In a Capitolwire column yesterday, Pete DeCoursey argues the departure of Gov. Corbett’s top aide, alone, won’t mark the new direction donors and advisers are hoping to see.  Republican candidate for state attorney general Dave Free has a huge financial edge over his Democratic opponent, Kathleen Kane, reports the Associated Press.  Harrisburg got its second receiver yesterday, along with reasons the first one quit. 

Governor Corbett’s top aide has left his post.  Chief of staff Bill Ward is stepping down to become a judge in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.  Ward’s departure comes in the wake of published reports the administration is shuffling its staff to weather a drop in popularity and appease unhappy GOP donors and advisers urging the governor to improve how he deals with the Republican-controlled legislature.  Corbett’s spokesman has denied such claims.

The Associated Press reports Gov. Corbett’s top aide is leaving his job.  The Philadelphia Inquirer writes that supporters fed up with the pummeling the administration is getting from critics are prodding the administration to make staff changes.  The state’s beer wholesalers have come out against a proposal to sell off the commonwealth’s wine and spirit stores.  And Corbett announces he'd like to pass prison reforms by the end of June.

More than half of the state’s school districts expect to scale back their offerings as schools grapple with low tax revenues and limited government funding, and new study shows.

The third annual school budget survey conducted by the Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials and the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators received responses from 281 of the commonwealth’s 500 school districts.  

Of the schools surveyed, 60 percent are increasing class sizes, 58 percent are offering fewer electives like arts, physical education, and advanced classes.  11 percent of respondents are reducing full-day kindergarten, and eight percent are eliminating it.  A majority of the surveyed districts said they’re planning to furlough employees and not fill empty positions next year.

Speakers from the two groups behind the report said Tuesday that unless state and federal education spending increases, there’s little relief in sight for school districts.

Jay Himes, executive director of PASBO, said the “fiscal deterioration” is severe.  School districts are suffering for a number of reasons, he explained: the poor economy has hampered local revenue sources, state and federal funding is down, and state-mandated pension costs are rising.

“48 percent of the respondents to the PASBO-PASA survey say their districts will be in fiscal distress in three years if state funding and local revenues do not improve,” said Himes. 

Despite recent claims from state lawmakers that schools should be spending down their savings to weather the storm without cutting instructional programs, speakers from PASBO and PASA cautioned against relying on savings to balance school district budgets.

More than 20 percent of the school districts participating in the survey said they had spent more than half of the uncommitted funds in their savings accounts in the last two years to cover costs.

Eric Eshbach, superintendent of the Upper Adams School District in Adams County, said it’s a bad idea for schools to do that repeatedly when rising pension costs loom on the horizon. 

“The contention is out there that it’s a rainy day and we need to use our rainy day fund,” said Eshbach.  “I would contend that it’s a rainy decade, and for most school districts, we have about three days worth of rainy day fund to get through that decade.  What do we do when it’s over?”

(Harrisburg) -- Students, teachers and parents from the Capital City's school district plan to rally today at the State Capitol, asking lawmakers to support increased education funding for the state's most needy districts.  Harrisburg's schools are facing a nearly 16 million dollar budget deficit.  The district's leaders are considering cutting Kindergarten, sports, music, art and other programs that are not required by the state.  School Board Member Lola Lawson says more than one-thousand Harrisburg students will take a field trip to the Capitol rotunda to call for increases in public education spending.  "We really have to come together as a community and realize that if we don't save our public education system, we really are going to be doomed," Lawson says.  The Governor's proposed budget has a slight increase in overall basic education funding for next year.  A state Senate-approved spending plan sets aside roughly $100 million for early education and Kindergarten programs that goes above and beyond Corbett's proposal.  Last year, lawmakers approved education cuts totaling $860 million after a loss of federal stimulus funding.  The Harrisburg student, parent and teacher rally runs from 10 a.m. to noon.

The Standard Speaker has more on yesterday’s House Appropriations Committee vote to send a budget bill to the floor of the House – with a spending cap. The Associated Press reports Senate Appropriations chairman Jake Corman says the state has to consider reducing future pension benefits of state employees. The revolution-minded House Bill 1776, to unshackle Pennsylvanians from property taxes and make up the difference with higher sales and personal income taxes, has gotten its first committee hearing. 

State House lawmakers have an official spending cap on the budget proposal, which passed a committee vote and is poised for House action as early as the first week of June.  Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee voted to recognize a $27.6 billion upper limit on spending – equal to the overall spending plan passed by the Senate, and half a billion dollars more than Gov. Corbett’s proposal.

The move to define a ceiling – and take no amendments that would exceed it – was met with dismay from the Democratic minority on the panel.

Minority chairman Joe Markosek (D-Allegheny) said the GOP wanted to “stifle debate.”  He said Monday the ceiling has been set too low, leaving out $300 million his caucus insists will be available to restore funding to education and social services programs.  Republicans said the state can’t count on another $300 million, because the latest economic data shows a slowdown in tax revenues.

“It’s a disagreement of what those revenues are, that’s the real issue here today,” said Markosek, voicing frustration that the Democrats’ amendments, which assumed no funding cap, were being ruled out of order in the committee meeting.  “Why not just let us vote all our amendments?  If you want to vote no, vote no.  You have the votes,” Markosek said.

“We’re not stifling any amendments,” said the committee’s Majority Chairman, Rep. Bill Adolph (R-Delaware).  “What we’re saying is that the amendments cannot spend over the amount that we have.”

Other Republicans argued that there would be plenty of time to offer amendments on the House floor, but that any funding increases in those proposals would need to be accompanied by either cuts, or increases in revenue.

“We’re trying to be very cautious in what we’re doing and trying to move this bill, and this is not going to be… the final budget,” said Adolph.  “And I’m going to be working with members on both sides of the aisle, but I can guarantee it, the amendments will be revenue-neutral.

State lawmakers and Gov. Corbett have begun criticizing school districts for keeping too much money in savings in the face of proposed funding cuts.  But some districts say the harsh words grossly oversimplify their financial situation.  

(Harrisburg) -- Governor Corbett and Dauphin County commissioners are in an open debate over whether counties or the state should shoulder the cost of programs like mental health treatment.  Dauphin County Commissioner Jeff Haste recently asked if the county should close its human services departments after the governor proposed a 20 percent state funding cut in those areas.  Commissioner George Hartwick doesn't support closing the offices, but says Haste's comments reveal a building frustration.  "We cannot continue to stand here and roll over while the state forces down budget cuts for their fiscal obligations and expect county taxpayers to foot the bill for things that we are not obligated to provide financial backing for," Hartwick says.  Governor Corbett's spokeswoman, Kelli Roberts, says if the county were to disband human services programs, its leaders would "be responsible for explaining how this is in the best interest of residents."  The governor's spending plan would trim five million dollars annually from Dauphin County's human services allocation.  The state Senate has passed an alternated plan, which cuts roughly half as much from state payments to counties.

The Associated Press reports this morning that state Sen. Jane Orie is resigning from her legislative post.  Some advocates for education, social services, environmental programs say deep cuts could be avoided by dipping into the Legislature’s surplus funding – about $120 million this year.  And the Post-Gazette takes a look at Gov. Corbett’s recent talk of pension reform – and why the state’s pension fund is in such a bind.