Morrisville, Pennsbury can't overcome differences

From the Inquirer.

Morrisville, Pennsbury can't overcome differences

[Also printed in the BCCT]

[Also printed in the Trentonian with a great "stay on track" front page picture of desolation and despair]


You talkin about me? Our plight, and our shame, has gone national.

KATHY MATHESON Posted on Sat, May. 2, 2009
The Associated Press

MORRISVILLE, Pa. - From the outside, the M.R. Reiter Elementary School looks like any other school tucked into a quiet residential neighborhood , except there are no kids on the playground, no swings on the swing set, no flag on the flagpole. It's been closed since a boiler exploded in December.

No one was injured, but the explosion seemed to some to be another indication that the Morrisville School District needs to get out of the education business. Despite having one of the highest school tax rates in Bucks County, students learn in aging facilities and have less-than-stellar test scores to show for it.

Even school board president Bill Hellmann says tiny Morrisville, with only 825 students, is too small to have its own district.

"It's kind of ridiculous," Hellmann said.

Some think Morrisville would be a perfect candidate for a merger under Gov. Ed Rendell's push to save money by consolidating the state's 500 districts into 100. The problem is that Morrisville's nearest neighbor, the more affluent Pennsbury School District, isn't interested.

Headquartered about 30 miles northeast of Philadelphia in Fallsington, Pennsbury has about 11,500 students and much higher SAT scores, a broader curriculum and better facilities , including two pools and a football stadium.

But Pennsbury also has problems. Its 3,400-student high school is near capacity, three of its 15 schools are striving to meet all federal educational standards and officials are trying to close a $12 million gap in next year's budget.

"We're struggling as it is to try to meet the needs of our students and be responsible to our tax base," said Pennsbury school board president Greg Lucidi.

Morrisville is a 2-square-mile borough just across the Delaware River from Trenton, N.J. Its $20 million annual school budget pays to operate a combined middle school/high school and two elementary schools, though elementary students are temporarily consolidated on one campus.

The local rubber plant and steel mill have closed, leaving its 10,000 residents with little commercial or industrial tax revenue and meager room for growth. As a result, its school tax rate is 29 percent higher than Pennsbury's.

The Pennsbury district's $174 million budget covers 15 schools across a large swath of Bucks County and is supported by a broad tax base, from manicured subdivisions and office parks to farmland and shopping centers.

Talk of merging the two districts goes back decades, but money, logistics and emotions have always gotten in the way.

In 1956, the Pennsylvania Economy League determined that Morrisville would benefit from a merger in part because of projected financial difficulties. Those problems were evident by 1971, when then-Superintendent Paul Phillips warned that Morrisville students would be shortchanged unless the district reorganized.

"Our program will deteriorate ... because of the tremendous demands which will be placed on the schools by society for a better educational program, as well as by state regulations," he wrote in a memo to the school board. "It cannot be provided with a small financial base which now exists in our town."

A 1986 Morrisville study suggested that sending its 7th through 12th graders to Pennsbury on a tuition basis "could be the best of all worlds." But it never happened; Pennsbury was experiencing explosive growth at the time as developers built up farmland in its bedroom communities for Philadelphia, New York and Princeton, N.J.

In 2004, the Pennsbury board refused to participate in a merger study, leaving it unclear what costs or savings might be realized through consolidation.

Some suggest the resistance stems in part from race and class tensions. About half of Morrisville students are minority, compared with about 12 percent of Pennsbury students.

Lucidi disputes that.

"We're not rich," he said. "We have a diversity of students and a diversity of taxpayers in our district."

But there are other obstacles to a merger: transportation costs, since Morrisville doesn't use buses; teacher salaries, if lower-paid Morrisville teachers join the Pennsbury union; and concern over disparities in standardized test scores.

"Adding a whole new population of students that haven't been through our processes could be detrimental to our scores," Lucidi said.

Pennsbury's average 1040 SAT score dwarfs Morrisville's 810. But on state assessments, 74 percent of Morrisville students scored proficient or better in math compared with 79 percent of Pennsbury students; in reading, Morrisville scored 68 percent proficient to Pennsbury's 80 percent.

Some have suggested the state could grant Pennsbury "test amnesty," allowing it to omit Morrisville students' scores for a given number of years, if the districts merged.

Morrisville tried to reinvent itself by building a new K-12 campus a few years ago, but taxpayer acrimony led to the plan being scrapped. Sandy Gibson, a former Morrisville board president, left town because of that and what she calls a lack of commitment to the students.

"Morrisville is never, ever going to invest in itself," she said.

So while Pennsbury solicits bids to turn one of its 11 elementary schools into a "green" building, Morrisville may permanently close M.R. Reiter. Asbestos was dislodged when the boiler exploded.

Officials in both communities say a merger will only happen if Harrisburg forces it , and helps finance it.

State Rep. John Galloway, D-Bucks, said it's not clear that Pennsbury would be the best fit for Morrisville, and that perhaps it's the wrong question to be asking.

"The question is whether or not Morrisville can sustain a school district," Galloway said. "Half the people in that town believe they can sustain a school district. The other half believe Morrisville's in a lot of trouble."

Galloway: Pensions a 'snowballing crisis'

From the BCCT.

Kudos to Rep. Galloway for hearing the outcry and starting a legislative response.

Sen. McIlhinney believes "the state needs to do something." That's a bold call for action..NOT. Even our school board members think the state should so something. The difference here, sir, is that you're one of the ones who is a "do-somethinger" in this mess. Let's get your do-something machine in gear sometime this decade, if you would?

Contact Senator Chuck McIlhinney (R-PA 10th) and Representative John T. Galloway (D-PA 140th)

Galloway: Pensions a 'snowballing crisis'
By: JAMES MCGINNIS
Bucks County Courier Times

The pension fund for school employees reported a loss of $1.7 billion. The fund for state workers said it lost $11 billion.

The global recession has only added to a "snowballing crisis" with state pensions and, without a special commission, it's only going to get worse for taxpayers, state Rep. John Galloway, D-140, said Thursday.

Galloway has joined a long line of Pennsylvania lawmakers to ring alarm bells over two pensions - one for Pennsylvania's teachers and the other for all state workers. He sent a letter this week to the speaker of House of Representatives, calling for a commission on the pensions.

Each fund lost billions of dollars in 2008 and, unless the economy turns around, Pennsylvania could be forced by law to raise taxes to support those funds in 2012, lawmakers said.

The Pennsylvania School Employees Retirement System reported a loss of $1.7 billion in 2008. There's about $60 billion left.

The state workers pension fund reported a loss of $11 billion, leaving $24 billion in the fund at the beginning of 2009.

Galloway said he believes the traditional legislative process of sending such matters to a committee for research and consideration simply wasn't going to work this time.

"I think the problem is so large - it's not something that we can just deal with in committee," he said. We need to act on this, and a (traditional) committee might never even come to the floor (of the House).

"A speaker's commission would bring in all the different committees and put more pressure on us to act," Galloway continued. "We're getting a lot of pressure to just do nothing and wait and see if the economy can just turn this around."

"But what if it doesn't?" Galloway said.

State Rep. Scott Petri, R-178, said he "would not oppose anything that brings more attention and urgency to this problem. Waiting and knowing, and just letting it stew is not resolving it.

"Before the recession, it looked like we were starting to build a way out of this hole - at least a way to make the hole smaller," Petri added. "But then the economy made a turn for the worse."

A number of state lawmakers are trying to secure federal stimulus funds to try and plug that hole, Petri added.

While he would support a speaker's commission, state Rep. Tony Melio, D-141, said lawmakers can't seriously consider any ideas that cost Pennsylvania more money.

"We had a meeting with the appropriations chairman, who told us that we just don't have any money and we can't spend any more money," Melio said. "Until we get the stimulus fund figured out, we just can't do anything."

State Sen. Chuck McIlhinney, R-10, said he supported the need for a special convention on the pension and considers it a crisis. The state needs to do something, he said.

State Rep Gene DiGirolamo, R-18, was less certain of the need for a speaker's commission and he disagreed with Galloway's remarks about the committee process.

"I don't know if I agree with the idea that if it goes into a committee that it would just die in there. I think the committees would have to be part of this process also.

"Whether this is a crisis or not is going to depend on the economy over the next couple of years," DiGirolamo continued. "It's something that we certainly should be studying. What he's proposing - I'm not sure if that's the right approach."

The Pennsylvania school pension fund serves more than 600,000 current and former school employees in Pennsylvania, according to its Web site. The Pennsylvania State Employees Retirement System has about 219,000 members, officials said.

Lawmakers take a look at spending plan

From the BCCT.

"Morrisville must be absorbed." "Resistance is futile." Pass it on.

Lawmakers take a look at spending plan
By GARY WECKSELBLATT

As he listened to Gov. Ed Rendell give his budget address Wednesday, state Rep. Scott Petri couldn’t help but think back to the old comedy team of Laurel and Hardy.

“Oh, boy, what a fine mess we’ve gotten ourselves into, Ollie,” Petri said from Harrisburg, where Rendell unveiled his $29 billion spending plan.

“I just don’t believe he cuts enough to get the job done,” said Petri, R-178. “We have to do what every household is doing right now, tighten our belts as much as we can. That’s not easy, but nothing can be excluded.”

Local legislators reacted to Rendell’s proposal, which comes at a time of a deepening economic recession that has left most states facing spending cuts and hoping for a federal monetary injection.

Pennsylvania is no different, expecting $2.4 billion in stimulus money from Washington to help overcome a shrinking economic base due to rising unemployment.

Among the highlights likely to spark debate:

Rendell would spend $130 million this year to shrink the cost of college education for students who attend the 14 public universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education or community colleges. For example, a student in a family making $60,000 a year would have tuition dropped from $12,010 to $4,750.

Funding the program could be problematic. Rendell suggests video poker games in bars, taverns, restaurants and private clubs — establishments with liquor licenses.

Rendell would cut $218 million, or 35 percent, for the Community and Economic Development Department that gives grants and aid to local governments, community organizations and businesses.

The governor is also suggesting eliminating 400 of the state’s 501 school districts to make public education more efficient.

While there would be no broad-based tax increases, the state cigarette tax would rise 10 cents a pack to $1.45.

There would be a tax on other tobacco products, including cigars, snuff and pipe tobacco — 36 cents an ounce for smokeless and loose tobacco and 36 cents per 10 cigars or cigarillos.

“He made a lot of very bold and courageous statements today,” said Sen. Chuck McIlhinney, R-10. “He put some stuff out there that’s very valuable and worth looking at.”

State Rep. John Galloway, a Democrat like Rendell, is all for the measure to merge districts. In Galloway’s 140th District is the Morrisville School District. Saddled with worn-out buildings and high taxes, the district has tried to be absorbed by neighboring Pennsbury.

“It’s an idea I fully support,” he said. “We could get down to 200 school districts and save taxpayers billions of dollars. It’s the smart way to go.”

Sate Rep. Paul Clymer, R-145, disagreed. “I’m opposed to it,” he said. “To be bigger is not always better. It would take away community pride. Teachers teach better when they’re in schools they’re accustomed to. I think students will get lost in this process. You lose a sense of history and pride and what you’re about as a community.”

McIlhinney wasn’t ready to commit. He said as Rendell spoke, “I tried to picture how it would work. Could we get to 100 school districts? I don’t know. Do we have some with 600 students that shouldn’t be there? Probably.”

Clymer, a critic of legalized gambling, reserved his real venom for Rendell’s plan to legalize video poker.

Citing 107,000 slot machines in Las Vegas that Pennsylvania can top under Rendell’s guidelines, Clymer said “he’s trying to turn us into Las Vegas. But we’re not a travel destination like Las Vegas. The people who gamble here are from here. The money we’re getting to feed this program is Pennsylvania money.”

Clymer lamented that gambling studies show it’s the poor and less educated who gamble. “Now you have the poor being lured into bars and taverns. The mixture of alcohol and gambling is lethal to begin with.”

A point seconded by Petri.

“In this economy do you want people to go to a bar and come home with no paycheck at all?” he asked. “And what does this do to the gaming industry that was supposed to give us property tax relief? And what does it do to the lottery fund (that pays for senior programs)?

“Every action has a consequence. This is over the top.”

While saying gambling is not a panacea, Galloway said the money should not be used for student aid. “I think it should be used for property taxes to directly affect the people in those municipalities (where the machines are located).

McIlhinney called the tuition plan “rather ambitious, but you can’t dismiss anything on day one. But as I’m sitting here now I’m leaning against it.”

Of cuts to local governments, Clymer said there’s going to be “universal pain. We have to balance the budget and work together as never before.”

Petri, a member of the Appropriations Committee, said in the coming weeks he’ll be “digging through every line item and looking for every savings and dollar I can find. We must expand the base of people who are employed. That’s what our mantra has to be.”

Said Galloway, “It’s my contention we should go even further and fundamentally change the way we do business here. I see this as an opportunity. This could be one of our better days in Harrisburg. We’ve taken our hits here, and rightfully so. Hopefully we’re up to the task.”

McIlhinney represents Falls, Lower Makefield, Morrisville, Tullytown, Newtown, Newtown Township, Upper Makefield, Yardley, 20 municipalities in Central and Upper Bucks, 2 Montgomery County communities. Petri’s district includes Northampton, Wrightstown, Ivyland, portions of Upper Makefield, Upper Southampton, Warwick. Galloway represents Bristol, Morrisville, Tullytown, Falls, 2 districts in Bristol Township, 1 district in Middletown. Clymer represents 14 municipalities in Upper Bucks.

Don't turn your back

From the BCCT.

Why did the BCCT tack on $20 million dollars? The cost of the K-12 was $30 million as shown in previous articles and Google Archives. The archive also highlights how long ago these buildings have been found to be in disrepair and just how long this board of taxpayer advocates have been fighting it. It also shows the ugliness of their tactics through the years.

Why isn't the BCCT also calling for the removal of the school board? If it's clear that"most members are not committed to a high school program at all" then why are these people even on the board?

To the readership in Harrisburg (and yes, there is), if the local newspaper can see that the board has shirked its responsibility, can you see it as well?

Don't turn your back
The welfare of Morrisville students should be uppermost in everybody's mind.

Someone once said "It takes a village to raise a child." With that in mind, we turn to the resurrected debate over transferring Morrisville students to the Pennsbury School District, which once again focuses on cost, capacity, transportation and other issues of practicality. A little history: Morrisville has proposed transferring its 300 or so high school students to another district - preferably Pennsbury - with Morrisville footing the bill for their education. Pennsbury school board members were not receptive to the idea when questioned by our reporter, citing practical concerns and the impact on Pennsbury taxpayers.

For sure, practicality should be part of the debate. What's missing is attention to what's best for kids.

Without a doubt, the best thing for Morrisville students would be to remain at their hometown school in pursuit of a quality education. Problem is, the Morrisville school board is not committed to providing a quality high school program. In fact, most members are not committed to a high school program at all.

The current board majority was elected to nix a $50 million school construction project that would have given the district a new K-12 school. Instead, the board wants to renovate the high school for K-8, closing the two elementary schools and transferring the high school students to a willing taker.

Given the board's political and philosophical makeup, the high school students would be better off elsewhere. That's the sad reality. We're not saying it's OK; just the sad situation that exists. It's also a tough situation for students, their parents and officials in other districts that Morrisville has petitioned to strike a deal.

Indeed, so difficult and sensitive is the situation that we encourage the district's state representatives to get involved. That includes state Rep. John Galloway, D-140, and state Sen. Charles McIlhinney, R-10. It also could and perhaps should include state Rep. Steve Santarsiero, D-31, who, with Galloway, represents citizens in Pennsbury.

Galloway already entered the fray, suggesting that Morrisville and Pennsbury place referendums on their ballots. That's one idea. Another might be for the three reps to facilitate discussions between officials and hold informational sessions for citizens. We know money is tight in Harrisburg but maybe funds could be found to help a willing district absorb the Morrisville students.

Whatever happens, we encourage all involved to put the educational welfare of students above all else. Granted, that's the Morrisville board's responsibility - one it has shamefully shirked. We'd just hate to think that everybody intends to turn their backs on those kids.

FOLLOW UP EMAIL: 11:25 AM: There is no Pennsbury fairy...

I thought you might be interested in posting the comments written in response to the Courier editorial. The second and third reflect what we are up against. We have to take care of our own. There is no Pennsbury fairy, and we should stop stalking them with nothing to offer in return:

Pat17, 01-27-09, 8:26 am | Rate: -1 | Report
While I appreciate the sentiment of your editorial, there is a significant factual error. The new school project was NEVER a 50 million dollar project, it was a 30 million dollar project.

Goon, 01-27-09, 8:31 am | Rate: -1 | Report
I think the Pennsbury board is putting students first, the Pennsbury students. Our schools are already overpopulated and there seems to be no feasible reason why us taxpayers should absorb additional costs and lessen our own children's educational experience.

Morrisville residents unfortunately continually vote in incompetent board members and now want to shovel their problem off on us? I don't think so.

Rebecca100, 01-27-09, 9:22 am | Rate: 0 | Report
Pennsbury does not even put Pennsbury students first. Staff come first. Kids are way down the list. Parents get 5 minutes to be ignored at school board meetings. Wellness policies mandated by the federal government and PA dept of education policies like the one for hand washing are being ignored and called "an ideal" not a law. When I came here the gym capacity sign read "300" whereas over 650 students plus staff were attending assemblies. The principal changed the sign to the enrollment number (actually 2 short of the enrollment number, perhaps my 2) a week before the fire marshall came to do the actual inspection.
There seems to be no concern for rules or the kids.

I would like to see these school districts work together for the sake of the kids but each district has to bear its fair share of responsibility for its own resident students too.
But we need a change in heart or a change in personnel in the Pennsbury District too.

snowbird080, 01-27-09, 11:25 am | Rate: Flag 1 Flag | Flag Report
Why are they trying to force Pennsbury to take these students? Why not just send them to Trenton High School where probably most of them belong anyway.

Pat17, 01-27-09, 11:30 am | Rate: Flag -1 Flag | Flag Report
To Rebecca and Goon. As a Morrisville parent I appreciate your comments because this community needs to wake up and take responsibility, and I hope we will. The current board was voted in to end a building project, and ran on the idea that a k-12 school was a bad idea, not just a tax issue.

The new building would have housed all our students in a more cost efficient and educationally sound facility, that was designed to separate age levels and had flexibility to accomodate a changing educational program. We would be in the third year of the three stage tax increase by now and would be realizing significant operating cost reduction had the current board not ended the plan.

Board members have an obligation to act in the educational interest of the students they serve. They are not a taxpayer advocate body, but are charged with upholding quality public education. This board ended the new building project with only a cursory study of the issues with the buildings. Now we are dealing with a crisis and the education of our children has been disrupted, as much as the teachers and kids have made the best of a bad situation. And the "bad" k-12 idea? Now we have it, without any planning, redesign or age appropriate settings for the youn children.

That said, the voters voted based on what the candidates told them, and I know many who would now take back their vote. Hopefully, this is a wake up call - nobody else s going to fic our problems for us. Unfortunately, the ones most affected are those who have no vote at all, the children. Let's hope this is a bad as it gets and the next disaster does not result in tragedy.

Christmas Story Redux

From the BCCT.

I believe that the phrase Pennsbury is struggling not to say is "Physician, heal thyself."

After years of neglect from our own boards of education, here Morrisville is, standing in the bail-out line with Citibank, AIG, and the three Detroit auto manufacturers. No wonder people outside of the district are concerned.

Morrisville taxpayers note: Is there any place in this article that suggests we would be paying less in tax?

Officials: No room for more students
Rep. Galloway suggested referendums be held in Morrisville and Pennsbury on any proposed student transfers.
By MANASEE WAGH

Pennsbury says it simply doesn’t have room for an infusion of students from outside the district.

Though Morrisville is once again knocking on its door for help, some Pennsbury board members say that nothing has changed from previous efforts to merge the districts.

This time, Morrisville solicitor Michael Fitzpatrick is asking Pennsbury and other local districts to consider taking about 300 students in grades nine through 12 on a tuition basis.

That money doesn’t translate into extra cash for Pennsbury, said board member Linda Palsky. She said she doesn’t believe the buildings can support the extra students, and services such as guidance counseling are already stretched thin over the high school’s 3,400 students.

“The money isn’t free money for us. It’s to educate those students. It’s not going to be a windfall for us,” she said. “I understand it’s the neighborly thing to do, but it’s going to be on the backs of the Pennsbury taxpayers.”

Unless the state forces some sort of merger and makes it advantageous to her district’s taxpayers, Palsky said she doesn’t support taking on additional students.

State Rep. John Galloway, D-140, said both Morrisville and Pennsbury should hold voter referendums about the proposed student transfer. If Morrisville ends up with a financial situation it can’t handle, it could need to ask the state to intervene.

“But the state can’t unilaterally act on its own,” Galloway said.

Declaring itself a distressed district is a last resort under 1998’s Public School Empowerment Act, said state Rep. Paul Clymer, R-145, the minority chairman of the House Education Committee. One qualification of financial distress is the inability to pay teacher salaries for 90 days, he said.

At this point, Morrisville could simply ask to speak with the secretary of education to explore ways to attain more resources, Clymer added.

Fitzpatrick has said he plans to talk to state representatives, but he didn’t return phone calls and e-mails Thursday and Friday requesting further comment. He has been communicating with Pennsbury for the past six months and is reaching out to other local districts as well.

Housing grades pre-K through eight in the high school building and sending grades nine through 12 to other districts on a paid tuition basis may be Morrisville’s best hope for survival, Fitzpatrick said. He compared it to the crisis that’s forcing some local private schools to merge due to lack of funds and enrollments.

The cost of educating one Morrisville secondary school child is about $15,000, a price tag that’s close to the highest in Lower Bucks. Pennsbury’s cost is just above $12,000.

Board member Gene Dolnick said he’s not sure about class size and building utilization projections. He was also unsure about how Morrisville PSSA scores might affect his own district’s averages. This past year, Morrisville High School students’ reading and math PSSA scores made great strides but were slightly lower than Pennsbury’s.

“I’m not ruling it out, but I’m not ruling it in,” Dolnick said.

Gregory Lucidi, Pennsbury board president, says that until Pennsbury built a two-story, 55,000-square-foot addition and renovated its West campus building in 2004, “we were busting at the seams.” Now, he said, students just “barely fit comfortably.”

Pennsbury’s two high school buildings have a capacity of 3,414 students, according to the district. That means the spaces are already nearly filled. In 2006, the high school averaged 25 students per teacher, according to the district. That’s more than Neshaminy’s high school ratio of 14 students to one teacher and Bristol Township’s ratio of 22 students to one teacher.

Pennsbury’s already considering enlarging class sizes to reduce expenses, said Lucidi. Adding 300 more students next year “would be a major impact on resources,” he added.

However, the state Department of Education’s January 2009 estimate projects a 14.5 percent drop in Pennsbury’s high school population by 2017.

The district’s own projection for that year is 2,979 students, a 12.4 percent drop from this year. That’s based on a variety of factors, and the number may change in time, according to the district.

Lucidi thinks Pennsbury will experience increases in all grades, including children from families who don’t want to pay for private schools anymore. Pennsbury doesn’t have data on how many of its students used to attend private school but more than 2,000 new students register each year in Pennsbury, according to the district.

In the meantime, Morrisville has been dealing with spiraling financial problems. The same issues have been cropping up for years, including the need to renovate or replace its three buildings. It is about to consider closing one of its two elementary schools permanently. Most other solutions, such as rebuilding or renovating all the buildings, imply a tax increase, based on past board discussions.

In 1990, the Pennsbury school board voted against a merger after a feasibility study found it would cost $1 million in transportation costs and would significantly raise taxes in Pennsbury. Around that time, the district offered help providing advanced courses to Morrisville, but “for some reason the ball was dropped on their part,” said board member Palsky.

“We’ve gone around and around with Morrisville for years now,” she said.
Galloway represents Tullytown and Falls (Pennsbury School District), Morrisville, Bristol, two districts in Bristol Township and one district in Middletown. Clymer represents Durham, East and West Rockhill, Haycock, Milford, Perkasie, Quakertown, Richland, Richlandtown, Riegelsville, Sellersville, Springfield, Telford and Trumbauersville in Upper Bucks.

Move Over, Ed Rendell

It looks like football commentator (and governor) Ed Rendell has some competition for the announcer's booth.

Congrats to...Dr. Yonson??

Newsmakers: Will the Eagles win?

We asked area newsmakers to predict the outcome of the NFC Championship game Sunday between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Arizona Cardinals. The winner goes on to the Super Bowl. Here's what they had to say:

"The Eagles defense is terrific. Donovan (McNabb) is on target, especially when he gets the ball to DeSean Jackson, whom I expect to have a great game. The score: 24-6. People ask me what I'm going to do if the Steelers and the Eagles are in the Super Bowl. My answer: I hope so."

- U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa.

"I think there will be two keys to the game. The defense has to keep performing the way they've been performing. (Defense coordinator) Jim Johnson has to continue that strategy of just keeping the offense baffled. And Brian Westbrook has to remain free from pain and injury. Eagles by 10 points."

- Bob Green, CEO of Greenwood Gaming (Philadelphia Park Casino and Racetrack)

"The Eagles defense and ball control offense will carry the day in the desert and lead us to the promised land of Tampa Bay. Even though Kurt Warner is strong in the pocket, he will finally get enough pressure from the Eagles blitz package to throw one - if not two - picks into the hands of Asante Samuel. The Eagles will win, 24-17."

- Congressman Patrick Murphy, D-8

"The Eagles are going to roll with McNabb at the helm. Arizona is playing well, but the Eagles have really come together as a team. The Eagles defense will continue to dominate and the offense will continue to put points on the board. Eagles win, 31-14. Fly Eagles Fly!"

- U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa.

"I am a big Steelers fan. ... I grew up outside of Pittsburgh cheering for the Steelers with my dad. This Sunday I predict I will be waving my Terrible Towel as I watch the Steelers beat the Ravens! I also will be cheering on the Eagles in hopes of a Pennsylvania Super Bowl. Go Steelers!"

- Michelle Henry, Bucks County district attorney

The congresswoman for parts of Philadelphia and Montgomery County contends the defense will carry the Eagles, 27-17.

- Allyson Schwartz, D-13

"My hope is that the Eagles "D" will hold the Cardinals to two scores: one touchdown, one field goal. On the offensive side: (Brian) Westbrook runs one in for six, and Donovan (McNabb) connects with one of our receivers for a second touchdown. We can also count on David Akers to put at least two field goals through the crossbars. The experience of our veteran players will make the difference. Our 'D' line succeeds in seriously disrupting the throwing ability of Kurt Warner. 20-10, Eagles."

- Mark Schweiker, president and CEO, Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, and former Pennsylvania governor and Bucks commissioner

"This should be an Eagles win, but it won't be as easy as people think. Arizona's defense is playing a lot better than they did when we played them on Thanksgiving. Getting pressure on Kurt Warner will be the key to the game. If the Eagles defense can do that, we will win. 24-14, Eagles."

- James Sell, executive director, Lower Bucks Campus, Bucks County Community College

"I think the Eagles will definitely win. They finally are playing with a desire to win and are doing very well. I love the Eagles and am a loyal fan. I expect something like a 14-point spread in the Eagles' favor."

- Dorothy Vislosky, Falls supervisor

"Yes, Eagles will win. You gotta believe. McNabb and the Eagles dominating D-fence will get it done. Arizona can put up some points and has a good turnover ratio, but the Eagles D can get turnovers and score, and our special teams have been excellent with field position and kicking and returns. McNabb is on target with (coach Andy) Reid's somewhat balanced attack. Eagles 28, Arizona 17."

- Patrick Donahue, director, marketing & communications, St. Mary Medical Center

"It's going to be 38-14 Eagles. They're going to win because they're just the best team in the NFL right now. The offensive line is going to give them the ability to protect McNabb and Westbrook. It all comes back to the offense."

- Joe DiGirolamo, Bensalem mayor

"Yeah, I think they are going to win this week against Arizona. + They've been playing quite well. Everyone's at the top of their game. This time they're awake, they are ready to do something. But it will be another tight game."

- Joe Cimino, president, Langhorne Borough Business Association, and president and CEO of Besco Corp. in Middletown

"All dreams need to come true today. Spirits need to rise and the Eagles weren't supposed to be (in the NFC Championship) anyway. I understand they were given very little chance. If they could do the impossible this far, why couldn't they win it? Everybody loves an underdog."

- Susan Atkinson, founding producing director, Bristol Riverside Theatre

"The momentum is there. Everyone's behind them. The whole community is behind them. They are going to win. 21-14, Birds."

- Kathy Horwatt, Langhorne councilwoman

"Yes, the Eagles have a better team, both offensively and defensively. My prediction is Eagles 28, Arizona 13."

- Leon Poeske, acting administrative director of Bucks County Technical High School

"Yes, they will win because the defense is going to pressure Kurt Warner and that will be the overwhelming factor. 23-10, Eagles."

- David Nyman, Wrightstown interim township manager

"Yes (they'll win), because they changed their thinking and their strategy after Donovan was benched. 24-13, Eagles."

- Ellen Budman, Bristol Township School District superintendent

"Yes, I think the Eagles will win on Sunday. They won two big games, so they're really hyped up. They deserve to win."

- Stephen A. Prousi, Montgomery Township supervisor

"I do think they're going to win, but I will preface that answer by saying it depends which of our quarterbacks plays. Is it going to be the good Donovan or the bad Donovan? I hope no one calls him during the game. I think they have a really good team. They lost a lot of games they should not have lost. It might be their time, coming off the Phillies championship. I think they're all fired up. I think they're hungry. But Arizona may be fired up more than us. It all depends what team comes to win. 24-10 Eagles."

- Tom Carroll Sr., co-owner of Crossing Vineyards and Winery, Washington Crossing

"Sure, they'll win. I think they've been playing with a lot of heart recently. They have a good shot. 27-17 Eagles."

- Henry Rowan, Buckingham supervisor

"Yes, the Eagles will win. + They have momentum, (and) unquestionably the leadership of some of their senior players has been infectious. They will be the Cinderella team of 2009. + If I had to call the score, I would say 24-13."

-Paul Clymer, state representative who represents parts of Upper Bucks County

"Of course the Eagles are going to win. It's Philadelphia's year. Kurt Warner is only good when there is no pressure on him. Our defense is hot and they will keep the pressure on and we also have the better defense. 27-17 Eagles."

- Elizabeth Yonson, Morrisville School District superintendent

"This is the Eagles' year. I'm looking forward to a Super Bowl party. I really am. McNabb looks good. He's playing well. It's going to be a high scoring game. I'm predicting 43-24. I've been an Eagles fan my whole life. I live and die with the Eagles. + The Cardinals are playing well, too. They can't be taken lightly, but the Eagles will still win."

- John Galloway, state representative, District 140

"I think, 'Go Eagles.' It just basically seems like they're in a good, positive frame of mind, and that's what it takes to attain goals. They're becoming as one. It's a long time coming. Eagles, 14-12."

- Eric Mintel, professional jazz pianist, Feasterville

The New York native and former state representative candidate for the 144th District said football puts him to sleep, but guessed the Eagles would win 21-10. "When do the Mets play? That's what I want to know."

- Mitchell Meyerson, Chalfont council member

Grant Money Awarded

From the BCCT

Grants announced for emergency responders
Posted in News on Friday, January 9th, 2009 at 1:30 pm by James McGinnis

A dozen local fire and ambulance companies will receive grants this year, state Rep. John Galloway announced Friday.

Bristol Fire Company, Bristol Volunteer Company No. 6, American Hose Hook and Ladder, and Bristol Consolidated will each receive about $11,000.

Edgely, Fairless Hills, Falls Township and Levittown, Morrisville and Tullytown fire companies will also receive about $11,000 each.

Bucks County and Levittown-Fairless Hills rescue squads will each receive about $5,000, Galloway said.

“These grants can be used for purchasing equipment, upgrading facilities, training or paying down debt,” Galloway said. “Far too much time is spent by our volunteer first responders raising money.”

Another bailout: Pension tension

From the BCCT.

There's no sense going after the local officials who only enforce policy. Take your concerns about tax policy to the tax writers in Harrisburg.

You don't have to go that far.

Rep. Galloway has a local office in Levittown
8610 New Falls Road
Levittown, PA 19054
Phone: (215) 943-7206
Monday - Friday
8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Senator McIlhinney is even more local than that.
56 East Bridge Street
Suite 1
Morrisville, PA 19067
Phone: 215-736-5960
Toll Free: 866-739-8600
FAX: 215-736-5964

Another bailout: Pension tension
Pennsylvania taxpayers will have to dig deeper to help state and school workers retire — even as private pensions wither away.

There is not good news and bad news for Pennsylvania taxpayers. There is only bad news and worse news.

As taxpayers helplessly watch their 401(k) plans and other retirement savings dwindle, they are being asked to dig deeper into their pockets to prop up pensions for state and school employees. School pension costs will be the biggest hit, since nearly half the funding comes from the local property tax.

The Pennsylvania Public School Employees Retirement System recently urged school districts to start putting funds in reserve to prepare for a huge jump in pension costs anticipated in three more years. The districts’ share is projected to go from 4.78 percent of payroll in 2009-2010 to 16.4 percent in 2012-13. And that estimate, prepared before the stock market tanked this fall, assumes the pension fund will earn an 8.5 percent return on investment each year.

Since pension payments are mandatory, districts either must cut other expenses or raise taxes.

The state reimburses districts for about half the cost, but it all comes from taxpayers.

Unlike private employers, the state and school districts are prohibited by law from reducing or eliminating employee pension benefits or increasing the mandatory employee payroll deduction for pensions. School employees contribute an average of 7.3 percent of salary.

Two years ago, an Associated Press series on the pension crunch projected the taxpayer subsidy for state and school employee pensions would triple by 2012 to the equivalent of $240 a year for every man, woman and child in Pennsylvania.

And that didn’t include the multi-billion dollar cost of medical, dental, vision and prescription benefits for retirees.

The blame for this mess lies with the state Legislature (who else?). Mesmerized by a stock market boom, legislators in 2001 increased their own pensions by 50 percent and — to divert attention from their own avarice — gave more than 300,000 state and school employees a 25 percent hike.

This means public employees receive a pension based on 2.5 percent of salary (the average of the three top years of compensation) for each year worked. Employees 60 and older may retire at 75 percent of salary after 30 years of service and at 100 percent after 40 years, guaranteed for life.

Even by public sector standards, Pennsylvania is extremely generous.

Maryland, for instance, increased state and school employee pensions in 2006 from 1.4 percent of salary a year to 1.8 percent. A Maryland teacher may retire at 54 percent of salary after 30 years and 72 percent after 40 years.

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania taxpayers are stuck with the bill due to the Legislature’s fecklessness. We don’t know what the long-term solution is, but the first step should be for voters to “retire” those legislators who feathered their own nest at the public’s expense.

Some giving raises back

From the BCCT.

State legislators giving back raises
Many said they would return them to the state or donate them to charity.
By RACHEL CANELLI

’Tis the season to be giving — back, that is. And state politicians are no exception.

Many local lawmakers publicly announced Wednesday that they’ll either be returning the 2.8 percent automatic cost of living allowance to the commonwealth, or donating their raises to charity.

If all the money goes back to the state, it would total about $506,000.

“People all across Pennsylvania are losing their jobs, and of those lucky enough to stay employed, many are not getting a raise this year,” Rep. John Galloway, D-140, said in a statement about his roughly $2,000 return to the state’s general fund. “If they’re not getting a raise, then why should their elected officials get one?”

Responding to public pressure and House leadership’s call on its members to give back the COLA money, Galloway called the raises an “irresponsible use of tax dollars in these tough economic times.”

While state law prohibits legislators from refusing the and women have the option of donating the funds to charity. Many said they’re awaiting direction from leadership on how to return the dollars to the state treasury. Either way, officials pointed out they still have to pay income taxes on the amount.

Despite that, area politicians, including Rep. Anthony Melio, D-141, Sen. Tommy Tomlinson, R-6, and Sen. Stewart Greenleaf, R-12, confirmed Wednesday that they’ll be giving back the COLA raises to the commonwealth.

“I hope and pray that times get better for all the poor people having a rough time,” said Melio.

Before the give-back announcements, some lawmakers, including Rep. Katharine Watson, R-144, had already quietly decided to return the increases.

“It’s not right at this time when so many others are hurting,” she said of the raise estimated to be about $2,100. “It was a matter of my conscience and I don’t expect credit for it. I appreciate that it’s public dollars and it’s just part of what we’re supposed to do. It’s up to the members and their circumstances.”

Watson and Rep. Scott Petri, R-178, both talked about the need for a better process to lower the increases, provide the ability to suspend them, especially during tough times, or get rid of the COLA.

“People are suffering,” said Petri. “The goal is to reduce expenditures in Harrisburg.”

That’s why Rep. Marguerite Quinn, R-143, is co-sponsoring a bill in the works to repeal Act 51 of 1995, which instituted the automatic raises. She and several other legislators, including Rep. Rick Taylor, D-151, and Rep. Gene DiGirolamo, R-18, have vowed to donate their increases to charity.

Reps.-elect Steve Santarsiero, D-31, and Frank Farry, R-142, who will be sworn in Jan. 6, have also affirmed they’ll return the COLA money.

“I want to make sure my constituents get the benefit of that money,” said Farry, who’s donating his funds to athletic associations in his district.

Santarsiero is committed to giving his adjustment to the state treasury in response to the worsening economy.

Although the politicians admitted that returning the COLA money will not solve the financial crisis, they said they should be sacrificing since everyone else is tightening their belts.

“Is it going to balance the $2 billion hole? No, it’s a small drop in the bucket,” Taylor said. “But it’s a statement that we understand the issue.”

Galloway Rejects Pay Increase

Remember this question?

Kudos to Rep. Galloway!

What's Senator McIlhinney going to do?

Galloway returns pay increase to the taxpayers

Pennsylvania lawmakers received an automatic 2.8 percent increase in their salaries on Monday, Dec. 1. I am writing to let you know that I am rejecting the increase and returning it to the state treasury.

The cost-of-living increase was issued in accordance with a 1995 law that provides an annual COLA to state elected officials based on a cost-of-living index.

But during these tough economic times, with many residents struggling and the state facing a large budget deficit, the legislature should be looking for ways to cut spending and direct precious tax dollars toward property tax reduction and infrastructure projects that will create jobs and boost our economy.

If all 203 lawmakers return their raises it would save the state roughly $400,000. In this economy, every penny of it can make a difference.

I look forward to serving you in the 2009-10 legislative session. Please contact me if I may be of service to you and your family.

PA State Tax report

Press release from The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center.

School board members, Morrisville Borough Council members, Senator McIlhenney and Representative Galloway: What are you doing about this? Why is there such a regressive tax system in place?

New Report Finds Pennsylvania Tax and Spending Levels Moderate and Stable Over Time

Last update: 12:01 a.m. EST Nov. 16, 2008

HARRISBURG, Pa., Nov 13, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Pennsylvania also has one of the most regressive tax systems in the U.S., with the poor paying 12.3 cents in taxes out of every $1 of income, while the rich pay only 4.3 cents.

Pennsylvania ranks favorably when compared to the nation and to competitor states in overall tax and spending levels, according to a new report from the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (PBPC).

Pennsylvania state taxes, when measured as a share of state personal income, ranked 32nd among the 50 states in 2005, while state spending ranked 30th. Pennsylvania taxes were 6.3 percent of state personal income, a half-percentage point less than the average of competing states.(1)

But Pennsylvania's tax system is highly regressive, taking a significantly larger share of the incomes of the bottom 20 percent of earners than of the incomes of more affluent Pennsylvanians.

PBPC's new report, The Common Good: What Pennsylvania's Budget and Tax Policies Mean to You, provides a roadmap to state and local tax policy in Pennsylvania, with a focus on whether taxes and spending are fair and appropriate to the state's needs. It can be viewed online at http://www.pennbpc.org/pdf/PBPC_Tax_Primer_08.pdf.
The report finds that, over the past three decades, Pennsylvania state government taxes have held steady as a share of income, while state expenditures have stayed below the national average for 27 of the last 30 years.

The findings on state taxes and spending fly in the face of myths that Pennsylvania state spending is out of control and needs to be reduced, noted Sharon Ward, director of the PBPC, a non-partisan tax policy research organization.

"State budget discussions in Harrisburg begin with an assumption that state taxes and spending are high and that state spending is a luxury," said Ward. "This report makes clear that Pennsylvania spending and taxes are both competitive and necessary for the state's economy to grow."

Two-thirds of state General Fund spending goes to just three items: education, health care, and public safety. The report argues that investments in public goods, including public and higher education, workforce development, and transportation, make a vital contribution to the state's economy and are critical to economic growth.
The new report's findings have important implications for lawmakers as they contemplate a response to a growing state budget deficit. Ward noted that the deficit is the result of declining state revenue collections resulting from a downturn in the business cycle and national economic forces, not a result of unsustainable spending.

The PBPC study found that Pennsylvania fares less well in two other areas--tax fairness and local tax burden.

The Commonwealth has one of the most "regressive" state and local tax systems in the nation, based on the share of income paid in state and local taxes by poor vs. affluent families. One reason for this is Pennsylvania's flat personal income tax rate. While most states have graduated income taxes that assess higher rates on affluent earners than on middle-class and low-income families, Pennsylvania's Constitution requires all earners (except for the poor and elderly) to be taxed at the same, or "uniform," rate. This prevents Pennsylvania from using a progressive income tax to increase the overall fairness of the tax structure.

"Without a progressive income tax, Pennsylvania's state tax system has no way to offset regressive sales and property taxes," Ward said. "That results in lower-income workers paying a bigger chunk of their paychecks in taxes than wealthier Pennsylvanians."

Pennsylvania also relies heavily on local taxes to fund a variety of services, especially public education.

The state ranks near the bottom in the state share of education spending, in 2005 numbers, with 46 other states providing more state help than Pennsylvania. The heavy reliance on local taxpayers for school funding translates into high tax rates in some lower-income school districts and low tax rates in some high-income districts. Even with high local tax rates, some districts do not have enough wealth and income to fund schools adequately, creating wide gaps in school funding.

PBPC's report also found that property taxes in Pennsylvania, measured against state personal income, are only 95 percent of the national average and lower than most competitor states.

"Pennsylvania has started moving toward greater state funding for public education, but more still remains to be done to put Pennsylvania on par with neighboring states and the national average," Ward said.
AMONG THE REPORT'S MAJOR FINDINGS:

-- State Taxes Are Relatively Low: The personal income tax rate, at 3.07
percent, is the second lowest top rate in the country, while the
6-percent sales tax (7-percent in Philadelphia and Allegheny County) is
in the middle range of all states. The corporate net income (CNI) tax
rate of 9.99 percent is relatively high, although loopholes in the law
(and other factors) mean that 71 percent of companies don't pay any
CNI tax.
-- Pennsylvania state taxes and spending are less than a majority of
U.S. states when measured as a share of state personal income. In
2005, state taxes were 6.3 percent of personal income, ranking the
state 32nd in the nation.
-- Pennsylvania state taxes are less than competitor states. New York
and Ohio had slightly higher rates as a share of personal income,
while Delaware exceeded 8 percent and West Virginia hit 9 percent.



-- Pennsylvania Relies Heavily on Local Taxes: Pennsylvania state and local
taxes combined rank 21st nationally, at 10.7 percent as a share of
personal income, compared to 32nd nationally for state only taxes. This
reflects a heavy reliance on local taxes, and especially on local
property taxes, to fund public services.
-- In 2005-06, local governments and school districts relied on
property taxes to fund 71 percent of services and public education.



-- Local Property Taxes Are Comparatively Low But Contain Significant
Disparities Across Districts: Across the state, property taxes average
3.1 percent of personal income, compared to 3.3 percent nationally, 3.3
percent in Ohio, more than 4 percent in New York, and 5 percent in New
Jersey.
-- At the same time, average property tax rates on residential property
can range from 0.9 percent to 9.7 percent of personal income across
Pennsylvania's 501 school districts. It is not uncommon for
poorer school districts to have higher school property tax rates
than more affluent districts in the same county.



-- Pennsylvania's Tax Structure Squeezes Low-Income Workers:
Low-income Pennsylvanians, living paycheck to paycheck, pay much higher
percentages of their income in taxes.
-- The lowest quintile of Pennsylvanians spends 2.5 percent of their
income on sales tax, while the wealthiest fifth spend 1.5 percent or
less.
-- Overall, the poorest 20 percent pay nearly three times their share
of income in state and local taxes than the richest 1 percent--12.3
cents out of each dollar of income compared to only 4.3 cents for
the richest families (once you take into account that state and
local taxes reduce federal taxable income for most affluent
families). Middle-class families also pay a higher share of their
income in state and local income taxes than the wealthiest 20
percent.



The report proposes that policymakers consider an amendment to the Constitution so that a graduated income tax could be introduced to Pennsylvania. That would tax the income of wealthy earners at a higher rate than lower-income workers.

It suggests the state needs a stable stream of revenue that grows over time to keep up with the cost of services, and highlights challenges to a stable tax system. They include declining corporate tax revenue, the aging population, and a tax system that has not been comprehensively updated and reformed in generations. To address these issues, state policymakers should:

-- Review tax exemptions and tax credits for effectiveness;



-- Close loopholes in the corporate net income tax system that allow
multistate and multinational companies to hide Pennsylvania earnings in
lower-tax jurisdictions. That would generate $616 million a year,
according to the Department of Revenue;



-- Broaden the state sales tax base to include currently exempt luxury
items and expand tobacco taxes to include smokeless tobacco.
Pennsylvania is the only state that does not tax smokeless tobacco.



-- Implement a "severance" tax on the extraction of state
resources from the ground, such as natural gas. Estimates show that such
a levy on natural gas drilling could raise $200 million in new revenue
annually.



The Common Good: What Pennsylvania's Budget and Tax Policies Mean to You is an easy-to-read guide to state and local taxes and Pennsylvania's budget process. It is designed to translate the sometimes esoteric terminology of budget and tax issues into plain language.

"This is a one-of-a-kind publication that will help policymakers, journalists, advocates and all Pennsylvanians navigate the world of public spending and taxes to better understand where their tax dollars go," Ward said.

About PBPC
The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (PBPC) is a non-partisan policy research project that provides independent, credible analysis on state tax, budget, and related policy matters, with attention to the impact of current or proposed policies on working families. To view the new report on state and local tax policy, go to http://www.pennbpc.org/pdf/PBPC_Tax_Primer_08.pdf.

(1) State personal income measures a state's economic activity. It includes the total of all wages, salaries, employer-contributed pensions and insurance, business earnings, rental earnings, dividends, and interest earned by commonwealth residents.
SOURCE The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center

http://www.pennbpc.org/pdf/PBPC_Tax_Primer_08.pdf

Galloway votes to eliminate school property taxes

Thanks to the emailer who reminds us all about this. Be sure to let Rep. Galloway know you're out there and you want relief. Check out the link below to HB1600 with the text of the bill.

State Rep. John T. Galloway, D-Bucks
www.pahouse.com/Galloway

Galloway votes to eliminate school property taxes

'Independence from school property taxes closer than ever'

HARRISBURG, July 3 – State Rep. John T. Galloway, D-Bucks, today voted to move a bill out of the House Finance Committee that would eliminate school property taxes for Pennsylvania homeowners.

House Bill 1600, introduced by state Rep. David Levdansky, D-Allegheny, and co-sponsored by Galloway, would establish the Supplemental Homeowner Property Tax Relief Act and would cut school property taxes on homesteads by increasing income and sales taxes.

"I am pleased that on the eve of our Independence Day holiday that independence from school property taxes is closer than it has ever been," said Galloway, who is a member of the House Finance Committee. "This issue has been a political football for more than 30 years and the state legislature has done little but fumble. But with the dedication and ambition of the freshmen lawmakers, and the cooperation of seasoned House members from both sides of the aisle, it looks like we are about to score a touchdown for homeowners across the Commonwealth."

Galloway said an amendment added to the bill by Levdansky, and approved by the Finance Committee, would take away school districts' authority to impose school property taxes and set a date of Dec. 31, 2009, for the legislature to come up with an alternative way to fund education, such as increasing the personal income and/or sales tax.

House Bill 1600 now moves to the House Appropriations Committee, where Galloway is also a member.

"I am hopeful the bill will quickly move to the House floor for a vote," he said.

Constitutional Convention?

From the BCCT. “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?” The U.S. Constitution was last done in 1787. When we follow its rules, we seem to do just fine.

Then there's an editorial where the BCCT agrees with the concept.

A call made to overhaul constitution
Two Bucks lawmakers say it’s time for a constitutional convention. Pennsylvania is operating under guidelines set in the 1800s.
By JAMES MCGINNIS

Two Bucks County lawmakers are calling for changes to the state’s Constitution to bring about “true reform.”

State Reps. Chris King, D-142, and John Galloway, D-140, said they want a voter referendum on the ballot in November. If approved by voters, a constitutional convention could convene in December.

Each senatorial district would send three convention delegates who are elected by the general public.

In a bill introduced in the House July 4, Galloway and King estimated the convention would need a budget of at least $20 million. No one currently holding state office could sit on the convention, according to the bill.

Galloway and King introduced a similar bill in March 2007. But that bill never made it to the House floor.

The last time the Pennsylvania Constitution was given a “comprehensive look” Ulysses Grant was in the White House, Galloway said.

“One could not imagine a company conducting over $50 billion worth of business and employing 55,000 workers would not routinely review and update its strategic plan,” Galloway said. “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?”

“The need for a state constitutional convention is clear and convincing,” King said. “Many of our freshman colleagues in the House were elected to bring reform to Pennsylvania. A citizens’ constitutional convention is the most important reform this commonwealth could undertake.”

---------------------------

Broken system
The state Legislature is a dysfunctional body in need of repair. Citizens should be entrusted to fix it.

Anybody who’s watched the goings-on in Harrisburg for a few years or even a few days knows that often there’s not much going on. Not much we can call progress. There’s plenty of politics and all sorts of chicanery as recent indictments indicate. But there’s little progress on issues that really matter to people.

Property taxes, for example. Lawmakers have been trying for decades to do something about this unfair and increasingly costly means of paying for our schools. After numerous false starts and two alleged reform laws, not much has changed. Lawmakers talk about change constantly, but most don’t have the guts or the moxie to support the real thing.

Then there’s redistricting, the census-dictated process of reshaping legislative districts to reflect population shifts. Legislative leaders have turned this into a jigsaw puzzle contest.

In an effort to protect incumbents, far-flung neighborhoods sometimes stretching from one county to another are drafted into a district to pack in as many Democratic or Republican voters as possible. This highly political process makes it virtually impossible to defeat incumbents, depriving the Legislature of much needed independent voices with new ideas.

One of the few new ideas to come out of Harrisburg belongs to state Reps. John Galloway and Chris King, freshman Democrats from Falls and Middletown respectively. The two reformers have introduced legislation to place a referendum on the Nov. 4 ballot calling for a “citizens’ constitutional convention.”

The idea is to let a delegation of citizens — three elected from each of the state’s 50 senatorial districts — review and reform a state government that no longer seems capable of serving the interests of citizens. The convention would last nine months.

“One could not imagine a company conducting over $50 billion worth of business and employing 55,000 workers that would not routinely review and update its strategic plan,” Galloway said, raising this logical question: “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?”

Answer: Not very well.

Essentially, our state government is broken. And by government, we mean the Legislature, which is dominated by entrenched “leaders” who keep change at bay by controlling the legislative agenda, committee assignments, the money — you name it, they own it.

Instated, Galloway and King want to “allow the people to own the government again. We should trust them to look at our Constitution and do the right thing,” Galloway said, adding that lawmakers have a “credibility problem.”

He’s right about that. One scandal after another has practically destroyed our faith in Harrisburg. Maybe it’s time, as the old saying goes, to give the power to the people. They couldn’t do any worse.

Bensalem Board and Council Work Together

It may have taken two years to negotiations, but it's nice to see that a borough council and a school board from the same town can work together.

Deal will help district save money
The agreement involves fee waivers and drainage easements.
By JOAN HELLYER

The Bensalem School District will save “hundreds of thousands of dollars” from a deal recently reached between the school system and Bensalem’s municipal government, the school board solicitor said.

The township has agreed to help the district save money by waiving permit and application fees and other charges in connection with pending renovation and construction projects, solicitor Thomas Profy III said.

The projects include renovations at Cecelia Snyder Middle School off Hulmeville Road and the transportation center off Byberry Road and the planned construction of a physical education facility behind Bensalem High School, he said.

In exchange, the school district granted some easements at no cost to the township in connection with a road improvement project along Galloway Road, Profy said. The easements allowed the municipality to install drainage systems along the roadway where it borders district property, as required by the state, he said.

The one easement involves almost 100,000 square-feet of land at Galloway and Hulmeville roads at the southwest corner of the high school’s property, the solicitor said. The other involves about 7,000 square- feet of a 4.2-acre piece of undeveloped district property at Galloway and Richlieu roads, he said.

Profy said he started working on the deal with township solicitor Barbara Kirk in early 2007. They recently came to terms.

The Courier Times was unsuccessful in reaching Kirk for comment, after calls to her office at Rudolph, Pizzo and Clarke in Bensalem. District officials referred questions about specific amounts that would be saved to director of business administration Jack Myers, who could not be reached this week for comment.

The Bensalem school board approved the deal in June, and efforts are under way to finalize the agreement with township officials, the school board solicitor said.

Also as part of the agreement, the township officially transferred ownership of Samuel K. Faust Elementary School to the district. A township authority, which has since been dissolved, built the school in the mid-1950s, Profy said. The township held onto the property’s title until the district finished paying the loans that were taken out to cover its construction and various expansions, he said.

Galloway is FOR the PA Taxpayer

Thanks for this email submitted by a reader from Rep. Galloway. It looks like the Democrats and Rep. Galloway are working FOR the Pennsylvania taxpayer. The Republicans? The Republicans tried to stop the funding requested by Governor Rendell. Senator McIlhenney? I guess you'll have to ask him yourself.

Independence from school property taxes closer than ever

I am pleased to announce that on the eve of the Independence Day holiday, we are closer than ever to independence from school property taxes.

On July 3, I voted to move a bill out of the House Finance Committee that would eliminate school property taxes and replace them with an increase in the state sales and/or income tax (read more about it).

Eliminating school property taxes was a promise I made to the people of the 140th Legislative District, and it is a promise I work tirelessly to keep, which is a key reason why I am here in Harrisburg working through the July Fourth holiday (hear my comments).

Please visit my Web site to sign a petition to help keep the momentum going on eliminating school property taxes.

As always, please contact me if I may be of service to you and your family, and may you have a happy and safe Fourth of July.

Email your complaints

Thanks to Dianne for her comment requesting contact information where we can send complaints or requests for information.

Here's a few to start off:

Government
Governor Ed Rendell email: web form only website
Senator Charles McIlhinney: email: cmcilhinney@pasen.gov website
Representative John Galloway email:web form only website

GOP seeks to cut school funding

From the Inquirer this morning.

Our PA state legislators: Contact Senator Chuck McIlhinney (R-PA 10th) and Representative John T. Galloway (D-PA 140th)

GOP seeks to cut school funding
A Senate Republican bill would cut $400 million from Gov. Rendell’s budget.
By MARC LEVY

HARRISBURG — Public school funding is emerging as a friction point as state budget negotiators work to find common ground on an approximately $28 billion budget in the last two weeks of the fiscal year.

A Senate Republican budget bill that is primed for floor debate today would slash the $28.3 billion spending plan proposed by Gov. Ed Rendell by about $400 million. Of that, about $120 million would get cut from Rendell’s suggested basic education subsidy — state money that pays for instruction and operations in public schools.

Rendell called the proposed cut “hugely bad policy.”

“I asked around this morning, but the last time ... the basic education subsidy suggested by the governor was cut by the Legislature, no one could remember,” Rendell told reporters Tuesday.

The bill emerged from the GOP-controlled Senate Appropriations Committee on Monday on a party-line vote. A Senate Republican spokesman, Erik Arneson, characterized the bill as a step in the process of ongoing budget negotiations.

The sides have clashed over how much the state should increase spending. Rendell has advocated a 4.2 percent increase that includes $291 million more for basic education, a boost of 6 percent.

The Senate GOP bill puts forward a 2.8 percent overall spending increase. It would increase basic education spending by about $170 million, or 3.5 percent.

In the past, lawmakers have been averse to cutting a governor’s proposed education budget because school districts immediately plug their expected share of the money into their budgets. Should the Legislature trim down the governor’s proposed amount, lawmakers could face blame for local property tax increases that might result.

Rendell said he would he would rather use some of the state’s approximately $750 million budget reserve to fill in any cuts to his school funding proposal.

Arneson, however, said Senate Republicans, who control the chamber, would not discuss using the budget reserve until Rendell releases a fresh revenue projection for the 2008-09 fiscal year.

Without that projection, legislative negotiators do not know how much the state can spend. Rendell said his budget office is still watching the state’s daily revenue collections before it settles on a figure.

The 2008-09 fiscal year begins July 1. Rendell, who met legislative leaders in closed-door budget talks Tuesday, described the negotiations as making slow progress on various fronts.

CALL YOUR PA STATE REPS-SCHOOL FUNDING CUTS

This email was forwarded to me. Please read and respond.

Contact Senator Chuck McIlhinney (R-PA 10th) and Representative John T. Galloway (D-PA 140th)

CALL TO ACTION!
Your Help Needed Immediately!

More Info
Budget, Mandate Waiver, Tax Collection Issues


June 17, 2008

Call Your Senator Today

Late Monday, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted 16-10 to report Senate Bill 1389, an alternative to Gov. Rendell's proposed budget. SB 1389 proposes to cut education funding by $118 million or 41% -less than 2 weeks before school districts have to approve their own budgets for 2008-09. As reported last week, it was becoming apparent that some type of re-distribution of funds was imminent; however massive cuts of this nature are a different story and would cause chaos in the budgeting process for scores of school districts.

The message to your Senator is to vote against SB 1389 when it comes to the floor and to restore education funding to the $291 million level that has been proposed by the governor. A vote on this bill could come this afternoon, so your calls are needed today.

Efforts to weaken the mandate waiver program underway in Senate

Efforts to water down the current mandate waiver provisions of the School Code are indeed underway. In an effort to move SB 1412, a bill amending the Keystone Opportunity Zone Act to allow municipalities and school districts to extend the tax abatement benefits to those who develop unoccupied or blighted parcels of land, the Senate is considering an amendment that would remove the most important mandate waiver available to school districts.

Specifically, in a "deal" to keep them from offering an amendment to the bill to require prevailing wage provisions to cover projects that take place inside a KOZ, some trade unions have sought to have Section 751, the section of the School Code dealing with the separate prime contract requirement, added to the list of mandates that cannot be waived. The vote is said to be very close at this point and it appears that the deal may be approved.

School board members, particularly those who have applied for and received waivers from the separate prime contract mandate under the mandate waiver program, need to call their Senators immediately and ask them not to vote for any amendment to the bill that would make add this mandate to the list of items that cannot be waived.

Since the mandate waiver program began under Act 16 of 2000, school districts that have received a waiver from the separate prime contract mandate have realized savings of over $80 million. If this waiver were to be taken away, the entire mandate waiver program would be rendered meaningless since the only things left to waive are those things that could only result in marginal savings to school districts.

For years, PSBA has asked the state Legislature to help school districts reduce costs by lowering the cost of state mandates. The mandate waiver was a major accomplishment and a major step towards this goal. Ask your Senator to reject this "trade-off" because it will only harm school districts, particularly growing districts, and taxpayers.

House to vote on SB 1063 - Earned Income Tax collection

The House is set to call up Senate Bill 1063, the consolidated earned income tax sometime within the next few session days. This bill requires that local governments and school districts to form countywide tax collection committees for the collection of earned income taxes. Each municipality and school district will have representation on the tax collection committee. While the House Finance Committee approved several of the changes PSBA sought, the costs of the tax collection committee continue to be based on revenues collected, meaning that school districts will likely absorb most of those costs.

Members are asked to call their state Representatives and ask them to support an amendment that would more fairly allocate the costs of the tax collection committee amount all its members.

School Funding Battle

The irony here is that the Emperor and his accomplices could follow through on his school death plan only to find out that action on the school funding formulas could have saved the district from the anguish of being used as a biology classrooom dissection frog.

Here's the email I was sent. Please visit the website and register. There is no cost involved and a copy of your email is sent to:

Governor Edward G. Rendell (D-PA)
Senator Chuck McIlhinney (R-PA 10th)
Representative John T. Galloway (D-PA 140th)


I have become increasingly concerned about how unfair Pennsylvania's
system of school finance is and how many children are not able to get a
quality education as a result. The wealthiest districts in the state
spend two and a half times as much per student as the poorest, and their
tax rates are actually much lower because they have much healthier tax
bases. As a result, many children in many communities simply don't
have access to the best teachers, modern books and materials, and
up-to-date programs. We really should do better by all of our children, and
I'm sure you agree with me about that. Nothing else the state does is
more important than guaranteeing that our children and grandchildren, no
matter where they live, have access to the best education possible.
Why am I writing to you now about this? I recently heard about and
became a supporter of the Pennsylvania School Funding Campaign, and I would
like you to join me by clicking the link at the bottom of this e-ma
il. It will just take a minute. It will cost you nothing. Your
e-mail address will not be passed on to others. You will receive one
e-mail a week to keep you posted on the Campaign's progress. The children
of Pennsylvania need our help - and it is so easy to give that help.
Thanks.

Click on this URL to take action now
http://capwiz.com/paschoolfunding/utr/2/?a=11216011&i=87477843&c=&u=capwiz.com%2Fpaschoolfunding%2Fmlm%2Fsignup%2F

If your email program does not recognize the URL as a link,
copy the entire URL and paste it into your Web browser.

We're Waiting Steve...

The silence is deafening...

Remember this post?

School Funding Fight

Or are they just content with publicly whining about how unfair the current funding plan is and not following through with the hard work of making proposals become reality?

While I think about it, someone got up at a recent school board meeting and said, "Someone needs to do something" about the tax situation. Well, DUH. Talk about a stroke of the blinding obvious.

First off, I remember very well who said that from the audience. Now it's time to pay up. Congratulations! YOU, sir, are that someone. Introduce a resolution in the borough council supporting this tax plan. Get one introduced in the school board. Pass them both unanimously and present them tied with red ribbons and bows to Governor Rendell, Senator McIlhenney, and Representative Galloway.