Think about what would happen if you made late payments on your mortgage or your credit card.
Late fees strike immediately. It’s your fault and you’ll pay the penalty.
Now think about state government, which you fund with taxpayer dollars. The General Assembly and Gov. Ed Rendell are again late with the state budget. It’s been like that since 2003, just a bit more extreme this year.
There’s a wide gap between competing plans offered by Rendell and Senate Republicans, so we wait. Funding for schools, universities, libraries, state parks and various programs hangs in the balance. Rendell is calling for a personal income tax increase to balance the budget; Republicans favor deeper cuts and no tax increase.
State agencies aren’t able to pay bills, although vendors are expected to extend credit to the state in the short term. If the budget stalemate continues through the month, tens of thousands of state employees would receive partial payment on July 17 and 24 before their paychecks are entirely withheld.
Little has changed in recent weeks except that the state’s budget shortfall has grown past $3 billion. The tough choices — outlined over and over — remain, and now we’re in overtime.
Some call this good government, a healthy democracy in action. We’re not so sure.
Rendell and legislators should be expected to do their jobs on time, just as Pennsylvanians have to pay their bills on time.
In Print
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