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Piccola Questions Governor’s Big City,
Liberal Approach to Government
Massive Borrowing & Spending Just Weeks After Increasing Taxes
HARRISBURG -- Senate
Majority Whip Jeff Piccola (R-15) today called Governor Rendell’s budget “an
appetite to spend beyond the means of Pennsylvanians,” and seriously questioned
the ramifications that these “massive borrowing, taxing, and spending” plans
would have on Pennsylvania consumers, entrepreneurs, and businesses.
The few major initiatives in Governor Rendell’s
2004-05 budget proposals hinge on significant borrowing and include
approximately $1 billion in an attempt to improve efforts for environmental
clean-up and $2 billion to fund his economic stimulus plan, which he initially
proposed in last year’s budget. The Governor’s plan also calls for certain
“hidden fee increases,” or new taxes, that total several $100 millions of
dollars.
Piccola criticized the Governor’s plan for
additional tax increases and borrowing saying that this does not represent a
fair trade off for state investments in other projects. “All of this borrowing
is at the expense of our consumers,” said Piccola. “It seems that Governor
Rendell has shifted his emphasis from last year, a policy of ‘tax, spend, and
borrow’ to this year’s policy -- ‘borrow, tax, and spend,’” he added.
Under the Governor’s plan, $250 million is
proposed in new taxes on Pennsylvania households, manufacturers, and other
employers. This includes several new taxes to support the General Fund, taxes
on residual and municipal waste specifically earmarked for environmental
improvement programs, and miscellaneous business taxes.
“These new taxes are hitting the heart of our job
creation efforts. Once again, the Governor has promised more than Pennsylvania
can afford,” he said. Piccola added, “We cannot continue to mortgage the future
of Pennsylvania by borrowing and spending.”
Piccola also denounced Governor Rendell’s call to
increase taxes and to borrow excessively as a means to create jobs. “The
Governor believes with every fiber of his body that higher taxes and ‘more
government’ can create jobs for this Commonwealth. I disagree. Government
doesn’t create jobs -- people, small and large businesses, and entrepreneurs
create jobs,” Piccola said.
“We have to avoid the massive borrowing proposed
by Governor Rendell. The last time we borrowed this much money, it took
Pennsylvania 25 years to repay it,” he said. Piccola added, “Governor Rendell
gave us today his best Milton Shapp impersonation.”
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