HARRISBURG, February 15, 2012 — State Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) issued the following statement in reaction to public comments made by Senate President Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson) regarding moving Pennsylvania’s primary election and the possibility of an early state budget:
“I agree with Sen. Scarnati that the primary election should not be moved. It should be held on April 24 as planned. Moving the primary date creates a number of problems and would result in a major cost to counties and taxpayers.
Furthermore, moving the primary is disrespectful to more than 100,000 thousand citizens who have signed nominating petitions and who are participating in the election process. The spirit, intent and letter of the state Supreme Court and federal court rulings would be disrespected if the primary were moved.
The redistricting process needs to be deliberate and thoughtful and it must include participation from the public. The Legislative Reapportionment Commission should not force a plan through without full consideration of the guidance provided by the state Supreme Court.
I also agree with Sen. Scarnati that the state budget should be considered in June after the revenue picture becomes clearer. As we learned last year, May and June are critical months for collection. Passing a budget before the state takes in such a significant amount of revenue has the potential to create unnecessary hardship and more burdens on our taxpayers, seniors, students and working families because the budget will be difficult. While meeting the budget deadline is something we must achieve, meeting it months early when we do not have all of the information necessary to make an educated decision is not in the best interest of Pennsylvania taxpayers.”
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