GOP reactions to budget proposal range from 'cautiously optimistic' to 'fiscally irresponsible'

Republican lawmakers’ reaction to Gov. Tom Wolf’s $36.1 billion budget proposal on Tuesday ran the gamut from “cautiously optimistic” to “fiscally irresponsible.”

“The governor’s proposal is a good start,” said state Rep. Bob Brooks, R-Murrysville, a member of the House Appropriations Committee. “I am committed to holding the budget to $35 billion, which would be a 2.9% increase (from) this year.”

Wolf’s proposed budget:

• Projects a 4.5% increase in tax collections to $37.3 billion, before refunds, and does not increase tax rates on sales or income, the state’s two biggest sources of revenue.
• Asks lawmakers to expand a bond-funded redevelopment grant program by $1 billion and make the money available for the cleanup of lead, asbestos and other environmental health hazards in school buildings.
• Calls for lawmakers to raise the state minimum wage to $12 an hour on July 1, up from the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour.

“I know some Philadelphia schools need asbestos and lead clean-ups,” Brooks said. “How does their school district pay the bill? The answer, your money, not the money they generate. Before government spends large capital funds of your money, they must decide which schools should stay open and pay for the repairs.”

State Rep. Eric Nelson, R-Hempfield, said the Wolf administration “has overspent almost $800 million this year.”

“For the second year in a row, the governor is massively overspending more than the agreed-to budget from June,” Nelson said. “There are some reasonable goals in his address, but our revenues have been prematurely spent on other things. Government just can’t do it all.”

State Rep. Jim Rigby, R-Johnstown, agreed.

“Stop me if you’ve heard this one before — Gov. Tom Wolf wants to raise taxes and increase spending at a fiscally-irresponsible level,” Rigby said in a news release. “Responsible residents of the 71st District spend what they have and live within their means. State government should run its own shop that way and Gov. Wolf’s spending proposal doesn’t fall in line with that way of thinking.”

State Rep. Mike Puskaric, R-Elizabeth, said he was “cautiously optimistic” and was able to find common ground with Wolf in areas like workforce development, but chided the governor for “once again seeking to impose a natural gas extraction tax on our region’s job-creating energy producers.”

“A tax on this industry would be a very tough pill for this area to swallow,” Puskaric said. “The governor’s proposal is $2 billion more than last year. I want to see a budget that holds the line on taxes, adds money to the Rainy Day Fund and spends less than what the governor is proposing.”

“We’re blessed to enjoy a good economy, which allows us to spend at this current level,” Brooks said. “However, we must continue to do all we can to incentivize employment so that we can fully program education, senior care, special needs and mental health.”