Jan. 13, 2016
HARRISBURG – Members of the York County House Republican Delegation supported the passage of
House Bill 1327, also known as the Fiscal Code, which directs state spending in FY 2015-16 budget. This legislation now heads to the Senate for concurrence on House amendments.
State Reps. Seth Grove (R-Dover), Kate Klunk (R-Hanover), Kristin Phillips-Hill (R-York Township), Stan Saylor (R-Red Lion), and Mike Regan (R-Dillsburg) issued the following statement after the passage of House Bill 1327:
“This year’s Fiscal Code includes a number of important transparency measures for taxpayers, significant investments in education and fair formulas to distribute state education funding. Under Wolf’s education funding formulas he cut nearly $1 million from York County school districts. A $1 million cut to his home county schools, so he can pay for his union friends in Philadelphia that receive $30 million more under his proposals.
“House Bill 1327 increases state education spending by an additional $2.5 billion, which will be used to reimburse school districts for construction projects. This brings total state education spending to nearly $14 billion, nearly $3 billion higher than last year. This legislation also introduces fair funding formulas that will benefit York County School Districts and taxpayers. York County’s own governor wanted to send the lion’s share of state funding to Philadelphia, but this Fiscal Code would distribute funds in a more equitable manner.
“The legislation also corrects the Wolf administration’s failure to release Educational Investment Tax Credits (EITC) and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credits (OSTC) in a timely manner, by allowing businesses to utilize the tax credit in the tax year in which their application was approved. This will ensure that much-needed scholarship funds will continue to benefit the thousands of students across the Commonwealth who count on the generosity of the business community.
“Most importantly, we believe, this legislation requires the Wolf administration to account for every penny that was spent during this six-month budget impasse. Over $30 billion was spent during this time, with no record of how it was spent. Wolf even had to take out a $2 billion line of credit against the Pennsylvania taxpayers to fuel his spending addiction. It is time for the governor to be completely transparent with and accountable to the taxpayers. We urge the Senate to concur with our amendments so Gov. Wolf can sign this legislation without delay.”
York County House Republican Delegation
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Eric Reath
717.260.6187
ereath@pahousegop.com