House panel rejects Pa. GOP budget - Philadelphia Business Journal:

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billion budget plan in a 20 to 14 vote on Senatebill 850, the counterproposal to Gov. Ed Rendell’ds $29 billion budget, would not have restored any ofthe Governor’d cuts and would have made deepe cuts to balance a wideninfg budget hole. This year’s budget shortfall is now projectedat $3.2 nearly a billion dollars more than Rendellp projected in February. Among the fundint cuts proposed in theRepublicanh plan, were education, public welfar e and $250 million in tax credits. The plan woulrd have relied on $2.3 billion in federal stimulus funds, including $729 million to offset cuts to educationh funding.
“I do not believe that Senate Bill 850 takes us in theright direction,” Housre Appropriations Chairman Dwight Evans said. “I believe we have to have a compromiss approach.” Evans said other options, including a generall tax increase in conjunctionwith cuts, should be considerex because of the higher revenue shortfalk the state faces. The defeatt puts the process of adopting a budget back atsquard one, said Rep. Doug Reichley, who voiced opposition to tax increases. “Thered are 22 days until the end of the fiscal Reichley said.
”Republicans will not be voting for tax increasexs to pay for more spending duringt this recession no matter how ofte Democrats tell us that we need to betaxedd more.”