Columnist: PA House Dems botch gas tax measure

Philadelphia Daily News columnist John Baer shines the spotlight on Pennsylvania's dysfunctional Legislature, especially the Democrats who control the House.

From a new column:

State House Democrats - the Addams Family of Pennsylvania politics - are known for putting the D in dysfunction, and they're at it again.

The state faces fiscal horrors from underfunded pensions, loss of federal stimulus money, an unemployment-compensation-fund bust and more.

But House-controlling D's just spooked efforts to tax natural gas from Marcellus Shale and reap hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.

Oh, they passed a tax bill, with the help of a dozen southeast (where there is no shale) Republicans, including Philly Rep. Dennis O'Brien.

And they needed GOPers. Ten Democrats from western counties (where there's plenty of shale) voted "no." The measure passed, 104-94.

But Democratic leaders, especially Luzerne County Rep. Todd Eachus and Philly Rep. Dwight Evans, were driving the hearse.

Read the full column at the newspaper's website.