Harrisburg – April 3, 2012 – At a news conference outside the doors of the Senate Chamber, state Senate Democrats unveiled a budget plan calling for more than $1 billion in new investments to help create jobs, fund education and repair the social safety net.
The Senate Democrats’ plan does not require a tax increase.
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Sen. Jay Costa, the Democratic floor leader, said that caucus budget priorities are “balanced and fair because the plan does not contain general tax increases yet it provides for hundreds of millions dollars for new investments in job creation, education, social safety net programs and property tax reductions.”
Costa (D-Allegheny) said that Senate Democrats believe they can cull more than $1 billion in new revenues if Gov. Tom Corbett is willing to engage in discussions.
Costa said that the Senate Democratic budget priorities rely on rebalancing debt, implementing innovation and efficiencies and leveraging federal money.
“We have been promised that we will have a seat at this year’s budget negotiations and we plan on bringing an aggressive, principle-driven plan to the attention of the governor and legislative Republicans,” Costa said.
Last year, Costa and House Democratic colleagues were excluded from budget discussions.
The Corbett administration and Republican negotiators produced a widely-scorned budget plan that eviscerated social safety net programs, caused local property taxes to spike, education programs to suffer, and teachers to be laid off – a plan that “failed to meet the needs of working families,” Costa said.
Senate Democratic Appropriations Chairman Sen. Vincent J. Hughes (D-Philadelphia) said that Senate Democrats were going to closely examine the Corbett administration budget figures given their experience of last year.
“Last year, the governor missed the revenue surplus by ten-fold and significantly underestimated the cost of their bonus depreciation gift to big business,” Hughes said. “We believe that with a true reckoning of revenue this year, combined with the implementation of our budget ideas, we can make investments that create jobs now and meet challenges faced by working families.”
Hughes said Senate Democrats would like to add at least $250 million into Accountability Block Grants and higher education along with another $200 million in job creation strategies that include research and development. He said that his Senate Democratic colleagues are renewing their call to refocus unused cash in the Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA) for job creation.
Hughes also indicated that the amount of money that Democrats are requesting for each item will grow if more revenues become available.
According to Costa, if the Senate Democratic budget priorities are captured and used for the 2012-13 budget plan, overall General Fund spending would only slightly rise – an increase of less than 1.5 percent.
“Our participation in budget discussions will hopefully prevent another budget filled with cuts that have had far-reaching ramifications,” Costa said. “With the resources available and more revenues gained through efficiencies and program adjustments there is no reason why we can’t move Pennsylvania forward now.”
Costa said Corbett’s last budget was unpopular and crafted to benefit big business at the expense of working families and small business.
“Senate Democrats are planning to be proactive in budget negotiations and are willing to have discussions with lawmakers and the administration to achieve a fair, reasonable and responsible spending plan,” Costa said.
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HARRISBURG, March 7, 2012 – – Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa today voted against another Republican led effort to take rights away from Pennsylvanians. After hours of floor remarks in opposition to the Republican Voter ID bill, the Senate passed House Bill 934 by a 26-23 vote.
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“This is a blatant ideologically driven initiative that limits and diminishes the rights of Pennsylvania citizens,” Costa said. “This is another display of failed leadership by the administration and the Republican majority in Harrisburg on issues that matter to Pennsylvanians. Our roads and bridges are in dire need of repair, thousands of people are out of work and without health care, schools are closing and this legislature would rather concentrate on suppressing voting rights.”
House Bill 934, which is estimated to cost between $4.5 million and $11 million in the first year, would require voters to present photo identification or a narrow list of other accepted forms of identification each time they vote.
A Department of Justice statistic has shown that since 2008, more than 20 million votes were cast in Pennsylvania and there were only four convictions of voter fraud.
House Bill 934 was returned to the House.
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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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“The Supreme Court said that the Reapportionment Commission has more work to do. And, we agree.
The court has required a plan with fewer splits, more compact and contiguous districts, and, that while population deviation is a consideration, it is equal to other constitutional provisions. Importantly, the court emphasized that splits of political subdivisions should be avoided unless “absolutely necessary.”
The commission needs to get to work and proceed mindfully and cooperatively with respect for citizen input, the constitutional provisions regarding fairness and equity and the court’s guidance. As the Supreme Court held, the LRC must draw lines that respect the language in the Constitution.
We have to do it right this time. This is an opportunity to draw districts reflecting the court’s guidance or citizens will, once again, legitimately challenge the plan’s legality. A new plan should not be rammed through the process, without due consideration for what the court has said about redistricting.
The Supreme Court has emphasized that the statewide district map of the General Assembly must respect our citizens.”
Pittsburgh, January 31, 2012 – Noting the six months of inaction since Gov. Tom Corbett’s blue ribbon transportation commission released its final report, Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) today joined county and legislative leaders in Pittsburgh to call on the governor to lead on transportation infrastructure and mass transit investment Pennsylvania.
“On the eve of the six-month anniversary of the release of the recommendations from the governor’s Transportation Funding Advisory Commission, we are still awaiting a plan for transportation from Gov. Corbett.” said Costa. “The governor’s own transportation commission issued its report, and it is his responsibility to lead. We don’t believe Pennsylvanians should have to wait any longer.”
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“It has been more than a year since Tom Corbett became governor, and half a year since his commission gave him a detailed plan for transportation funding,” said Rep. Frank Dermody, the House Democratic Leader. “We are lucky that so far it’s simply a matter of crumbling roads and weight-restricted bridges, but we are driving on borrowed time. If nothing is done, it will get much worse. Lives are at risk.”
Costa said that PennDOT statistics show that there are more than six million trips daily across Allegheny County bridges that are rated either functionally obsolete or structurally deficient, and more than 178,000 trips across bridges that have temporary supports or weight restrictions in place.
Costa said that an investment in infrastructure will create jobs. In 2010, Pennsylvania ranked seventh in the nation for job creation and has now slipped to 25th in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report issued last week.
Last week, Senate Democrats also laid out their budget priorities in anticipation of another round of job-crushing cuts from the Corbett Administration during the governor’s upcoming budget address. The Senate plan calls for creating jobs through investments in our economy for infrastructure development and improvements, as well as targeted training and education programs for a quality workforce.
“Gov. Corbett’s Transportation Funding Advisory Commission report laid out options for the governor to choose, including uncapping the Oil Company Franchise Tax and raising licensure fees to support investments in highways, bridges and mass transit,” said Sen. Vincent J. Hughes, Democratic Appropriations Chair. “The time for studies, commissions, and conversing is behind us. It’s time to act. I urge the governor to take action and indicate to the legislature how he wants to move forward.”
“Gov. Corbett can move our economy forward — or stall it if he provides leadership to address our well-documented transportation problems,” said Rep. Joseph Markosek (D-Allegheny) minority chair of the House Appropriations Committee.
Sen. John Wozniak, who serves as the Democratic Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee and is a member of the state Transportation Commission, said “Pennsylvania’s two biggest challenges right now are its crumbling transportation infrastructure and the stagnant economy. It has been months since the Transportation Funding Advisory Commission released its report and it’s time for leadership from the administration on a plan that will keep drivers safe and keep commerce rolling.”
“We each know personally about the need for transportation funding,” said Rep. Dan Frankel, the House Democratic caucus chairman. “We know it as we swerve to avoid potholes, are forced to detour due to closed bridges, or wait in the cold for buses. Each individual story adds up to a story about our economic vitality. If we can’t move goods and people around because our bridges won’t bear the weight of trucks and our buses are idled, our economic growth will stall.”
Corbett’s Transportation Funding Advisory Commission issued its report on August 1, 2011. The commission was tasked with indentifying an additional $2.5 billion annually to address the transportation funding shortfall. In addition to its funding proposal, the Commission made suggestions for modernizing transportation.
The report noted that funding in Pennsylvania falls far short of needs, and points out specifically that the report is “about more than potholes—the issues at hand affect safety, our economy, and the environment, all of which shape the quality of life and ease of commerce in Pennsylvania.”
Costa and his legislative colleagues said they await word from the governor on how he wants to proceed, but more delay creates even more problems. Pennsylvania maintains the dubious distinction of having the highest number of structurally-deficient bridges in the country and the most miles of road in “poor” condition. An estimated 300 bridges are added to the structurally deficient list each year.
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