Where does the money go?

THE LETTER BELOW WAS PUBLISHED IN THE POTTSVILLE REPUBLICAN & HERALD. IT'S GETTING SOME NOTORIETY ACROSS THE STATE, MOST RECENTLY AT POLICY BLOG, WHICH STATES THIS LETTER "NAILS WHAT'S WRONG WITH HARRISBURG.' POLICY BLOG ALSO URGES MORE PENNSYLVANIANS TO WRITE LETTER TO THEIR LOCAL NEWSPAPERS UNTIL LAWMAKERS COME TO THEIR SENSES.


Lawmakers have priorities confused

To the Editor:

Our highways and bridges are crumbling and badly in need of repair.

Our governor and legislators claim that they don't have the money and the only way to get it is to increase the tax on gasoline or toll Interstate 80.

These officials appear to have decided to raise the money by tolling I-80. Act 44 will allow the leasing of I-80 to the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission for 50 years. In return, the commission will provide $83 billion to PennDOT for the repairs.

I do not believe that we have a funding crisis; we have a priorities crisis. I have previously described the following wasteful projects with our tax money:

• $700 million on the Philadelphia Convention Center;

• $360 million a year on discretionary spending known as Walking Around Money or WAMs;

• Hundreds of millions on stadiums for private sports franchises;

• Hundreds of millions a year on subsidies for unproven technologies for the benefit of some politically connected campaign contributors;

• $75 million a year to attract Hollywood millionaires to make movies in Pennsylvania;

• Wasteful spending at the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency and other agencies;

• Obscene retirement packages and pay raises for legislators.

Having found a new way to tax the people of Pennsylvania, our legislators have floated a trial balloon suggesting the tolling of Interstate 81 as an additional tax. If we need to toll any of our highways to raise the money for repairs, and I do not believe that we do, then I would suggest that we toll the Schuylkill Expressway.

At the same time that our legislators are unable to find any money for repairs, they are thinking about giving away additional hundreds of millions of our tax money in the form of corporate welfare loans and grants.

On Dec. 12, the state Senate passed the $650 million Special Session Senate Bill 1 (Alternative Energy Investment Act). The bill now goes to the House for approval.

First, the legislation contains $250 million in new borrowing for which future generations will have to pay. Then the senators get down to the spending:

• $210 million in loans and grants to help finance energy projects for businesses;

• $130 million in tax credits to help finance energy facilities and plants, including waste coal power plants;

• $25 million in grants to help owners of coal-fired power plants buy equipment to meet pollution standards; and

• $285 million on additional giveaway projects.

Our legislators can’t find any money for bridge and highway repair, but they can find hundreds of millions of dollars for loans, grants and tax credits for highly profitable utilities and coal companies.

Our legislators can't find any money for repairs, but they can find millions of dollars to replace sidewalks, many of which were in excellent condition!

Our legislators can't find any money for repairs, but they can find millions of dollars to renovate an abandoned shoe factory into tax-free housing units.

Again, we do not have a funding crisis; we have a priorities crisis. Our legislators should give priority to programs that benefit all Pennsylvanians, such as bridge and highway repair and should stop giving priority to programs that only benefit a few politically-connected individuals.

John H. Schickram
Tamaqua