Democrats Gather at Courthouse to Discuss Impending Budget Vote

It seems Governor Tom Corbett’s budget is not sitting well with Pennsylvanian democrats. Big names from the party gathered at the Montgomery County Courthouse on Thursday morning to speak out against the proposed cuts, both addressing the possibly negative effects these cuts may have around the state and proposing alternative solutions to the financial crises the governments are currently facing.

The government leaders present focused on the effects the new budget could have on education, jobs and property taxes. They also presented their frustrations over the roles big businesses are playing, or not playing, in carrying the burden of the proposed cuts.

Senator Daylin Leach led the group in a discussion on education and the way our current system will feel the impacts of the new budget. According to Leach, the current proposed budget cuts would do great harms to Pennsylvania’s current K through 12 public education system. After speaking with several school administrators, Leach described a post-cut classroom as having no pencils, paper, or textbooks aside from the teacher’s.

“This would be a third-world education,” he said.

Representative Matthew Bradford agreed with Leach’s outrage over the potential cuts to the school systems. As a father, he, too, sympathizes with the importance of the education in the Commonwealth and said has dedicated himself to fighting in its best interests.

More focused on these students’ parents and families and their taxes and jobs were Representatives Mike Gerber and Tim Briggs.

“[The republicans] are all about jobs," said Gerber. "Yet all they are proposing to do right now is cut jobs.”

Appropriations Chair Vincent Hughes claimed that the tax breaks being given to corporations in the new budget are not ones that will necessarily create jobs.

As for the jobs in place, many members of the panel had comments on the lack of taxation on the Marcellus Shale drilling project.

“The Marcellus Shale gas drillers are getting off scot-free in this budget,” commented Representative Josh Shapiro.

Later, Hughes pointed out that according to Governor Corbett, the sacrifice must be shared.

“The sacrifice is not shared,” he said.

He did point out, though, that privately speaking with those involved in the project, he has discovered these citizens are more than willing to share this burden and are simply not being given the opportunity to do so.

“A shared sacrifice means that everybody has to step up,” he said.

Hughes also made a point of saying that in addition to staying true to the concept of shared sacrifice, the government must also “count the numbers correctly.”

According to the Appropriations Chair, “unanticipated revenues” this year will exceed $500 million. Hughes said these “unanticipated revenues” are surpluses in the budget, but are currently being put into a “rainy day” fund. Representative Briggs would like to see the money go somewhere else.

“We don’t need a rainy day fund,” he commented, “It’s raining right now in Pennsylvania.”

The Pa. House of Representatives reconvenes on Monday, May 23, for a predicted vote on the new budget proposal from House republicans, but according to Hughes, there is enough time to change the budget and avoid the potentially harmful effects of the one currently being proposed.

“What we have here is a problem that is solvable if we put our minds to it,” Hughes said.

According to Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Hoeffel, “the stakes are high.”

See a video of the Democratic rally on 's website.