PA leaders meet on state budget

Governor Ed Rendell met with two lead negotiators from the House and Senate in an effort to resolve the impasse.

Pennsylvania’s budget standoff has moved to the Governor’s Mansion. Governor Ed Rendell is meeting with two lead negotiators from the House and Senate this afternoon in an effort to resolve the impasse.

Listen:
[audio: 090731spbudget.mp3]

The talks include House Appropriations Chairman Dwight Evans, a Philadelphia Democrat, and the Republican leader of the state Senate, Dominic Pileggi of Delaware County.

Senator Pileggi says the main sticking point remains the governor’s proposal to raise the state income tax by 16 percent. He says another thing holding up the talks is the concern that Philadelphia will get more than its share of resources.

Pileggi: A large percentage of the additional educational money that the governor continues to argue for go to philadelphia school children in a proportionally greater number than the school children outside of Philadelphia.

Pileggi says Rendell’s income tax proposal has no support in the Capitol and little support among constituents.

Rendell says if there’s no movement by Monday he wants the House to send him a budget bill that he can strip down with his line-item veto power.