Has Pa. turned fiscal corner? Stay tuned
If Pennsylvania’s revenue total remains in the black for the final eight months of the 2018-19 fiscal year, mimicking the revenue picture of the year’s first four months, state taxpayers will have grounds to be cautiously optimistic that the Keystone State maybe has turned the proverbial corner on a money shortage that has dogged the commonwealth for more than a decade.
But the best advice for taxpayers is not to be duped by that fragment of good financial news.
There’s no way for taxpayers to know and understand at this point all of the financial maneuverings employed by the Legislature and Wolf administration to balance this year’s state budget — or at least make it seem like the budget was balanced by the June 30 budget — preparation deadline.
State residents aren’t destined to get solid insight into how genuine and accurate — perhaps “honest” is a better word — 2018-19 incoming and outgoing money projections were until serious progress on the state’s
2019-20 spending package begins to take shape sometime around late April.
Hopefully, budget negotiations between the Republicancontrolled General Assembly and Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf will repeat the more amicable budget negotiations that took place for this year, unlike what occurred during the first three years of Wolf’s tenure as the state’s chief executive.
Both sides need to embrace an attitude of compromise, understanding that any kind of negotiations require give-and-take.
According to a report by the news and information service Capitolwire, published in the Mirror on Nov. 3, Pennsylvania’s
$2.5 billion of collected General Fund revenue in October was
$28.3 million, or 1.2 percent, more than had been anticipated.
October’s collected amount, when combined with General Fund revenue collected during the fiscal year’s first three months — the state’s fiscal year begins on July 1 — brought the total amount collected for the fiscal year thus far to just over
$10 billion.
That $10 billion figure is $238 million, or 2.4 percent, above what had been estimated for the four months in question.
While $238 million above projections might seem to spell excellent prospects for the state, there’s no guarantee that the trend will continue uninterrupted through fiscal year’s end.
What seems without question, though, is that the incomingrevenue numbers don’t suggest that there will be any room for a spending spree in 2019-20.
And the situation might be worse if some questionable budget moves implemented for
2018-19 end up consuming a significant chunk of the higherthan-projected money collections recorded for July 1 through Oct. 31.
One new barometer for how Pennsylvania might fare at the end of the current fiscal year — and even beyond 2018-19 — will be the amounts collected each month from the commonwealth’s expansion of gambling.
There’s no sure bet that an end-of-year windfall lies ahead.
While it’s too early to predict whether Pennsylvania really has turned the fiscal corner, based on October’s and year-to-date numbers, it’s not too early to pay close attention, going forward.
Being a good citizen of this commonwealth entails being familiar in an ongoing way with state government’s performance, fiscal and otherwise, not just as Election Day is near at hand. – The Altoona Mirror
Hard lessons in schools
Despite increased funding to our area school districts, local academic officials say it is still not enough as they struggle to meet the demands of state and federal mandates mixed with a weakened economy while keeping taxes manageable for residents.
For years, we have been watching programs being slashed from the proverbial curriculum chopping block. Reading, writing and arithmetic are still the priority. These days, those extras are becoming harder and harder to keep.
We can’t say we envy our local school directors in the decisions they must often make to keep our schools afloat while maintaining a quality education for our youth. We recognize it is a thankless, stressful, yet essential job.
That is why when outside agencies step up to help keep some of those things that are not tied to Keystone exams or school performance reports in school, it makes a huge difference in bringing back a more well-rounded education.
So is the case for the American Heart Association and a Uniontown native, who recently teamed up with high schools in Fayette County to provide CPR kits. Through “Fayette County Healthy at Heart,” sponsored by the Gismondi Family Foundation, created by Pittsburgh attorney and Uniontown native John Gismondi, students in each of the high schools are afforded the opportunity to learn the lifesaving skill when they otherwise may not have had the program available.
American Heart Association CPR in Schools Training Kits were distributed to all six Fayette County public school districts.
According to Dr. Richard Pish, board president of the Fayette County division of the American Heart Association, the program will have an impact that goes well beyond the school.
“The beauty of this is that when children learn this, they will be able to go out and teach it to other people. When you master this, you absolutely will be able to save lives.”
Lessons like that, we say, are just as important as E = mc2.
The AHA is one of many businesses, community members and outside agencies who come to the rescue of our school-aged children every day. For that, we are thankful. We know it takes a village to raise a child, and we are fortunate to have in our area those who recognize the importance of providing what may be needed to our schools.
We applaud the efforts of the American Heart Association and Gismondi for this initiative. We implore others to look for ways they, too, can help alleviate the unfortunate hardships of doing away with the extras.
With each offer to help, be it big or small, we are certain students in every classroom across the county will welcome the breath of fresh air.