(Harrisburg) -- The state Senate has voted in favor of a bill that would allow a state takeover of Harrisburg. Only House approval stands between the proposal and the governor’s signature. Governor Corbett has said he would sign the bill to put Harrisburg and certain other cities under the watch of court-appointed managers who will prescribe a fiscal recovery plan. Senator Jeffrey Piccola, a Dauphin County Republican, defends the bill from complaints it falls short of addressing structural dysfunctions of Harrisburg and other similarly debt-ridden cities. Piccola, who in large part wrote the proposal, says it’s meant to hold off a Harrisburg bankruptcy at all costs, not solve the problems of cities across the state. "We do not have the time necessary to in our leisure look at these problems and devise solutions to these problems that are sometimes very big and very general," he says. But, Senator John Blake, a Lackawanna County Democrat, says the bill is an overreach. "This legislation is meant to protect monied interests at the expense of local taxpayers under the guise of protecting public safety," he says. "I think it is an overreach of state government powers. I think that we should respect the elected leadership of our cities and we should allow them the opportunity to represent the best interests of their people." In weeks past, Harrisburg city officials have been unable to agree on a fiscal recovery plan, and four City Council members have filed for bankruptcy without the consent of the mayor. The city is more than $300 million in debt, largely because of a failed retrofit of its trash incinerator.

Harrisburg Mayor Linda Thompson issued the following statement today:

"The Senate has passed SB 1151 which soon moves to the governor for signature as anticipated sometime tomorrow. This is regrettable and was totally avoidable had four city council members taken the opportunity to pass a well-prepared and widely vetted city financial recovery plan. Council voted two expert plans down on three occasions triggering this legislation which, after a 30 day ‘mutual consent’ period, removes them from the recovery process. I did not support this bill, but I will work diligently with all parties involved in the recovery process moving forward. I will work to assure fiscal solvency for the City of Harrisburg as soon as possible, and represent the best interests of the citizens of this city at every step in that recovery process."