Commonwealth Foundation
Contact: 717-671-1901
Senate Committee Advances Taxpayer Protection Act
Legislation Protects Pennsylvanians from Out-of-Control State Spending
Good afternoon,
Today, the Senate Finance Committee passed Taxpayer Protection Act legislation to the floor, kicking off a push to protect middle-class Pennsylvanians’ finances from unaffordable spending and tax increases like those recently proposed by Gov. Wolf. Senate Bill 70, an amendment to the state Constitution sponsored by Sen. Camera Bartolotta, and Senate Bill 7, sponsored by Sen. Mike Folmer, are now both eligible for a full Senate vote.
“We congratulate the Senate on this important step toward safeguarding family budgets from runaway state spending,” commented Nathan Benefield, vice president of policy analysis for the Commonwealth Foundation. “Gov. Wolf’s historic tax-and-spend budget plan, which proposes raising taxes by about $1,400 per family of four, is a great example of why state government needs commonsense guardrails on spending. Families should not be forced to deal with sudden shocks to their finances because lawmakers spend taxpayer dollars at irresponsible levels.”
The consequences of unchecked spending burden Pennsylvanians of every income level and sacrifice long-term prosperity for short-term gain.
State spending facts:
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From 2002 to 2013, Pennsylvania state debt—including debt held by state agencies—more than doubled, from $23.7 billion to $50.4 billion.
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Today, Pennsylvanians owe $133.6 billion in combined state and local government debt, or a little more than $10,400 for every man, woman, and child.
Benefield continued:
“For Pennsylvania to become an attractive place to live, work, and start a business, we must create a stable environment that inspires confidence and promotes investment. The Taxpayer Protection Act is a policy solution that serves as a crucial building block to fulfilling the promise of a prosperous state economy.”
See Commonwealth Foundation’s research on the Taxpayer Protection Act for more details.
Nathan Benefield is available for comment today. Please contact me at 717-671-1901 to schedule an interview.
Best,
Cindy
Cindy Hamill
Dir. of Strategic Communications
Commonwealth Foundation
Harrisburg | King of Prussia
Office: 717-671-1901
media@commonwealthfoundation.org
Commonwealthfoundation.org
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