funding for too many critical programs, and would cripple social safety nets.

Now Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi says the next budget passed by the chamber will have even less funding.

Listen: [audio:090616sdjune30.mp3]

Pileggi: We know that since May 6, when we voted Senate Bill 850, things have changed in revenue collection and revenue projection. And that we would need to make reductions in spending to tailor Senate Bill 850 to the May collections and the projections for next year.

Pileggi says it’s unrealistic to expect a budget will be passed by the legal June 30 deadline.

He says there’s no support for a personal income tax increase among Senate Republicans.

Rendell wants to raise the tax rate to 3.57 percent for the next three years, in order to make up for lost revenue.