As a member of the
Senate Appropriations Committee, I am taking part in public
hearings February 22-March 8 on Gov. Tom Wolf’s proposed 2016-17 state budget.
Below is a recap of hearing testimony, my questions to department heads and
video of each hearing.
Monday, February 22, 2016
Governor’s Office/Governor’s Budget Office/Executive
Offices
Part I (2015-16 Appropriations)
Senator Mensch
admonishes the Budget Secretary for the Administration’s misleading comments
regarding education funding, and notes the history of structural deficits and
increased government spending.
The Senate Appropriations Committee questioned Budget
Secretary Randy Albright about Governor Wolf’s threatened huge cuts in education
despite the General Assembly’s appropriation increasing funding for every school
line item in 2015-16 budget. Other topics included:
- The
dangerous precedent of vetoing Legislature-approved appropriations and then
seeking funds from state Treasury.
- Concerns
over transparency in spending of state funds when the Administration spends
money not appropriated by Legislature.
- School funding has increased every year, but Administration continues spreading
debunked claim of “billion dollar education cut.”
- Schools will have to close in March or April due to Governor’s veto of $3
billion in 2015-16 education funding.
- The long
history of Pennsylvania structural deficits, and the new spending driving
Governor Wolf’s tax hikes.
- Critical
care access hospitals face closings due to Governor Wolf’s veto of Legislature’s
funding.
- The problem
of the
Administration planning to spend $200 million more than the Independent Fiscal
Office projects in revenue.
- The
negative impact of the Administration’s cuts of key funding for farmers.
- The
need for cost efficiencies at state government and school districts.
- Statistics show that academic performance is not based on how much tax money
spent, but how it is spent.
- The
agreement to merge the Corrections Department with Probation and Parole will
save tax dollars and cut recidivism.
Full Hearing Video
Part II (2016-17 Budget)
Senator Mensch
and Budget Secretary Albright discuss metrics used for establishing the state budget
and how to pay for senior programs in the face of declining Lottery revenues.
Other topics covered by the committee included:
- Pennsylvania casinos are facing new taxes on top of existing high taxes.
- The
need to consider zero-based budgeting.
- The
need to find funding for seniors programs in the face of declining Lottery
revenues.
- The
feasibility of the Independent Fiscal Office analyzing the cost of collective
bargaining agreements and their impact on budget.
- The need to
renegotiate pension management fees and cut waste in current education funding
before allocating more.
- The
reliability of Marcellus Shale severance tax revenue estimates amid an industry
downturn.
- Welfare fraud investigations save $12 for every $1 spent on probes.
- The
problem of skyrocketing pension costs taking money out of classrooms.
Full Hearing Video
Independent Fiscal Office
Senator Mensch
notes the fiscal pressures created by Pennsylvania’s aging demographic, growing
pressure on the middle class and the need to reduce spending.
Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee discussed
the need to address spending and cost-drivers in the budget during a hearing
with Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) Executive Director Matt Knittel.
Other topics discussed during the hearing included:
- The economic impact of
Governor’s Wolf’s proposed tax increases and how they will affect seniors and
middle-class working families.
- Pension costs and
long-term budget impacts of pension debt.
- The effect of
Pennsylvania’s demographics on long-term budget projections.
- Projected economic
activity and job growth over the next several years.
- The reasons behind
increased costs in the Department of Corrections in spite of the reduction in
the inmate population.
- The possibility of the
IFO taking on some of the responsibilities of the Public Employee Retirement
Commission.
- Potential reductions
in revenues from the Marcellus Shale Impact Fee.
- The impact of a
minimum wage increase on employment.
- Current taxation of
casinos in relation to other states.
- Projected growth in
lottery revenue compared to the services funded by lottery proceeds.
Full Hearing Video
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Judiciary
Senator Mensch
questions Supreme Court justices on the judiciary’s computer system and elder
abuse.
During a hearing on the proposed budget for the Judiciary
Justice Max Baer Justice Debra McCloskey Todd answered questions on a variety of
issues related to Pennsylvania’s court system including:
- Efforts to
keep children out of foster care and in homes.
- The high
number of juvenile lifers in Pennsylvania and what role the Legislature should
play in court challenges to those sentences.
- How
judicial vacancies are filled at the local level.
- The
effectiveness of special veterans courts in reducing recidivism and saving
money.
- Cost-cutting measures being implemented internally, including bans on
out-of-state travel.
- The impact
of health care, retirement and pension costs on budget increases and actual
dollar figures per year associated with them.
- A status
report on efforts to unify computerized functions in the judiciary, the costs
associated with them and concerns about whether they are reaching too far.
- An ongoing
study of judges’ caseloads by county and the rationale in determining how many
magisterial district judges are located in each area.
- The growing
incidence of elder abuse.
- The need to
make Pennsylvania better at handling commerce and business law cases.
- The level
of transparency regarding judicial salaries.
Full Hearing Video
Treasury
Senator Mensch
expresses concerns over the precedent set by Governor Wolf in spending funds not
allocated by the Legislature by declaring it “emergency spending.”
The Wolf Administration’s questionable spending during the
budget impasse was the main topic of discussion during the Senate Appropriations
Committee’s hearing with Pennsylvania Treasurer Timothy Reese.
Other topics discussed during the hearing included:
- The
potential consequences of unauthorized spending on future budget debates.
- Spending
practices in other states during a budget impasse.
- The status
of state investments and investment strategies.
- Changes to
the time frame for claiming unclaimed property.
- Measures to
improve efficiency and save taxpayer dollars.
- New methods
to support small business growth and development.
Full Hearing Video
Auditor General
The panel asked Auditor General Eugene DePasquale about
several audits currently being conducted by the office. Discussions included:
- The need
for the Auditor General’s Office to do the work of the Public Employee
Retirement Commission closed by Governor Wolf.
- The
financial threat posed by ailing municipal pension plans.
- The fate of
school districts that are running out of money due to the Governor’s veto of $3
billion in education funding, but aren’t in a position to take out loans.
- The final phase-in of
technology funding for Auditor General’s Office.
- Incidents of the
Auditor General’s Office finding “missing” funds in Pennsylvania school
districts facing tax increases.
- The need
for the Auditor General to have the authority to audit municipal authorities.
- The use of
independent audits when performing Auditor General audits.
- How the
state can alert taxpayers to school district cash balances.
- The status
of audits of 26 correctional facilities.
- Progress in the audit
of Philadelphia School District.
- The need to trim
pension management fees while not sacrificing investment returns.
Full Hearing Video
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Senator Mensch
discusses the role the private sector can play in providing DCNR services.
The Senate Appropriations Committee sought details on
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources funding requests from Secretary
Cindy Adams Dunn. Topics included:
- Declining
oil and gas lease revenue hits
and the possibility of opening additional land to leasing.
- Plans for DCNR to purchase more land.
- Funding levels of Pennsylvania Heritage Areas.
- State forest management.
- The
importance of Act 13 natural gas development impact fee revenue.
- ATV riding
trails, ATV fatalities and the number of youth safety instructors.
- Governor
Wolf’s veto of support for PA hardwoods promotion.
- The
performance of the Deer Management Assistance Program and its impact on hunting.
- The
necessity for greater use of public-private partnerships to save tax dollars.
- The need
for more information on the department’s request for $2.5M for the Pennsylvania
Conservation Corps.
- The status of oil and gas leases for land under Pennsylvania rivers.
- Ideas for attracting more visitors to state parks and forests.
- The Administration’s plan to raise waste haul tipping fees to fund DCNR
programs.
- The need for all state departments to control spending.
Full Hearing Video
State Police/Homeland
Security
Senator Mensch
asks about the possibility of establishing an Amber Alert system for special
needs citizens and cadet recruitment and retention.
Acting State Police
Commissioner Colonel Tyree Blocker provided an update on the cadet class
cheating investigation at the State Police Academy during the Appropriations
Committee budget hearing on the Pennsylvania State Police and the Office of
Homeland Security.
Other issues discussed during the hearing included
- Funding for
future cadet classes.
- Current and
projected complement of troopers and the impact of impending retirements.
- Police use of
body cameras.
- The growing
cost of State Police coverage of municipalities.
- The number of
troopers assigned to Gaming Enforcement.
- Potential
changes to Pennsylvania’s Amber Alert system.
- A new
electronic records management system.
- Local law
enforcement use of radar.
- Impact of the
heroin epidemic on police resources and communities.
- The backlog in
DNA testing for criminal cases.
- The recent
massive traffic accident on Interstate 78.
- An update on
full implementation of the statewide radio system.
Full Hearing Video
Drug and Alcohol
Programs
Senator Mensch
discusses Pennsylvania’s heroin epidemic and the need to destigmatize
treatment.
The drug abuse epidemic in Pennsylvania was
the main point of discussion during a public hearing with Secretary of Drug and
Alcohol Programs Gary Tennis.
Topics discussed during the hearing
included:
- Medical and
follow-up care for individuals with drug and alcohol addictions.
- The use of
Vivitrol (naloxone) in drug overdose and abuse treatment.
- The
potential benefits of criminal justice reform pertaining to drug crimes.
- Costs
associated with drug abuse.
- Resources
for police departments and other groups to combat the drug epidemic.
- Public
outreach and awareness efforts to combat drug abuse.
- Follow-up
care for patients after an overdose.
- The
effectiveness of prescription drug take-back programs.
- Initiatives
to combat gambling addiction.
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and drug addiction among veterans.
- Recovery
schools for students being treated for addiction.
Full Hearing Video
Thursday, February 25,
2016
Department of Environmental Protection
Senator Mensch
tells the DEP Secretary the department has not been responsive to concerns about
groundwater quality in one 24th Senatorial District community.
Senate Appropriations Committee members questioned DEP
Secretary John Quigley about his department planning to implement new federal
coal regulations despite being stayed by a court ruling. Other topics included:
- The
possibility of a “Growing Greener III” initiative to pay for Chesapeake Bay’s
multibillion-dollar cleanup.
- The
availability of natural gas and pipeline infrastructure.
- The
possibility of extending drill permits to boost natural gas development.
- The
size of the proposed Marcellus Shale tax and the existing community impact fee.
- The
need for ongoing public-private cooperation in coal refuse fired plants and mine
reclamation.
- The
importance of listening to farmer feedback on the Chesapeake Bay cleanup plan.
- Efforts to help municipalities reduce groundwater runoff.
- The
need for DEP to act on local concerns about hazardous site cleanup projects and
groundwater pollution.
- The
financial challenge facing the Hazardous Site Cleanup Fund and the Underground
Storage Tank Fund.
Full Hearing Video
Department of Community and Economic Development
Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee questioned
Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Dennis Davin
regarding the impact of funding delays created by the governor’s budget vetoes.
Other topics included:
- Opportunities to create and retain manufacturing jobs.
- Ways to
make Pennsylvania more business-friendly to attract employers.
- The
economic benefits of the Film Tax Credit program.
- Ways to
leverage public-private partnerships to increase tourism and attract new
businesses to the state.
- The
possibility of further military base closures in Pennsylvania.
- Proposed
increases in funding for Partnerships for Regional Economic Performance.
- The impact
of the natural gas industry on economic development and job growth.
- The cost
and benefits of weatherization programs.
Full Hearing Video
Attorney General
The Senate Appropriations
Committee closed out its first week of budget hearings by focusing on the Office
of the Attorney General (OAG) with Attorney General Kathleen Kane. Topics
discussed during the hearing included:
- The OAG’s Child
Predator Unit.
- Mandatory minimum
sentencing.
- Pennsylvania’s war on
drugs.
- Funding for outside
counsel.
- Act 191 of 2014, which
created a prescription drug monitoring system.
- OAG’s Mobile Street
Crimes Unit.
- OAG staffing levels
and pension obligations.
Full Hearing Video
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