We usually open these Friday missives with a little national news to get us going, but given the big news out of Harrisburg this week, here is a brief recap:
It all started innocently enough, with the State Supreme Court taking testimony from people who believed the new legislative maps were a bit unruly, unfair and could have been drawn better. Some chatter here, a few maps there, nothing to see here, move along…and then…
Boom! Turmoil! Mayhem! Dogs and cats, living together! The court tossed the 2011 Legislative Reapportionment Commission’s maps into the Harrisburg incinerator, saying the newly-drawn legislative districts are “contrary to law.” This move throws the entire 2012 election cycle into chaos, as lawmakers circulate petitions in their old districts, wondering where the new ones might be, and when they might actually exist. These are uncharted waters, and even longtime capitol observers are scratching their heads over this one.
House Majority Leader Mike Turzai juked the Pennsylvania press corps seven ways from Sunday this week, as scribes reported (at length) that he would run for Congress, before Turzai himself came out a few days later and let the air out of those particular tires. No Congressional run for Turzai, folks. He will remain the engineer of the House GOP train for the time being.
The very public, War of the Roses-esque divorce of UPMC and Highmark out in western Pennsylvania took a very interesting turn this week. In addition to Highmark laying down $475 million to purchase the ailing West Penn Allegheny Health System, those crazy kids at Highmark are ready to plop down another cool half-billion clams to open regional health centers and add a ton of doctors to its own system. This is the equivalent of pushing your stack into the middle, looking at your opponent (in this case, UPMC) and saying “Bring it, son.”
The State Senate this week cleared the path for unemployed Pennsylvanians to receive up to 13 more weeks of benefits, which is convenient, since the job market is expected to return to full employment status 13 weeks from now. Nah, just kidding. We’ll be doing this dance again soon, mark your calendars now.
One lawmaker this week proposed a plan to force recipients of unemployment compensation benefits to do a set number of hours of community service in order to receive said benefits. They must also wash behind their ears and eat their broccoli (that is, if they can afford to actually buy broccoli.)
The embattled Chester-Upland School District will remain open through the end of the year, thanks to bipartisan intervention by some lawmakers who preferred not to see 3,600 very bored kids wandering the streets of Chester all day. This is by no means the end of this tune, however, as the chronically-broke district is now going under the microscope of some House hearings next week, presumably to determine how they blew through their cash so quickly.
And as if on cue, Philadelphia City Controller Alan Butkovitz said this week that he has grave concerns that the Philly schools will soon be in the same position as Chester Upland. Of course, the sheer size of the Philadelphia School District means that if Butkovitz is right, the whole Chester Upland financial collapse will look like a bug hitting your windshield by comparison.
A bipartisan group of House members this week unveiled a plan to close the dreaded Delaware Loophole, which companies use to avoid paying state corporate taxes by “headquartering” in Delaware. And by “headquartering”, we mean buying a post office box. This Rendell-era plan was resurrected with the caveat that all proceeds go toward dropping the state’s Corporate Net Income Tax rate, which is one of the highest in the nation (which is why a lot of companies avoid paying it by using the Delaware Loophole.) Confused yet? Good, because once they wrap this one up, lawmakers will then go after the dreaded Maryland Escape Clause. You don’t even wanna know how bad that is.
We found out this week that the state’s Dog Protection Fund is about to go ace-deuce if some additional scratch is not located somewhere in the next state budget. This makes us sad, especially because under a new proposal, the dogs will no longer be eligible for food stamps, either. Here’s to hoping lawmakers nip this one in the bud.
Speaking of food stamps, former Governor Ed Rendell returned to the Capitol this week to politely question Governor Tom Corbett’s recently-announced plan to “asset test” food stamp recipients to make sure they are not sitting on a pile of Romney-type Cayman Island cash and still eating on the public’s dime. Rendell made the very sharp distinction between “means testing” and “asset testing”, and in the process, made a fairly compelling argument.
The State House is making good on its pledge to shrink the size of government by actually shrinking itself. A bill is poised for a vote that would cut the 203-member House down to 153 members. The plan requires a constitutional change, and therefore probably won’t happen for a few more years. Oh, and it wouldn’t take effect until 2020. The State Senate has not yet indicated if it, too, will put its own chamber into the dryer on high heat.
The governor is poised to sign a bill that would raise the prize limits for small games of chance conducted by veterans' clubs, volunteer fire companies and other non-profit entities. In the casino era, where you can win millions of dollars whilst munching on free food, this move makes sense, and will allow these charitable groups a little more breathing room.
Apparently, Pennsylvania may have too much gas, a condition that will not be solved with a few Beano pills and a change in diet. Warning signs are coming from the natural gas industry that the Marcellus Shale formation is essentially causing a gas glut in the market, and is depressing natural gas prices, making it less cost effective to drill, while happily enough making it more cost-effective to heat your home.
Of course, if you don’t have natural gas heat, one can always burn chicken manure to heat one’s home or business, we learned this week. Sometimes we learn things that we kinda wish we hadn’t learned, but thought we would share it anyway. You’re welcome.
Governor Tom Corbett this week quietly launched a work group to examine ways to lower the cost of imprisoning Pennsylvanians, and the Department of Corrections budget begins to blot out the sun. Lawmakers have been searching for ways to achieve this goal for the past few years, examining things like alternative sentencing, and the question always comes back to one thing: how to we put fewer bodies into the already-overcrowded system?
Kudos go out this week to State Rep. Gene DiGirolamo, whose dogged pursuit of the creation of a Department of Drug and Alcohol Abuse has finally paid off. The office is up and running, two things that would never have been possible without DiGirolamo’s focus and drive. Now to the task of making sure it doesn’t get de-funded in next year’s state budget.
It was Transportation Week on the Triadvocate, as House P3 champion Rep. Rick Geist penned a guest column for us and the Keystone Coalition made its triumphant return to the State Capitol to again remind elected officials that our roads, bridges, ports, airports and trails have still not found a way to repair or rebuild themselves.
So until next week, we’re outta here like Vladimir. We’ll be back next week after we watch the Pro Bowl with the same level of feigned enthusiasm of those who are actually playing the game. Until then, you know the drill: Facebook and Twitter.
There’s no way back from here! From all your friends at Triad, have a great weekend!
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