Oct. 07, 2015
HARRISBURG – Rep. Doyle Heffley (R-Carbon) issued the following statement after today’s vote on the governor’s tax increase proposal. The governor’s spending plan included a 16 percent Personal Income Tax increase and a severance tax on Pennsylvania’s natural gas industry. This bill did not provide substantive property tax relief.
“Carbon County residents want property tax relief, not tax increases. I support property tax elimination. The Personal Income Tax increase proposed by Gov. Wolf would fall on working families and small businesses. I cannot support a budget that does not provide the tax relief that the middle class needs. Clearly, the majority of my colleagues agreed, with ‘no’ votes on both sides of the aisle.
“Further, Gov. Wolf, during his campaign last year, told Pennsylvanians that a severance tax would provide $1 billion in revenue. The severance tax in this proposal would only provide $67 million in revenue and be the highest in the nation. This extreme tax could jeopardize further industry growth and lead to higher energy costs.
“It’s time for the governor to get with reality. Our budget is four months late due to his lack of leadership and insistence on higher taxes. We need to move forward in a bipartisan manner and negotiate a fair and reasonable budget. We must also provide emergency funding to human service agencies and schools in order for them to continue their core operations. This is an urgent matter that must be addressed.”
Representative Doyle Heffley
122nd District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Morgan Dux
717.260.6695
mdux@pahousegop.com
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