Time to put Pa. legislature on serious diet

Much like the rest of us, our esteemed elected officials in the Pennsylvania Legislature are considering a New Year’s resolution.

They are looking to shed a few pounds.

They’re hoping to reduce the size of their seats. Literally. One of the nation’s largest, most expensive ruling bodies is once again toying with the idea of reducing its size.

Actually, they’re already halfway there.

In order to reduce the size of either the state House or Senate, it requires a constitutional amendment which then must be placed before the voters in a statewide referendum.

The toughest part is the constitutional amendment. That requires the measure to pass in consecutive sessions of the Legislature.

House Bill 153 passed both the House and Senate last fall. The measure, sponsored by Rep. Jerry Knowles, a Republican from Schuylkill County, would slash the number of representatives in the state House from 203 to 151. The Senate would remain at 50 members.

Republicans control both the state House and Senate by sizeable majorities. We wonder how many will literally be willing to fall on their own sword by voting for the measure again when the stakes are real and approval will then put the measure before voters.

Do you think many taxpayers in Pennsylvania would oppose taking a machete to this bloated, overpriced ruling body with the full-time salary – and first-rate perks?

Remember these are the folks who routinely fail to put a spending plan in place by the mandated July 1 deadline, threatening key services and a potential government shutdown.

This year the Legislature took this mockery of a budget drama to new heights. They actually passed a budget, but without the necessary funding mechanism to pay for it.

Try doing that with your checkbook at home.

After months of talks, proposals and counter-proposals, the House GOP leadership again shouted down any talk of a tax hike and instead took the easy way out, falling back on a most familiar vice. They opted to expand legal gaming in the state, and borrow the rest.

That is not leadership. And it does little to address the fiscal reality Pennsylvania faces.

Pennsylvania faces serious budget problems, ones that were not addressed by the Legislature last fall.

The deficit is not going away, and the state is still in need of recurring sources of revenue.

In short, we can no longer afford a 203-member state House.

So what are the chances of this measure seeing that crucial second round of voting this session?

Well, keep one thing in mind. The same thing that cloaks everything in Harrisburg. Politics. This is an election year. Voters will be voting for a governor, deciding if Democrat Tom Wolf deserves a second term.

A slew of Republicans are hoping to challenge him and will face off in the primary this spring. Among them are a couple of conservative firebrands, Sen. Scott Wagner, of York County, and House Speaker Mike Turzai, of Allegheny County.

Every member of the state House also will be running for re-election.

If approved by voters, House Bill 153 could conceivably set the table for new House districts that would be put in place after the 2020 census.

Yes, another round of redistricting. But that’s a different topic.

Leaders in the House say they expect it to get a vote. Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler, chairs the committee where the measure currently sits. He told a Philly journalist that passing it again would “give the Legislature that ability to say ‘we lead by example.’”

Opponents argue the move could lead to less representation, especially for rural areas where a single legislator would represent a much larger chunk of real estate.

We believe a smaller ruling body would lead to more action, a much cleaner debate, and hopefully less of the gridlock that seems to be the hallmark of Harrisburg these days.

We urge the Legislature to again pass House Bill 153.

Then let the voters decide.