House State Government Committee Majority Chairman Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler) issued the following statement regarding final passage of Pennsylvania’s 2013-14 state budget.
“I voted for this year’s $28.4 billion state budget because in the
end it is a victory for limited government and limited government
spending. For the third consecutive year, total spending growth falls
below the TABOR allowable growth rate of 2.54 percent by $59 million.
Best of all, fiscally-conservative House Republicans were able to hold the line and, ultimately, defeat Governor Corbett’s nearly $2 billion annual gas tax-driven transportation funding plan and a backdoor attempt by the state Senate to expand Medicaid under ObamaCare.
“No matter how you look at it, Medicaid expansion is a blatant attack on working taxpayers and a blatant violation of our Constitutional rights. Pennsylvania needs to stand together with the states that have already rejected ObamaCare in full to protect our citizens’ freedoms and pockets from this accelerated spending nightmare.
“Rather than increasing taxes and fees to generate transportation
revenue out of the pockets of hard-working taxpayers, we should look to other areas ripe for cuts. If we cut the Department of Public Welfare budget by 10 percent, more than $1 billion in revenue could be generated for necessary infrastructure improvements and repairs. Using the money from the sale of the state liquor stores could also generate $1 billion. Tax and fee increases are the wrong answer for funding roads and bridges. I will continue my fight to protect taxpayers.”
