INSIDE C APITAL W ATCH Pennsylvania’s #1 Online Source for Political, Legislative and Public Policy News For a free trial subscription, please visit our web site at www.capitolwire.com. Capitolwire com a service of GovNetPA, Inc. PRSRT STD U.S.POSTAGE PAID PERMIT 280 LANC., PA 17604 www.CAPITAL-WATCH.com VOL. 5 NO. 4 Sen. Jane Orie convicted of several corruption charges PAGE 4 Quinnipiac Poll reports Gov. Corbett’s approval rating tanks PAGE 8 Troopers Association expresses concerns regarding potential PA State Police barracks closure PAGE 10 EDITORIAL: Government pensions cushion the economy; keep jobless rate down PAGE 12 Corbett officials have issued a Request for Qualifications to pursue a private management agreement for the Pennsylvania Lottery. Should the state decide to move forward with accept- ing bids, qualified private sector firms will compete to offer new ideas to maximize the Lottery’s performance and increase rev- enues that support programs serving older Pennsylvanians. “The Pennsylvania Lottery is the nation’s one and only lot- tery that benefits older adults and that will not change,” Cor- bett said. “This initiative is sim- ply part of my administration’s efforts to tap private sector innovation to make state gov- ernment work more efficiently and effectively, which is pre- cisely what taxpayers expect. “Our state’s fast-growing population of older adults means time is not on our side, and we need to maximize funding for senior programs and services in a way that does not ask taxpay- ers to dig any deeper into their pockets,” Corbett added. A private management orga- nization may be better able to quickly adapt new technologies, develop new games and opti- mize retail outlet performance. It would be required to cover any initial shortfall to financial returns assured by any private management agreement. In accordance with federal guidelines, the commonwealth would continue to own the Lot- tery – it would not be sold. A private management firm would be responsible for the Lottery’s operations, but the common- wealth would still conduct the Lottery and retain full rights to control, inspect and audit the Lottery. Pennsylvania is one mem- ber of the multi-jurisdictional bodies that control Powerball and Mega Millions. Because all game-changing decisions are voted on by all members of these organizations, any chang- es to the Pennsylvania Lottery’s management should not impact either of these jackpot games. This initiative would put the Pennsylvania Lottery in a stronger position to meet ris- ing demand for services as vast numbers of Baby Boomers reach eligibility age. “In recent years, the Lottery’s ability to produce a growing cash flow for senior programs has become unnecessarily uncertain,” said Dan Meuser, Secretary of the Department of Revenue, which oversees the Lottery. Meuser noted that over the last five years, Lottery net prof- its have grown an average of just 0.3 percent per year. In addition, the Lottery’s net rev- enue is projected to grow about 1 percent, on average, per year through fiscal year 2014-15, which is not likely to keep pace with cost increases and demand for current programs. Meuser said the contract would be “multi-year.” Meuser also said he expects four or five companies will submit qualifi- cations by the May 1 deadline. CW APRIL 2012 Is privatization in the Lottery’s future? See PAGE 13 for details
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Pennsylvania’s #1 Online Source for Political, Legislative and Public Policy NewsFor a free trial subscription, please visit our web site at www.capitolwire.com.
Capitolwire coma service of GovNetPA, Inc.
PRSRT STDU.S.POSTAGE
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www.capital-watch.com
VOl. 5 nO. 4
Sen. Jane Orie convicted of several corruption chargesPAGE 4 Quinnipiac Poll reports Gov. Corbett’s approval rating tanks PAGE 8 Troopers Association expresses concerns regarding potential PA State Police barracks closure PAGE 10
EDITORIAL: Government pensions cushion the economy; keep jobless rate down PAGE 12
Corbett officials have issued a Request for Qualifications to pursue a private management agreement for the Pennsylvania Lottery. Should the state decide to move forward with accept-ing bids, qualified private sector firms will compete to offer new ideas to maximize the Lottery’s performance and increase rev-enues that support programs serving older Pennsylvanians.
“The Pennsylvania Lottery is the nation’s one and only lot-tery that benefits older adults and that will not change,” Cor-bett said. “This initiative is sim-ply part of my administration’s efforts to tap private sector innovation to make state gov-ernment work more efficiently and effectively, which is pre-cisely what taxpayers expect.
“Our state’s fast-growing population of older adults means time is not on our side, and we need to maximize funding for senior programs and services in a way that does not ask taxpay-ers to dig any deeper into their pockets,” Corbett added.
A private management orga-nization may be better able to quickly adapt new technologies, develop new games and opti-mize retail outlet performance. It would be required to cover any initial shortfall to financial returns assured by any private management agreement.
In accordance with federal guidelines, the commonwealth would continue to own the Lot-tery – it would not be sold. A private management firm would be responsible for the Lottery’s
operations, but the common-wealth would still conduct the Lottery and retain full rights to control, inspect and audit the Lottery.
Pennsylvania is one mem-ber of the multi-jurisdictional bodies that control Powerball and Mega Millions. Because all game-changing decisions are voted on by all members of these organizations, any chang-es to the Pennsylvania Lottery’s management should not impact either of these jackpot games.
This initiative would put the Pennsylvania Lottery in a stronger position to meet ris-ing demand for services as vast numbers of Baby Boomers reach eligibility age.
“In recent years, the Lottery’s ability to produce a growing
cash flow for senior programs has become unnecessarily uncertain,” said Dan Meuser, Secretary of the Department of Revenue, which oversees the Lottery.
Meuser noted that over the last five years, Lottery net prof-its have grown an average of just 0.3 percent per year. In addition, the Lottery’s net rev-enue is projected to grow about 1 percent, on average, per year through fiscal year 2014-15, which is not likely to keep pace with cost increases and demand for current programs.
Meuser said the contract would be “multi-year.” Meuser also said he expects four or five companies will submit qualifi-cations by the May 1 deadline. CW
APRIL 2012
Is privatization in the Lottery’s future?
See PAGE 13 for details
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female lawmakers’ ultrasound bill supporters are ‘men with breasts’ By Kevin Zwick, Capitolwire
During a reproductive rights rally on March 26, one Democratic lawmaker asked if female lawmakers supporting the bill are “men with breasts?”
Rep. Babette Josephs, D-Philadelphia, questioned how women in the Legisla-ture could support the legislation, which would require women seeking an abor-tion to receive an ultrasound 24 hours prior to the procedure.
“I do not understand how a woman in this Legislature can say to herself, I’m not capable of making my own health decisions …but I can get elected and make them for somebody else,” Josephs said. “…What are they thinking about? … What are they, are they women or are they men with breasts?”
The bill, introduced by Rep. Kathy Rapp, R-Warren, along with similar bills in other states, has become a rallying point in the politics of reproductive rights. Efforts to reach Rapp were unsuccessful.
House Majority Leader Mike Turzai
shelved Rapp’s legislation indefinitely to address issues raised by the state’s medi-cal community. Since the bill was voted out of committee earlier this year, it has lost 32 co-sponsors: 19 Republicans and 13 Democrats, according to PoliticsPA.
The Lancaster County Democratic Party organized Monday’s protest. Dem-ocratic attorney general candidate Patrick Murphy said he would not enforce the law if he were elected to office, saying there would be “no legal justification.” Mur-phy’s primary opponent, former Lacka-wanna County prosecutor Kathleen Kane has said she opposes the legislation.
Lois Herr, of the Lancaster Democrat-ic Committee, a former congressional candidate, said the legislation is having an effect on the upcoming election.
“It already has,” she said, noting the more than 30 co-sponsors who dropped their support of the bill.
The Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation said the March 26 rally was “a desperate political move.”
“If abortion centers are already doing ultrasounds prior to abortions, it’s only fair that a woman get a chance to see the ultrasound image before making a deci-sion as grave as abortion,” said Maria Gallagher, legislative director for the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation.
Gov. Tom Corbett was criticized recently by Democrats and abortion-rights supporters for saying women should “just close their eyes” if they didn’t want to see the ultrasound images.
According to an Associated Press report, when Corbett was asked if women should have to watch the image during an ultrasound, he replied: “I don’t know how you make anybody watch, OK? Because you just have to close your eyes.”
Corbett has said he would support the ultrasound mandate as long as it was external, not internal.
As a rebuttal to Rapp’s legislation, Sen. Larry Farnese, D-Philadelphia, introduced satirical legislation to require men seeking medication for erectile dys-function to undergo prostate exams, sex therapy and cardiac stress tests. CW
4 APRIL 2012 CAPITAL WATCHnews
sen. Orie convicted of several corruption chargesSen. Jane Orie, R-Allegheny, has been convicted of 14 counts, including theft, conspiracy, conflict of interest, forgery, and evidence tampering, according to the Associated Press.
Sen. Orie was accused of using her state-funded staff members to perform campaign work for herself and her sister, Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin, who wasn’t charged.
Sen. Orie was acquitted of 10 other counts, including perjury and election-code violations.
“I think the outcome was positive,” Jennifer Knapp Rioja, a former intern for Orie, told the Pittsburgh-Tribune Review.
“I think it shows that misusing state resources for your own gain will not go unpunished,” she continued. “Especially in a time of such severe budget cutting, that any money was diverted illegal-ly is shameful. How many people are scheduled to lose food stamp benefits? How much less money is Pitt getting this year? Where else did that money belong?”
Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr.’s office launched an investigation of Orie after Rioja filed a complaint against Orie in 2009.
Orie is not the only Pennsylvania lawmaker to have allegedly engaged in illegal campaign activities. Former state
Rep. Stephen Stetler is awaiting trial for similar charges.
Orie was elected to the Senate in a 2001 special election to fill an empty seat and was re-elected three times. The mul-tiple convictions, including on five felony counts, mean she’ll almost certainly be removed from office and lose her state pension.
A third sister, Janine Orie, is expected to stand trial later this year on charges that she conspired to misuse the sena-tor’s staff to campaign for Melvin and on charges that she similarly directed Melvin’s former Superior Court staff to work on campaigns in 2003 and 2009. She’s fighting the charges. CWSen. Jane Orie
new law will improve bicyclist safetyPennsylvania motorists now have to adhere to a new law when encountering a bicyclist on the road. The law, designed to improve safety and traffic flow, was signed by Gov. Tom Corbett on Feb. 2.
The new law requires motorists to leave a 4-foot “cushion of safety” when passing a bicyclist. To achieve this cushion, drivers may cross a roadway’s center line when passing a bicycle on the left, but only when opposing traffic allows.
Drivers attempting to turn left must also yield the right of way to bicycle rid-ers traveling in the opposite direction.
“The differential in speed is the biggest safety challenge with motor vehicles and bicycles sharing our state’s roadways,” said PennDOT Secretary Barry J. Schoch.
“I urge all drivers and cyclists to learn the rules of the road to better share our highways and make travel safer for all.”
The new law also calls for bicycle rid-ers to use all reasonable efforts to avoid impeding the normal flow of traffic. When there is only one travel lane, bicy-clists may use any portion of the lane to avoid hazards on the roadway, including maintaining a safe distance from stopped and parked cars.
As always, bicyclists and motorists should obey all traffic signs and signals. PennDOT also recommends bicyclists always ride predictably and signal their intentions before proceeding so that motorists have a chance to react.
For more information on bicycling safety, visit www.DriveSafePA.org. CW
Gov. Corbett slashes kids from Medicaid rollsThe Medicaid program overseen by Gov. Tom Corbett has kicked 89,000 kids off its rolls since last August.
The Corbett administration says it’s just cleaning house and striking people from the program whose paperwork isn’t in order, but critics see the move as an underhanded effort to reduce state spending by dumping needy children, according to the Philadelphia Daily News. Those children all lost Medicaid benefits just in the five months between August 2011 and January 2012, the newspaper reports, citing data from the state agency that runs Medicaid.
State Senator Vincent Hughes, D-Philadelphia, reportedly accused the administration of waging a “war on poor folk,” according to the newspaper.
The fight over Corbett’s decision to drop the children from the Medicaid program is indicative of states’ struggle to provide access to health benefits in the face of shrinking budgets and declining tax revenues. States spend 23.6 percent of their budgets on Medicaid, more than they do on education, transportation, and any other priority, according to the National Governors Association and the National Association of State Budget
Officers.During economic downturns, states
are hit with higher demand for Medicaid benefits by the jobless or poor at the same time that their income tax receipts decline because fewer people are working. The federal economic stimulus bill enacted in 2009 provided $103 billion in relief but those funds ran out last June, leading states to cut back on their Medicaid programs. Medicaid is jointly funded by federal and state governments.
Even with rollbacks in eligibility or covered health care services and reductions in payments to medical
providers, state spending on Medicaid still grew by 28.7 percent this fiscal year, according to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
While Pennsylvania is slashing kids from its Medicaid roll, Colorado is trying to buck the trend by enrolling more of the state’s poorest and childless adults into its Medicaid program. Budget issues, however, mean that only 10,000 of the 50,000 people who should be eligible for benefits will get them, the Denver Post reports. Colorado is using a lottery system to determine who gets on and who doesn’t. CW
APRIL 2012 CAPITAL WATCH 5newsadVertOrial
John A. Barbour CEO, Managing Director and
Chairman of the Board Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney
CW: How and when did you join the firm? JB: I am a native Pennsylvanian. I was born in Bucks County, but raised in Mercer. I only ever left Pennsylvania for college and law school [Davidson and Vanderbilt]. I came back to Pennsylvania and joined Klett Lieber Rooney. I have been a lawyer for 33 years. I have never changed firms, but they have changed during my career. When I started with Klett, I was doing real estate law and handling the affairs of one high net worth family. I still have those clients. But over the years I established other relation-ships including a long friendship with Art Rooney. I began to do work for the Rooney family and the Pitts-burgh Steelers. Of course, in 2006 the firm merged with Buchanan Ing-ersoll to become Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney – the firm I run today as its Chairman and CEO. CW: What are Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney’s specialties? JB: Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney is a corporate law firm that focuses on client service excellence. We practice business law predominantly and represent many of the publicly traded corporations in Pittsburgh. We have a large intellectual property practice in Alexandria, VA; a strong tax practice in Washington DC; an extensive labor and employment practice throughout Pennsylvania; and a strong litigation practice in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New York City and Miami. We also have sig-nificant real estate focus in Califor-nia and Florida and Pennsylvania. CW: What are your short and long term goals for the firm? JB: We made an affirmative deci-sion not to go overseas with our business, but to focus on markets we already serve and continue to
expand south and west in the US based on client needs. We are still growing our Philadelphia, NYC and Washington, DC offices. It used to be a copycat business – simply fol-lowing precedent. That doesn’t work any longer. Today lawyers must be more innovative and more creative. We really focus on training our young lawyers to look creatively at clients’ needs. The last few years are the best in the firm’s history. CW: Talk to us about doing business in Pennsylvania. JB: Our law firm’s largest offices are in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. We have found Pennsylvania a great place to practice law. The growth in the energy practice has been dra-matic – of course in Pittsburgh but also everywhere. Historically, the state has had a number of economic structural issues that has made it difficult to attract businesses and conduct business, but I think it’s getting better. The Corbett Admini-stration is making a real effort to make Pennsylvania more business friendly and this work is bearing fruit. There has been great change. CW: What do your clients say about business in Pennsylvania? JB: Our clients need help with Pennsylvania’s tax burden. It’s the highest in the country. Companies pay attention to that. We know busi-nesses remain in Pennsylvania out of loyalty to the state, but not because the business climate is good. They ask for help to make it better. They cite issues with unemployment com-pensation costs and the regulatory climate. People tend to roll their eyes and not take it seriously when corporations say these things, but our clients are serious and had poli-cymakers not listened, Pennsylvania would have lost jobs. The steps the Corbett Administration and General
April 2012 CAPITAL WATCH NEWS 5
Policy Roundtable Spotlight The PBC Policy Roundtable, like its national counterpart in Washington, is a forum in which CEOs meet on a peer-to-peer basis to formulate public policy proposals to the most pressing issues of competitiveness. The Policy Roundtable provides senior managers the opportunity to interact extensively with policymakers, policy experts, media, and other stakeholders; participate in policy evaluation; decide upon long-term public policy strategy; and guide policy education/advocacy efforts. Corporate Chairpersons, CEOs, COOs, CFOs, and Presidents are invited to become members of the PBC Policy Roundtable. For more, see: www.pabusinesscouncil.org.
Assembly are taking are really preserving jobs. CW: What makes Pittsburgh a good place for business? JB: Good corporate leadership that’s committed to making Pitts-burgh strong again makes the dif-ference in this city. The University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon have been strong leaders that brought high technology and re-search to Pittsburgh. Of course the location is important. Right now, we’re in the right place at the right time with Marcellus shale. Our government leaders understood the need to work with corporate leaders. As a result, Pittsburgh is an absolutely great place to live. I feared my four children wouldn’t be able to or want to stay. I have a daughter who goes to the Hershey Med School who wants to come back to Pittsburgh because of its world class health-care and health research organizations. CW: What do the 2012 elections mean to Pennsylvania and the state’s competitiveness? JB: I wonder, in the election debate, why there isn’t more of a focus on energy policy. I am wait-ing to hear about transferring our foreign energy consumption to domestic resources – especially natural gas. I am appalled at the fact that we have so much natural gas at low prices while gasoline is at nearly $4.00/gallon. We could be energy independent in a few years if we set a goal, but we’re not moving in that direction. Firms do pay attention to the business environment and know politics are important. Here in Pennsylvania, they can make a decision to say “heck with it” and move, or they can get involved through organiza-tions like PBC and try to make the Commonwealth more competitive.
John A. "Jack" Barbour is the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney and Chairman of its Board of Directors. He focuses his practice on real estate development and financing as well as complex commercial transactions. He also advises and counsels high-net-worth family businesses. In 2011, Jack was appointed by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett to serve as chair of his Advisory Council on Privatization and Innova-tion. He was also appointed to serve as a mem-ber of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Jack has served as outside counsel to the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Daniel M. Rooney and Arthur J. Rooney II families for many years. He recently led a team of Buchanan attorneys in an almost total restructuring of the ownership of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Previously, Jack represented the Steelers in all legal aspects of the development, financing and construction of Heinz Field. Jack has represented developers, lenders and equity participants in a wide range of sophisti-cated commercial real estate trans-actions across the United States over the past several decades. Jack also has served as primary outside counsel to a large private equity com-pany for more than 25 years. He was selected by his peers for the Pennsyl-vania Super Lawyers® list from 2006-2010, as well as for the Corporate Counsel Super Law-yers® list in 2010. He has also been selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America every year since 2009. Jack was co-chair of the Tom Corbett for Gov-ernor Committee and co-chair of Governor Tom Corbett's Transition Team. He is a life trustee of the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, a board member of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History (Chairman 2000-2008). Jack is a mem-ber of the Pennsylvania Business Council Pol-icy Roundtable.
6 APRIL 2012 CAPITAL WATCHnews
Pipeline exec touts $1 billion proposed project A natural gas pipeline company is on a “good neighbor” campaign of sorts to promote a proposed billion dollar Marcellus-based pipeline they say could provide cheap energy to central and southern Pennsylvania.
Bill Moler, senior vice president of Missouri-based Inergy Midstream LLP, said the company is reaching out to the public early on to explain potential benefits of a proposed 200-mile, 30-inch “Commonwealth Pipeline.”
The proposed $1 billion project announced in early March would transport natural gas from the state’s Marcellus Shale fields in the Northern Tier to independent generation compa-nies throughout south-central PA, and further south toward energy markets in Baltimore and Washington D.C., Moler said.
“It’s direct access …from a supply point to the consumer,” he said. “So rather than paying for 15,000 miles of infrastructure, the consumer will pay for a newer system that takes it directly into the city gate.”
Two utility companies, UGI Energy Services Inc., based in Pennsylvania, and the Washington D.C.-based WGL Hold-ings Inc, signed onto the pipeline project as “anchor shippers,” bringing 1.7 mil-lion customers on board, Moler said.
“This pipeline is a little different from the other pipelines, being as much as it will enable more gas to be used here in Pennsylvania,” said John Hanger, a for-mer DEP secretary under Gov. Ed Ren-dell. “As a Pennsylvanian, I obviously would like the gas from Pennsylvania to benefit Pennsylvanians as much as possible.”
The project so far is in its infancy, with Inergy, UGI and WGL under a joint development agreement to determine both the commercial and technical feasi-bility of the pipeline.
It’s a “market pull project,” Moler said, meaning there’s demand for the
pipeline from consumers. WGL and UGI will make up between 40 per-cent and 50 percent of the capacity, so Inergy is going to looking at industrial and municipal markets in Baltimore and elsewhere in the Piedmont region for the remaining share.
“We feel that we’ll reach commercial viability in a short amount of time,” he said.
The Commonwealth Pipeline will start at the terminus of the MARC 1 pipeline in Lycoming County, and travel south, connecting with independent electric generators along the way, to a Transco Pipeline station in York County, then onto Rockville, Md., where the pipeline would connect with the Washington D.C. and Baltimore markets.
The pipeline would have to cross bod-ies of water, particularly the Susque-hanna River.
“We will route it to avoid as much of that as we can, as we did in the case with the MARC 1,” Moler said. “Because the routing’s not set yet, we have some ideas as we put our cost-estimates together, but none that isn’t subject to change at this point.”
The MARC 1 crossed 110 water bod-ies in the Northern Tier, but only five or six of those bodies were major bodies of water, according to Amy Gonzales, president of AK Energy Services, which provides project management, construc-tion management and other specialty services to support the energy industry.
“It seems like a large number, but there are only really five or six major water body crossings and tributaries,” she said, noting that the 110 bodies include “non-perennial” waterways, which remain dry until it rains.
When crossing the Susquehanna River for the MARC 1 project, she said the pipeline was built underneath the river to avoid in-stream impacts.
The proposed MARC 1 pipeline ran into opposition from landowners earlier
this year due to conflicts over rights-of-way agreements.
The MARC 1 pipeline is being con-structed by Inergy subsidiary Central New York Oil and Gas Company, with about 150 workers on the project, and possibly 350 more to come, Moler said. That project connects the interstate Ten-nessee and Transco Pipeline in Lycom-ing County, through Sullivan and Brad-ford counties to the Millennium pipeline in New York’s Southern Tier region.
To construct the MARC 1, CNYOGC was granted the power of eminent domain, a legal power granted to utilities and some other entities to use private property for government use. Several landowners went to court alleging that the company didn’t negotiate in good faith, according to an Associated Press report. They also challenged FERC’s approval of the project, according to the AP.
An appeals court judge halted con-struction and tree clearing on the MARC 1 pipeline in mid-February, but the stay was lifted by a panel of judges on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in early March.
Moler said landowners were prop-erly compensated for the land obtained through eminent domain.
“On the MARC I project, despite what got into some articles in the press, we did negotiate, fair market value; [we did] negotiate – which means not condemn to be exact, fair market - 90 percent of the right of way agreements with landown-ers in Sullivan, Bradford and Lycoming County,” he said. “…Your neighbor’s not going to get a better deal.”
However, he did say that damages might adjust based on what type of prop-erty is being cleared, like cropland.
“We’re obligated to do that, and the reason we’re obligated to do that is because we’re gonna be there for a very, very long time,” he added.
Earthjustice, an environmental law firm based in New York City, sued to halt
the MARC 1 project because they claim the environmental assessment conducted by FERC included “generic assessments” of Marcellus Shale development and did not include future outlook and produc-tion levels.
Deborah Goldberg, an Earthjustice attorney who worked on the MARC 1 lawsuit for the Sierra Club, said no deci-sion has been made about the Common-wealth Pipeline because the project is in the early stages of development and the environmental assessment has not been conducted.
“Pipelines have always been an issue because they cut across the landscape,” said David Hess, a former secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection under Gov. Tom Ridge. “…Without eminent domain, you couldn’t get gasoline, natural gas, or any other products to where they’re needed.”
Hess noted that pipeline placement is a complicated process. In some areas of the state, areas are designated as habitat for endangered species that could be dis-turbed by the process.
“You have to be careful not to frag-ment needed habitat,” he said.
James Schmid, an ecological consul-tant from Media, said pipelines can be “potentially destructive” if proper regu-latory oversight is not applied.
The governor’s Marcellus Shale Advi-sory Commission report included in its best management practices recommen-dations for DEP and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resourc-es that forest fragmentation should be avoided or minimized.
It also suggests minimizing, avoid-ing, or buffering against conflicts with resources likes critical waterways, public parks, endangered or threatened plants, species and habitats, historic and cultural areas.
“I think it comes down to the approach the company takes and to ensure there’s fair compensation,” Hess said. CW
By KeVin ZwicK, capitOlwire
House OKs measure to reduce seats in the General AssemblyHouse lawmakers took a major step toward reducing the number of lawmak-ers in the General Assembly on April 4. The House voted 140-49 to send HB 153 to the Senate.
The legislation, sponsored by Speak-er Sam Smith, R-Punxsutawney, would amend the state constitution to reduce the number of lawmakers in the House from 203 to 153 and from 50 to 38 in the Senate.
Smith was optimistic about the Sen-
ate passing the measure, even though it would also reduce Senate seats.
“If they pass it, then I think there’s a pretty good chance … of this being amended to the constitution,” Smith said after the vote Wednesday. “The fact that we got it out of the House with 140 votes gives it a better than average chance.”
Since the measure aims to amend the state constitution, the legislation must be debated and passed by both the House and Senate in two consecutive sessions,
and subsequently approved by a referen-dum vote of the people of Pennsylvania. If approved, the changes would not go into effect until after the 2020 reappor-tionment.
Rep. Mark Mustio, R-Allegheny, who proposed similar bills for years, hailed Smith’s leadership for getting it done.
Others disagreed. “It’s gonna replace an elected rep-
resentative with an unelected staffer in order to get the job done. And I
don’t think that’s good for our con-stituents, whether you’re Republican or Democrat,” said Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster. CW
Loss of up to 15,000 Jobs
Lost Open SpaceLost Opportunities
Lost Investment
Why Governor Corbett’s Attack on the Equine Industry is Bad for Pennsylvania
Governor Tom Corbett has proposed diverting more than $72 million each year from the Race Horse Development Fund, which funds purses and breeders incentives in Pennsylvania. In the 2012-2013 fiscal year, these and other cuts would leave the fund near-ly 30 percent below the lowest projections of what it would receive when Act 71 was adopted by the Legislature in 2004.
These proposed cuts are projected to cost Pennsylvania 10,000 to 15,000 jobs, including horse trainers, stable hands, veterinar-ians, blacksmiths, farmers that produce feed, equipment sup-pliers, and other businesses supporting the equine industry in Pennsylvania. Jockey Dana Whitney (lower right, above with his family) is one of thousands who had new job opportuni-ties created in PA by Act 71. Dana bought a house and moved his family here in 2009. His kids love their schools and the last thing he or his wife wants is to have to move. These cuts may leave Dana and thousands of other Pennsylvania families little choice but to move to other states with more competitive purses.
Mike Jester’s Penn Ridge Farms outside of Harrisburg is proof that Act 71 is working as intended. Thanks to Act 71, Mike and many other business owners have invested tens of millions of dollars in the Pennsylvania economy, acquiring land, horses, equipment and hiring new employees. Following the passage of Act 71, Jester purchased the 130 acre farm, which was once home to a cattle operation. If Pennsylvania cuts funds for the Race Horse Development Fund, we could see investment in the equine agricultural industry end. Many Pennsylvanians may be forced to leave to work or race their horses in other states offer-ing more competitive purses.
In December 2011, the Cotillion Stakes at Parx Racing in Bensalem was upgraded to a Grade I Stakes -- the first time in history that Pennsylvania has been home to a Grade I Race. The highest rank-ing in thoroughbred racing, this is a distinction reserved for the most important races in the country -- which attract a high quality field of horses. These cuts will jeopardize Pennsylvania’s status in the equine industry and could result in the loss of this and other graded stakes races.
Tens of thousands of acres of farmland and open space in Penn-sylvania are currently operated as breeding or equine boarding facilities directly related to the Commonwealth’s racing industry. If breeders and horse owners move their horses to other states, much of this land could be placed back on the market. To avoid development, state and local governments may be forced to invest significant resources to acquire this land and maintain its current status. The equine industry not only protects jobs, it also protects our open space.
Paid for by the Pennsylvania Horsemen’s Benevolence and Protective Assocation
Pennsylvania voters give Gov. Tom Cor-bett a 41 – 41 percent job approval rating, down from a 47 – 34 percent approval rating December 8, a drop driv-en mostly by Democrats and men more than women, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.
This is Gov. Corbett’s worst approval rating since a 39 – 38 percent score in a June 14, 2011, survey by the independent Quinnipiac University.
Women give Corbett a split 38 – 39 percent approval rating, down from 44 – 36 percent December 8. Men approve 45 – 42 percent, down from 51 – 32 percent. Democrats give the governor a negative 23 – 65 percent score, compared to a negative 36 – 43 percent December 8.
Pennsylvania voters disapprove 49 – 36 percent of the way Corbett is han-dling the state budget and disapprove 53 – 27 percent of the way he is handling
funding for the state’s public universi-ties. Men disapprove of his handling of university funding 49 – 35 percent while women disapprove 56 – 21 percent.
Voters oppose 65 – 28 percent cutting funding for public universities, with 72 – 20 percent disapproval among women and 58 – 36 percent disapproval from men.
“After a honeymoon as one of the country’s more popular new Republican governors, Tom Corbett takes a big hit in his job approval,” said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac Uni-versity Polling Institute.
“A call for cuts in state funding to its universities may have hit a nerve with parents fearful tuitions could rise.”
Pennsylvania voters are divided 45 – 47 percent whether they agree with Cor-bett’s claim that universities can manage the cuts by reducing operating costs
rather than raising tuition.A total of 80 percent of voters are
“very concerned” or “somewhat con-cerned” that tuition increases in public universities would make them unafford-able to some students.
Among Pennsylvania voters, 21 per-cent say someone in their family cur-rently attends a public university in the state and 54 percent say someone in their family has graduated from one of these schools.
UltrasoUnd/abortion legislation
There is a reverse gender gap as vot-ers oppose 48 – 42 percent legislation that would require a woman seeking an abortion to undergo an ultrasound at least 24 hours before the procedure. Men oppose the measure 51 – 39 percent, while women are divided 45 – 45 percent. Vot-
ers with a college degree are opposed 57 – 35 percent while voters without a degree are divided 45 – 44 percent.
Voters oppose trans-vaginal ultra-sounds 64 – 23 percent, with men opposed 67 – 18 percent and women opposed 61 – 28 percent.
A total of 54 percent of voters say abortion should be legal in all or most cases while 37 percent say it should be illegal in all or most cases.
“A plurality of Pennsylvania vot-ers oppose requiring pregnant women seeking abortions to get ultrasounds 24 hours before an abortion, with men opposing the measure in greater num-bers,” Malloy said.
“Voters, men and women, are strongly opposed – almost 3-1 – to requiring women to undergo trans-vaginal ultra-sounds.” CW
State Rep. Tim Briggs, D-Montgomery, introduced legislation this week that would require radon testing in schools, as well as educate and inform parents and guardians of the levels of radon gas in their child’s classroom.
“Radon gas is radioactive, colorless, tasteless and odorless. There is no way of knowing its presence unless the schools test for it.” Briggs said. “Next to smok-ing, radon gas inhalation is the leading cause of lung cancer, killing thousands every year. By not taking the simple precautions of testing, it’s possible that we needlessly endanger our children’s lives every day they go to school.”
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, four picocuries – a measurement of radioactivity in the air - is considered to be a dangerous level of radon. If the gas is inhaled, the radon atoms decay in the airways or the lungs. After this occurs, cancerous cells start to develop and spread throughout that tissue.
“Testing for radon contamination is simple and inexpensive,” Briggs said. “The EPA and DEP have extensive resources available on the dangers of radon gas, and school districts need to step up and take the lead in protecting our kids from this silent killer.”
Some schools have been tested and found to contain radon levels as much as eight times greater than that deemed
dangerous. Briggs said there are some districts that have measures to resolve dangerous levels of radon contamination in their school buildings, but there is no current law requiring all school districts to do so.
According to Briggs, Bensalem School District discovered in one school that 15 classrooms contained high levels of radon gas after they voluntarily tested their schools. Furthermore, five years
ago, Howe Elementary School in Mt. Lebanon had radon levels three times the EPA limits; about 15.6 picocuries per liter in the cafeteria. However, some par-ents said the school district never told them about it.
“Every parent has the right to know that their child’s classroom is a safe envi-ronment, and it is impossible to ensure the safety of their students if schools aren’t testing for this gas,” Briggs said.
“Informing parents of the potential risk of radon in our classrooms provides a means for greater transparency and cooperation between schools and parents regarding potential health threats to our children.”
Briggs said the legislation (HB 2286) would require each school district to contact the parent or guardian of each student in writing, beginning in the 2012-13 school year, regarding radon testing in the school buildings. The notice must include whether or not test-ing has been conducted, and the highest amount of radon detected in the testing.
If signed into law, all school districts would be required to complete a radon test of each school building by June 30, 2013. Additionally, any newly con-structed school buildings would have to be tested within 19 months of the date of occupancy, and any remodeled school buildings would be retested within 19 months of completion of the remodeling. In addition, the bill would require these tests to be completed every five years from the date of the initial test.
The bill has been referred to the House Education Committee for consideration
Briggs represents the 149th Legisla-tive District in Montgomery County. For more information, visit www.pahouse.com/Briggs, or get regular updates on Twitter and Facebook. CW
Rep. Briggs: Test for radon gas in schools
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The two top budget committee senators agree there will likely be some state dol-lars to restore some budget cuts.
However, Senate Appropriations Com-mittee Majority Chairman Jake Corman, R-Centre, cautioned the county commis-sioners’ association that whatever sum is available for restorations, it will be chased by a lot of deserving groups. That includes restoring $170 million cut from human services funding sent to counties. Gov. Tom Corbett has said those cuts can be absorbed by the coun-ties since the monies will be blocked granted to the counties to offer com-missioners flexibility to spend the funds where they see fit.
Somerset County Commissioner Pam Tokar Ickes said restoring that cut is “really a matter of social conscience for the administration and Legislature.”
Senate Minority Appropriations Com-mittee Chairman Vince Hughes, D-Phil-adelphia, told the commissioners he fears revenue underestimates will lead to unnecessary budget cuts like the county human services funding reduction. He said restoring that proposed cut is a top budget priority.
Corman said the February budget estimate doesn’t matter: “We don’t do budgets on revenue estimates from Feb-ruary. We do budgets based on real
numbers come June. If the numbers come in” so that encouraging revenue trends continue, “there will be some opportunity to do restorations, come June.”
But the $170 million for the county human services programs will be competing with Corman’s top priority, higher education programs cut more than $200 million, basic education, cut about $100 million not counting pension payments, other welfare spending reductions and the envi-ronment.
“They are all going to be in the same group, going after the same amount of dollars if we have money for restoration.”
Hughes said the Independent Fiscal Office is predicting a shortfall of $450 million to $500 million, far less than the $719 million predicted by Corbett and his officials.
IFO director Matthew Knittel said his office remains confident in an estimate of about $500 million, although several volatile revenue sources won’t be in until next month.
So if the IFO estimate is correct, at least $700 million in program reduc-tions proposed by Corbett and listed by Corman will be chasing just over $200
million in potential new revenues.
House Minority Policy Committee Chairman Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, while a proponent of undoing the county human services fund-ing and other welfare spend-ing cuts, said he doesn’t think those funds will be reinstated during budget negotiations.
“Here is why I don’t think those funds will be restored,” he told the county commissioners. “The public knows there are able-bodied males who are getting cash assistance. … That is what the public believes, that you are handing out those dollars left and right. … And that is why I don’t hold up much hope” for that restoration.
Sturla and Hughes criticized Corbett, and, without naming him, Corman, for the state budget cuts of last year and those proposed this year.
Sturla said Pennsylvania ranked 43rd in income tax rate.
“We could raise the PIT, not that I am proposing that, by 11 percent. To move up to 42nd, we could raise PIT 40 per-cent, get $4 billion and we wouldn’t have to make any of these cuts.
“The reason we are in the bind we are is that we have one person who will not
allow new income to come into the state.”Sturla said the state Marcellus Shale
impact fee was inadequate, and said of state government giving counties the option to enact the fee, “If we are going to raise rev-enue with Marcellus Shale, you guys have to do it, because we’re not gonna do it.”
To fight the cuts, Sturla told the commissioners: “You all need to help challenge him on it and say enough is enough,” and to tell the governor: “Don’t cut the budget by billions of dollars when you are turning away money.”
Corman supported the budgets and defended them saying the state had to spend what it took in.
But he acknowledged: “We have to be careful as we go forward that our short-term savings don’t have a long-term cost. … As each year goes on, it gets more difficult.”
Commissioners also asked for help in local funding for county-owned roads and bridges.
Corman said the Senate was ready to pass a major transportation package, but was waiting on the House and governor.
Sturla said: “There are enough votes in the House to do it, … Whether there’s a willingness on the part of the House majority leader” Rep. Mike Turzai, R-Allegheny, “to move it forward or the governor to sign it, I don’t know.” CW
sen. Corman says tough competition looms for scarce budget restoration dollars
Three Performances Only!
Saturday, aPrIL 21 | 1PM & 7PMSunday, aPrIL 22 | 2PMWhitaker Center for Science and the ArtstIcketS: 717.214.artS (2787)The Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet’s production of the internationally renowned ballet Giselle comes to the Whitaker Center stage! Giselle marks Alan Hineline’s world premiere staging of desire, deception, betrayal and forgiveness from beyond the grave in the story of a young peasant girl cruelly betrayed by a prince disguised as a commoner. Live music by the Central Pennsylvania Symphony.
“The classic of all ballet classics.” The New York Times
c e n t r a L P e n n S y LVa n I a yO u t H Ba L L e t P r e S e n t S
By peter l. decOursey, capitOlwire
Jake Corman
10 APRIL 2012 CAPITAL WATCHnews
Pennsylvania State Police staffing issues continue to generate concerns that the agency’s core public safety services will be negatively impacted.
“The citizens [of Pennsylvania] are the ones that will suffer,” Joe Kovel, the president of the Pennsylvania State Troopers Association, said of potential state police barracks closures prompted by a declining trooper complement. “The people who live in this state, the people who voted and elect you and elected the governor, they’re the ones that are going to suffer because we’re not going to be able to get there to help them.
“It’s going to take us a long time to get there, and we worry about their lives being in danger.”
The head of the state troopers’ union expressed his concerns during a joint hearing of the Senate Law and Justice and House Judiciary committees.
State police officials said they are con-sidering, but have no immediate plans for, closures in an attempt to address current and expected trooper shortages.
“I have not decided about closing any
stations yet, but I’m looking at it,” said State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan.
“I’m trying to tell people if our com-plement goes down what the effects will be,” added Noonan.
According to Noonan, the current complement of state police is approxi-mately 335 short of its total complement of 4,677. However, that manpower short-age could jump to more than 500 troop-ers once the agency knows exactly how many troopers eligible for retirement choose to leave the state police. That shortage could push closer to 1,000 next year if the agency fails to replace those continuing to retire. Noonan has said previously that if the trooper comple-ment number were to get closer to a shortage of 600, “that could place a tre-mendous stress on what we have to do.”
Noonan said he was glad Gov. Tom Corbett’s proposed 2012-13 state budget allocates money for one new trooper cadet class of 115 cadets.
But, when asked by several lawmakers about his plan for the agency, Noonan said “I need more cadets.” Even with the
planned cadet class, the agency projects it will be 465 troopers below complement.
Many of the hearing’s questions focused on the status of potential bar-racks closures, since Noonan, during his February budget hearing testimony and again during Wednesday’s hearing, mentioned he was considering closures.
Noonan prefaced his comments about the barracks issue by stating he has already discontinued the use of the agency’s two consolidated dispatch centers (CDCs), which he said should ultimately result in more troopers on patrol. Those approximately 100 dis-patchers from the CDCs are currently being redistributed around the state, and would allow some troopers cur-rently used for dispatch work to return to their normal duties, he said.
Before considering barracks closures, Noonan said, “I want to see what hap-pens with the CDC closings and see how that’s going to affect our manpower needs, and then see if we’re looking at other [cadet] classes or not.”
Responding to questions by Sen. Lloyd
Smucker, R-Lancaster, Noonan did say the agency is considering a realignment State Police Troop J, which covers Lan-caster and Chester counties.
“That is probably the first area I’m looking at right now,” said Noonan, but adding, “I have not decided on that yet.”
Lt. George Bivens, deputy commission-er of operation for the agency, explained the Troop J barracks would not be closed under the plan being evaluated.
Bivens said the personnel of the two Troop J Lancaster County barracks would report to a different chain of com-mand – located in the Reading barracks – while still maintaining their existing physical location in Lancaster County. He said Troop J’s two Chester County barracks would also be realigned, report-ing to the chain of command at the Philadelphia barracks. All the stations would remain open, said Bivens.
He said preliminary estimates show the moves would save the agency 30 positions, by eliminating upper chain of command positions and some specialized functions performed by other barracks personnel, while “still keeping the same or greater number of troopers on the road ... so the citizens really wouldn’t notice much of a difference.”
But Kovel disagreed with that assess-ment. Said Kovel: “I understand the elimination of some administrative posi-tions and things like that, but our con-cern is simply this: there are professional services that we offer out of Troop J headquarters.
“We do drug investigations, we do fire marshal investigations, we do crime scene processing, we do polygraph examinations, we have reconstruction-ists for accident and crime scenes recon-structions – those services are not going to be offered out of troop headquarters in Lancaster. They’re going to be offered out of Reading and out of Philadelphia, so the people of Chester County and Lancaster County don’t have those ser-vices immediately available.
“Will they come? Oh yeah, they’re gonna get there, but it’s going to be longer.”
“It’s a degradation of services to the citizens of the commonwealth – they expect us to be able to step up and do a top-notch investigations right away ... support services are going to suffer and you’re going to re-victimize victims,” added Kovel.
“There is a cost to everything,” he said. “But public safety is one of the core functions of government and we feel ada-mantly that our citizens deserve better than these plans that are being outlined – they deserve the protection they are used to.” CW
Troopers Association expresses concerns regarding potential PA state Police barracks By chris cOmisac , capitOlwire
A Great Army Deser ves a Great Museum
The National Museum of the United States Army, scheduled to open at Fort Belvoir, Virginia in 2015, will be the nation’s one and only Museum to present the Army’s complete history since 1775. Its immersive exhibits, soldier artifacts, and dynamic venues will tell the stories of selfless service and personal sacrifices of the 30 million American men and women who have worn the Army uniform.
For more information on how to support the National Army Museum, visit us online today!
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APRIL 2012 CAPITAL WATCH 11OPInIOn
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For the past 29 years, the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency’s Homeowners Emer-gency Mortgage Assistance Program (HEMAP) has saved more than 46,000 families in Pennsylvania from losing their homes to foreclosure.
When the legislature started the program we didn’t care if you were black or white, rich or poor, all we cared about was giving you a chance to save your home because people all have emergencies.
In 2011, HEMAP sustained an 80 percent cut in state budget, which forced PHFA to suspend the program. The timing couldn’t have been worse. From February of last year to February of this year, foreclosure notices in Pennsylvania were up 35 percent, even though notices nationally were on the decline.
Earlier this year, Pennsylvania secured $266 million of a $25 billion joint feder-al-state settlement over “robo-signing” and other abuses involving mortgage servicing and foreclosure proceedings. In a letter that I wrote with House Democratic Leaders, I called on the state Attorney General’s Office, which
is charged with investing the funds, to use a portion of Pennsylvania’s share to fund HEMAP.
The response that I received indicated that the attorney general had not made a final determination as to whether it would consider investing the funds in HEMAP; so I intro-duced legislation, House Bill
2301, that would direct funds from the settlement be appropriated to HEMAP.
Until the economy has fully rebounded, many Pennsylvania families will face the scary reality of losing their home to foreclo-sure. Home foreclosure can happen to just about any family who suddenly is faced with job loss, the onset of a medical condition, or the loss of a loved one. Through HEMAP, there is someplace to turn.
We have a chance to make a difference. I hope people will contact their legisla-tors and urge them to support my bill and let’s give Pennsylvania families a chance to save their homes. CW
Rep. Peter J. Daley II (D-Washington/Fayette) is Minority Chair of the House Commerce Committee.
Legislation to support home ownership makes senseBy rep. peter J. daley ii
rep. peter daley
When the Pennsylvania legislature debated expanding the Castle Doctrine law last year, I and others warned it would carry dire consequences; innocent lives would be lost.
A thousand miles to our south in Flor-ida, which enacted similar legislation in 2005 and allows people to carry guns with an out-of-state permit; we have seen the results of a law that encourages a shoot-first-and-ask-questions-later mentality.
Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old armed with a package of Skittles and a con-tainer of iced tea, is dead. Reportedly, the young black man wearing a hoodie was tracked because he seemed out of place in a gated community. The shooter, 28-year-old community watch coordina-tor George Zimmerman, is free as he claims he shot Trayvon in self-defense.
We must never allow another state-sanctioned tragedy like this. Pennsylva-nia must revisit its Castle Doctrine law and take steps to get guns off our streets.
Prior to Gov. Tom Corbett signing the legislation into law last year, Penn-sylvania allowed citizens the right to use deadly force, if necessary, against intro-ducers in their “castle” or home.
The new law allows the use of deadly force in other places, such as a car or public street, and does not require the
person to retreat before shooting.I find it terrifying that we have enacted
legislation that condones untrained civil-ians shooting someone in our streets. It’s the wrong direction for Pennsylvania.
Instead, I believe the state should create a task force on gun violence and trafficking.
We can also revisit some commonsense proposals made during the debate on expanding the Castle Doctrine law that were rejected by the Republican majority.
The proposals included legislation that would have required a missing firearm to be reported to police within three days; limited the purchase of handguns to one per month; required Pennsylvania residents to have a state license to carry; allowed Philadelphia to create an ordi-nance on assault weapons; banned assault weapons and closed a loophole in state law that allows people to carry guns with an out-of-state permit, even after being denied a gun permit in Pennsylvania.
Let’s not let Trayvon Martin’s death go in vain. Let’s make some positive changes that will truly protect our citizens. CW
Ronald G. Waters represents the 191st Legislative District in portions of Delaware and Philadelphia counties and serves as chairman of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus.
It’s time to revisit Pennsylvania’s shoot-first lawBy rep. rOnald G. waters
12 APRIL 2012 CAPITAL WATCH
Economic Impact of Public Pensions in PA ($ amounts in millions)
+ Industry totals include impacts from in-state pension payments only; does not recapture “leakage” from other states
OPInIOn
One of the hardest things for both conservatives and liberals to learn is that we are no longer a manufactur-ing-based economy; we are, first and foremost, a service economy. Stated more bluntly, our economic health today is based not so much on “what we make” but, rather, “what we consume.”
Stated in yet another way, “too many houses, not enough buyers equals a housing bubble equals an eco-nomic decline.”
It’s in that context that we look with concern on proposals from so-called reformers who want state and local government to replace “defined benefit” pen-sion plans with the equivalent of government 401(k)s – so-called “defined contribution plans” (the latter being an intentional misnomer because it implies that contributions to defined benefit plans are somehow not as reliably defined as 401(k)-type investment contribu-tions are. In fact, contributions to state and municipal pensions are clearly defined by state law, local statute or contract.
Really, though, debates over nomenclature and defini-tions are a distraction from the reality of the true weak-ness of pension programs whose value and payout float with the vagaries of the stock market. In practice, they are bad policy – not simply for the beneficiaries but for the community as a whole.
To drive this point home, we’re going to rely primar-ily on statistics from the National Institute on Retire-ment Security (NIRS) – a think tank supported in large part by government pension funds. The latest available stats come from 2009, when the Commonwealth and the nation were wallowing in the worst of the current economic downturn.
At that time,384,834 Pennsylvanians were receiving state or local government pension benefits averaging $1,869 a month for a total infusion of pension cash into the economy of $8.6 billion.
By the end of 2009, the state jobless rate was 8 percent (it’s around 7.6% today) but NIRS economists say Pennsylvania’s government retirees – and just the ones still living in Pennsylvania – were keeping the state’s economy pumping through the sheer impact of them spending their average of $1,800-per-month per retiree on basic goods and services. NIRS projects the economic multiplier effect of $8.6 billion in Pennsylva-nia payments to be $13.7 billion when you add in the spin off value of businesses and payroll supported by retirees. That $13.7 billion then translated into 99,000 jobs. And those 99,000 jobs – if lost in 2009 – would have translated into an addition of 1.6 percent to the state jobless rate.
Which brings us back to our original premise: our economy is about consumption, not production.
This, in turn, means that we need to think very, very carefully about any willy-nilly attempts to tear apart what has been a fairly successful government pen-sion network rather than taking the harder course of restoring it to sound fiscal health for the long term. There’s no sense in tearing down the state and local government pension network if the first people hurt and police and firemen and teachers and government service workers. And, there’s no sense in tearing down the system if, in the long run, we’re going to be cut-ting a hole in the pants pockets of every small business owner on Main Street.
For starters, we can recognize that the average state or municipal worker did not create the pension prob-lems we now face. The problems at the state level at least came from a radical sweetening of the pension payment formula coupled with a drastic decline in the stock market.
Statistically, NIRS reports that for the period of 1993 through 2009 – better than 15 years – the employer contribution represented about 20 percent of pension
benefits received. Employee contributions accounted for nearly 16 percent of benefits received. The rest – about $6.50 of every $10 received by a retiree – came from pension fund investment earnings.
In other words, every $2 in taxpayer contributions was matched by $8 in employee contributions and investment earnings – pretty clearly a very good return on investment for state and local are an investment in the community, not money dissipated on frivolity. NIRS estimates that for every taxpayer dollar invested in pensions, $7.95 is returned in the form of direct and multiplier effect spending over 30 years.
Yes, taxpayers will have to invest more in the com-ing years to rebuild pension funds decimated by the market’s near collapse beginning in 2008. And, it might be reasonable to increase employee contributions, as well – at least in the short term. Eventually, pension fund earnings should rebound – although unlikely to be at the 20 percent level we were seeing at the height of the economic boom. Advocates of fixed benefit pensions like to say an 8-8-8 benchmark would work best over the long haul – pension contributions of 8 percent of payroll for the employer and employee balanced against an average 8 percent per year return on investments.
The biggest problem with “defined contribution” pro-grams is that their return floats with the market. When we have a market downturn like we’ve seen in recent years, pension payouts also decline (or pension princi-pal is quickly dissipated), meaning that at a time when the community most needs a stable base of consumers, retirees find themselves on short rations.
It’s one thing to be hard-nosed and say that retirees should be forced to ride out the ups and downs of the stock market like any other investors but, as the statis-tics show, punishing retirees also punishes the economy – and the community – at large.
There is a better way. CW
Government pensions cushion the economy; keep jobless rate down
Editorial
INDUSTRY # of jobs Labor Income Value added Output Impact
Retail stores – general merch. 2,008 $53.5 $87.0 $98.9
Wholesale trade business 1,998 $162.6 $279.2 $380.8
APRIL 2012 CAPITAL WATCH 13
One of the most conservative members of Congress now proposes to harness the power of the Internet to allow individual citizens to “co-sponsor” bills before Con-gress and to propose amendments and lobby for their passage. It’s a phenom-enon the certainly could not have been foreseen by the founding fathers – even Benjamin Franklin, who was, of course, experimenting with electricity (then a new concept) in his spare time.
The “citizen co-sponsor” app for Face-book unveiled in early March by U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the House Republican Leader, serves to strengthen my position advocating that the states join together in a compact to change the way the Electoral College casts its bal-lots in order to ensure that the candidate who gets the most votes nationally is elected President of the United States.
If the majority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, a recognized national conservative voice, can propose new ways to advance direct democracy, then I think people are more than ready to exercise their state-by-state rights to improve how the Electoral College func-tions and put an end to the possibility of seating a ‘loser President” -- something that we’ve done four time in our nation’s history.
Cantor’s innovation – allowing indi-vidual citizens to weigh in electronically on important legislation – is a natural progression in thinking growing out of the principals of the Tea Party move-ment. It gives new voice to individual citizens and has the potential to bring the legislative process closer to the peo-ple. And, “citizens’ co-sponsorship” in its current form is permissible under existing laws.
That’s another parallel to my proposal to engage Pennsylvania in an interstate compact with other states to require our delegates to the Electoral College to cast all our states’ votes for the winner of the national popular vote. The Constitu-tion specifically grants the power to the
states to determine how their electoral votes are cast.
What the founding fathers could not envision when they created the Con-stitution was how a functional national election could take place in an era when it took men on horseback days to travel between cities and women were not even allowed to vote. Direct voting has evolved over the years for every elective office except the presidency.
It’s clear from the Tea Party move-ment that voters across the country want the voice of the people to be heard. House Majority Leader Cantor is taking the next step by providing a platform for the voter’s voice to be heard directly on legislation before the Congress.
The national popular vote initiative as embodied in my legislation, H.B. 1270, will take us to the next level by ensur-ing that we never again seat a “loser” as President of the United States. CW
Rep. Tom Creighton of Manheim represents the 37th State Legislative District. He is chair of the House Local Government Committee and a member of the Judiciary Committee.
OPInIOn
Citizen co-sponsorship of bills is a good idea; making winner of national popular vote President is even betterBy rep. tOm creiGhtOn
rep. tom creighton
14 APRIL 2012 CAPITAL WATCHOPInIOn
the elegance at hershey
June 8-10, 2012 hershey, pennsylvania
The Elegance at Hershey
Honorary Chairs Cynthia & Edsel Ford II
The Grand Ascent Returns June 8 & 9, 2012
Sponsored by McCarthy Tire & Automotive Centers
Revival of the historic Hershey Hill Climb expands to 2-days this year.
More than 60 vintage race cars – many pre-WWII - roaring up the
challenging back road to The Hotel Hershey ® A vSCCA Sanctioned
event with Open pits, special spectator areas, unique car displays, a
Event benefits: Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, AACA Museum and AACA Library & Research Center
WWW.THEELEGANCEATHERSHEY.COM
With all the talk around the country about jobs, jobs, jobs, one has to wonder why so many public office holders or holder-wannabes are so determined to undermine any potential for job, job, job creation. In Pennsylvania, it has taken an odd turn.
In spite of a year-old set of recom-mendations from his own transportation advisory commission, Gov. Tom Corbett has yet to put forth any kind of plan to maintain or repair our state’s crumbling infrastructure of roads, bridges, transit systems and other critical avenues need-ed for an economy that involves moving people and goods on a daily basis.
We are facing a $3.5 billion transpor-tation crisis statewide yet there is no plan in sight for a sustainable funding source for all the work that needs to be completed. Last summer, I introduced legislation (H.B. 1834) to set in motion the steps needed to create as many as 30,000 of the jobs, jobs, jobs that would result from this endeavor.
Just recently in the House, we debated
the existence of a community economic-development program that has helped restore the crumbling infrastructure of buildings through the commonwealth. Some form of the Redevelopment Assis-tance Capital Program has been in place since 1986. It is a matching grant pro-gram, funded through government-issued bonds. It has helped to provide critical matching funds to rebuild public structures such as libraries, courthouses, medical facilities, educational institu-tions, urban business corridors, and even sports stadiums and arenas. Dozens of communities statewide have reaped the benefits of this program.
However, legislation to reduce the amount of debt allowed for the Redevel-opment Assistance Capital Program was approved recently by the House. The proponents of the legislation have com-pletely ignored the fact that not all debt is bad debt; that, in fact, when govern-ment issues bonds for various projects, that money jump-starts the economy, adding jobs, jobs, jobs and prolonging
the life of the critical infrastructure needed to attract private industry to invest in our communities.
Government cannot create jobs, jobs, jobs but it certainly can have an influence on those who do.
If Pennsylvania is to be the business-friendly destination that the governor and my colleagues claim they want, we need to do more, not less, to entice the private sector to invest its dollars and manpower in the Commonwealth. We need to take action on the four-bill (H.B. 2181, H.B. 2182, H.B. 2183, and H.B. 2184) package I introduced earlier this year – “Made in Pennsylvania” – to retain, create, and stimulate jobs, jobs, jobs.
Instead of cutting dollars to basic and higher education, the incubators of Pennsylvania’s future workforce, we must consider more creative ways to invest those dollars, not eliminate them. We must provide additional incentives so that private industry is willing to take the entrepreneurial chances neces-sary to stimulate the imagination and
that result in family-sustaining and rewarding jobs, jobs, jobs.
It is time to act, act, act. CW
Rep. Dwight Evans is from Philadelphia.
Infrastructure projects would help create jobs in state By rep. dwiGht eVans
Thirteen Awards of Excellence from the National BBQ Association for sauces, Safeway DC BBQ Battle three time finalist, two top ten overall finishes in the American Royal International BBQ Championship, and Memphis in May World BBQ Championship in Whole Hog three time finalist. These are the competi-tions conquered and the awards obtained by Mo Mo’s BBQ & Grill from different ends of the nation.
Mo Mo’s BBQ & Grill has been rated the third best place to eat in downtown Harrisburg.
At Mo Mo’s, one would have the option of tasting the most unique wings to ever tickle their taste buds topped with one of thirteen homemade prize winning BBQ sauces. These wings are a hit because they are smoked as well as fried. If that does not get your mouth watering, then it might peak your interest to try the fan favorite Mo Mo’s burger. The Mo Mo’s burger consists of chopped beef brisket, smoked provolone cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, and Mo Mo’s Alabama white BBQ sauce on a toasted bun. After feasting on their delectable entrées, there are over one-hundred and twenty five different types of beers and beverages to choose from to compliment your meal.
Owners David Guy and Mike Moran opened the restaurant last May in hopes of attracting a large lunch crowd and possible growth for the business. To their sur-prise, the success of the business has exceeded their hopes for it and is still growing due to their hospitality and their ability to consistently serve great food.
It is important to the Mo Mo’s staff that every guest feels like family whenever they visit. That is why they offer fun entertainment in which every guest can join in or feel comfortable enough to dance and share laughs. Karaoke is held every Wednes-day, and Greg Grasa will be performing every Thursday. Live blues will be played on Fridays from 8:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m.
Just sat in on an extensive filibuster? Campaigning and court dates have you feeling famished? Come on down to 307 Market St. and unwind with a glass in hand, a scrumptious meal on your table, and smooth jazz soothing you through acoustic therapy. CW
