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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Harrisburg – January 25, 2012 – Senate Democrats, led by Democratic Leader Jay Costa, Appropriations Chair Vincent Hughes and others, today called on the governor to make job creation, tax fairness, education funding, shale and the restoration of funds for safety net programs budget priorities.
“We need a budget that moves Pennsylvania forward, not one that puts us in reverse,” Costa said. “We need to focus our energy on job creation, restoring education funding, providing sufficient dollars for safety net programs and improving transportation infrastructure.”
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The Democrats outlined their budget priorities at a news conference in the state Capitol Media Center.
Costa said Senate Democrats have identified nearly $1 billion in new revenues from smart policy changes, efficiencies and a responsible shale tax that can be used to pay for their agenda.
Costa said Pennsylvania has regressed under Gov. Tom Corbett, who has produced no jobs plan while unemployment has stagnated. At the same time, the governor has driven education funding back to 2006 levels and funded higher education support at a level not seen since 1995, under former Republican Gov. Tom Ridge.
“Senate Democrats produced a comprehensive jobs plan called PA Works Now but we’ve heard nothing on jobs from the governor,” Costa said. “We are ready to move on transportation if he would lead and let us know how he plans to address that crisis.”
Hughes said Senate Democrats predicted chaos in education if Corbett’s plan to slice more than $1 billion was approved by Republican lawmakers.
“Senate Democrats voted against last year’s budget plan because we thought it would produce exceptionally high local tax bills, cut education quality and imperil schools,” Hughes said. “Now we have a crisis in the Chester-Upland district and there are at least ten more districts that may soon be in a similar position.
“Insolvency will spread beyond poor schools and spill over into adjoining districts as a result of Governor Corbett’s education and fiscal policies.”
Hughes said that unemployment rose sharply after Corbett took office and it has taken one year to recede, noting that on jobs “we treaded water for a year.”
Sen. John Yudichak (D-14th), who has been the Senate lead negotiator on Marcellus Shale, said that his region in northeast Pennsylvania has been hit hard by job loss and education cuts.
“We need to make strategic investments and create jobs and we can do that by adopting a responsible shale drilling plan that generates money for rebuilding roads and other infrastructure while we protect the environment and our communities with tough regulations,” he said.
