Jun. 25, 2021
HARRISBURG – Rep. Eric Nelson (R-Westmoreland) issued the below statement following the House passing the 2021 budget:
“Passing a fiscally responsible budget that does not raise taxes and adequately funds government’s core functions are the center of my focus every budget season. Staying true to that was even more important this year. With the challenges that Pennsylvania’s businesses and residents have faced for the past 14 months, keeping Harrisburg out of peoples’ wallets is more important than ever.
“Gov. Wolf presented a budget in February that included a $7 billion Personal Income Tax increase as well as a minimum wage increase. He has also sought to establish a natural gas tax. I was never going to support those items, but I also am not going to support propping up government spending with nearly that same amount in one-time federal COVID-19 dollars. All that would have done is create a sinkhole for next year that could only be filled with Pennsylvanians’ hard-earned monies. Instead, those federal dollars are being saved for future budgets as well as raising the Commonwealth’s Rainy Day Fund to $2.76 billion – all for the purpose of preventing future tax increases.
“This is not to say that Pennsylvania residents will be shortchanged. By budgeting wisely, we are expanding our investment in education by nearly $400 million and increasing the Educational Improvement Tax Credit by 22%. We are also prioritizing public safety by training two new Pennsylvania State Police classes to add 180 new troopers as well as allocating $30 million for violence intervention and prevention.”
Representative Eric Nelson
57th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Jordan Frei
724.875.8450
jfrei@pahousegop.com
RepNelson.com /
Facebook.com/RepNelson