Budget deadlock remains

Staff and wire reports

HARRISBURG — A Republican budget proposal went down to defeat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Thursday after hours of debate that showed neither side had much interest in softening their bargaining positions.

The 103-95 vote was not a surprise — Democrats control the chamber by five seats, and two Republicans are serving in Iraq. The result suggested the Democrats’ rival plan probably will pass when it is called up today.

The tenor of the debate also was nothing new, with Republicans emphasizing how their proposal was balanced without imposing new or expanded taxes, while Democrats warned of dire consequences if it were to become law.

State Rep. John Yudichak, one member of a coalition of conservative Democrats in the House, predicted a budget would be approved in two weeks and would not include a personal income tax increase.

Yudichak, D-Nanticoke, said he doubted the Republican-led Senate would approve the House bill, though; rather, a conference committee of House and Senate members would meet to hammer out a compromise deal. He said the goal is “to have a responsible balanced budget on the governor’s desk” in one or two weeks.

Such a budget, he said, wouldn’t include Gov. Ed Rendell’s proposal for a three-year hike in the personal income tax from 3.07 percent to 3.57 percent, an increase of more than 16 percent. Rendell says the move would cost a family making $48,000 a year an extra $4.50 per week.

Yudichak said that while it may sound minimal to some, he said now “is not the best time to be increasing taxes or increasing government spending.

“We’ve got to do anything we can do avoid a personal income tax increase,” he said. And some of his Democratic colleagues are helping the Republicans effort to thwart any tax increases.

Pennsylvania ended its fiscal year more than two weeks ago without a budget, which has severely curtailed state government’s ability to spend money. State workers who get paid today will collect only what they earned in June, and in two weeks their pay will be withheld entirely until a budget is in place.

Whatever passes the House will go to the Republican-controlled Senate, which passed an austere budget in early May that all sides agree is not in balance.

House Bill 1416 is a $29.1 billion tax-increase-free spending plan sponsored by Rep. Dwight Evans, D-Philadelphia. The proposal leaves out $1.3 billion in funding for some universities, community colleges and student loans without a way to pay for it. The legislature would provide that money in a separate fund.

Yudichak said it’s something to move the process forward.

Some House Republicans have lambasted the Democrats’ proposal as dangerous and said it leaves too many questions about education funding.

State Rep. Karen Boback, R-Harveys Lake, said, “I cannot vote for a budget without knowing exactly how we are going to fund institutions of higher learning . . .. I want answers on where that money is going to come from. I have to protect the interest of students, their families and taxpayers.”