Senator Brooks’ Statement on Governor Wolf’s 2015-16 Budget Proposal

Senator Michele Brooks (R-50) issued the following statement today in response to Governor Wolf’s budget address.

“We are facing many challenges as we work to finalize next year’s state budget and Governor Wolf’s budget address is just the starting point in the process.

Many years ago they sold gambling to the people of Pennsylvania to eliminate property taxes and we all know how that turned out.  I have grave concerns that this may be the same path.  It would be very detrimental to the people of Pennsylvania that the personal income and sales taxes are increased permanently with no guarantee how much or how long property taxes would be reduced. Regarding the severance tax, the facts are, many landowners could be paying the proposed severance tax as there are gas lease contracts that pass any new tax onto the property owner.

We need to support a strong foundation for our children’s education future.  As many of the school districts in the 50th Senatorial district receive more than 50% of their funding from the Commonwealth, it is important that state funding is not reduced to these districts in the coming years through a new formula.

We cannot lose sight of the impact that this budget will have on families, on jobs, and on communities across Pennsylvania. Therefore, we must develop a responsible spending plan for Fiscal Year 2015-16 that supports core state services and programs without increasing the financial burden on working families and job creators.”

Contact:          Michael Hengst           (717) 787-1322

 

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