The State Senate today approved and sent to the House of Representatives legislation that provides the revenue component to fund the Fiscal Year 2017-18 state budget, which was approved in June.
Senate Republican leaders offered the following statements on House Bill 542, which includes limited borrowing and modest, targeted revenue enhancements that offer the promise of meeting the state’s current and future financial obligations.
Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-25): “The reality of our state budget situation this year required many difficult decisions to be made. With today’s completion of a revenue package to fund the budget spending plan, we have taken a responsible step forward to set our Commonwealth on solid financial footing.”
Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman (R-34): “If you look at the state budget and take out mandated costs like human services, corrections and pensions, we are spending less money today than we were in 2010. We’ve done everything we can in state government to contain spending in the areas that we have the ability to do in order to avoid any tax increase. Unfortunately, we are here today because we ran out of our ability to do that. If we are going to maintain our responsibility to educate our children, provide for higher education, provide for human services and pay our debts, we are in a position that we have find the revenue needed to make that happen.”
Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Pat Browne (R-16): “This financial package of bills provides the necessary revenues needed to close the gap between current revenue collections and the fiscal year 2017-18 state budget passed last month. Despite the tremendous short term financial challenges facing the Commonwealth and with over a decade of belt tightening, these are financially sound proposals that balance the budget and provide for necessary and critical state programs and services.”