Jan. 08, 2016
HARRISBURG – On Wednesday, the Pennsylvania Treasury announced that a $2 billion line of credit has been extended to the Commonwealth due to the General Fund’s “historic low [balance] for this time of year,” according to a Jan. 6 press release issued by the Treasury.
State Reps. Seth Grove (R-York), Jim Christiana (R-Beaver/Washington) and Cris Dush (R-Jefferson/Indiana) issued the following statement in response to the announcement:
“In December, we joined together to issue a report that details $30.4 billion in secretive spending by Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration from July 1 to Oct. 31, 2015, including $2.7 billion spent using lapsed funds from previous fiscal years. Since learning about Wolf’s appetite for spending and his efforts to keep Pennsylvanians in the dark, we have been watching for further signs of poor financial management from the Wolf Administration.
“This week’s announcement of the need for a $2 billion line of credit is a true demonstration that Wolf and his cronies have run amok in Harrisburg.
“For nearly six months, the Commonwealth operated without a budget, meaning with limited exceptions, money should not have been paid out from the General Fund. Tax receipts are currently running above predicted levels, meaning more money is coming into the Treasury. To top it off, thanks to Wolf’s line-item veto, education funding has been slashed in half.
“Why then, does the Commonwealth need to borrow $2 billion from the taxpayers to make sure the General Fund is not depleted? Expenditures are lower, revenues are higher and there was a six-month period where limited dollars should have been spent and still the Wolf Administration has found a way to feed his spending addiction, leaving taxpayers completely in the dark.
“When the Wolf administration borrowed $500 million to cover expenses in March last year, a Wolf spokesman blamed it on former Gov. Tom Corbett: ‘It is an extension of what they have done. We were forced to because of what they left behind for us.’ When Corbett used a line of credit in 2014, the Wolf campaign called it a “payday loan.” One year into his own term, what is the Wolf Administration’s excuse now?
“Nearly one year after Gov. Wolf pledged to ‘be a different kind of governor’ in his inauguration speech, taxpayers now know this to be true.”
To view the report, visit
RepGrove.com.
Representative Seth Grove
196th District
Representative Cris Dush
66th Legislative District
Representative Jim Christiana
15th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Eric Reath
717.260-6187
ereath@pahousegop.com
RepGrove.com /
Facebook.com/RepSethGrove