State Capitol insight

Sunday, 27 November 2011 21:13

State Capitol insight

Written by Scott LaMar, Director of Radio Smart Talk

Radio Smart Talk for Monday, November 28:

Pennsylvania state lawmakers return to the capitol in Harrisburg next week with several key bills pending. Before they do, we'll preview the issues legislators will be dealing with in the end-of-year session on Monday's Radio Smart Talk. Joining us to provide some insight into the legislative session will be John Micek, who reports on state government for the Allentown Morning Call and witf''s Capitol Bureau Chief, Mary Wilson.

Lawmakers will get 3% salary hikes soon. It's an automatic pay increase tied to the cost-of-living. The minimum salary will be more than $82,000 for rank-and-file House and Senate members. -- a 74% increase from 16 years ago. There are a number of legislators who aren't accepting the raise or are donating them to charities. Some are calling for a repeal of the law that provides for the automatic increases, considering state revenue collections are running below estimates after several years of extremely tight budgets.

Other issues we'll discuss include whether a fee on natural gas drillers will be approved and if the General Assembly will vote to sell liquor stores.

LISTEN TO PROGRAM:

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# Jim 2011-11-28 10:05

I'm a moderate to progressive on most issues. But, I feel strongly that we should sell the state stores. PA is on of very few states that still has this anachronistic, inefficient state owned system. We should turn the sale of liquor and beer over to the private system and focus scarce resources on things where government has a more appropriate role. Plus, as Gov. Corbett has pointed out, there is an inherent conflict between regulating the sale of alcohol on one hand and promoting its sale on the other.

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# Tara 2011-11-28 10:35

In this day and age, where many of us are struggling to make ends meet, look for work (esp. those of us who are unemployed) and try to do all we can to support our families, lawmakers should hold off on any raises, even if they're "built in." With the approval ratings for state and federal lawmakers in the proverbial toilet, one way to curb that perception would be for legislators to forego a raise. Many of us are lucky to have our jobs and aren't getting raises...why should they ? They already get top notch health care, a great pension program, things that most people don't have. Plus, it might also help curb the perception that lawmakers don't care or understand the hardships many of their constituents face each and every day. It would be an insult for them to get the raise, effectively saying to their constituents, "I deserve a raise and you don't. Sorry you're suffering, but too bad."

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# Lee 2011-11-28 10:42

Note that the legislators are giving up this year's raises only. Each year they refuse this year's increase, but they then receive last year's increase. They continue to get raises each year.

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# Thomas 2011-11-28 10:43

I am a state employee. Are they not state employees? We took a pay freeze. What is the difference? Also, we pay for health care. Do they?

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# Brent 2011-11-28 10:44

We're outraged! Nearly all of us are tightening our belts. If veterans and college educated employees aren't seeing these kind of pay raises, neither should our legislators.

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# Cindy 2011-11-28 10:47

Interesting enough, state workers at the management level have had a pay freeze and no cost of living increases for at least the past 2 years, with no change on the horizon.

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# Robert Colgan 2011-11-28 11:48

We need a Constitutional Convention.

The pay raise, and the current legislation in the Senate (1100) and the House (1950) that gives the drilling companies the right to lord it over the municipalities and boroughs ----effectively giving control of Pennsylvania to corporations instead of where the power now, and properly resides in Pennsylvanians are just two blatant examples of how aristocraticall y elite the ruling bodies in Harrisburg have become.

They are servants to the electorate, not masters.
Time to rein them in.
We need a Constitutional Convention.

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