Even though the remainder of the 2015-16 state budget became law last month when Governor Tom Wolf chose not to veto it, politicians in Harrisburg continue to disagree about something called the fiscal code.
“The basic education funds are not affected by the fiscal code except for the amount that was increased over last year,” Republican State Sen. Scott Hutchinson. “The governor says he can give out that amount anyway he wants. The general assembly says, no, you can’t give it out at all because there are no specifics saying how to drive it out. Absent passage of language signed by the governor then we will probably have some court battles.”
Sen.Hutchinson represents a large part of Butler County. The fiscal code spells out specific formulas for how new funds are distributed. With Governor Wolf’s veto, several hundred million dollars are at stake. According to Hutchinson, it is unlikely that the state legislature has the two-thirds majority to override.
Other fundamental differences could affect negotiations for the 2016-17 budget which are already underway. The state pension system is only one of many programs Hutchinson would like to examine more closely.
“Programs that may or may not be doing any good but are on the books and we fund them,” he says. “Many of us would say a lot of them they don’t give us bang for the buck…are not improving lives and maybe even things that are not necessities of government.”
Hutchinson is in his first term representing District 21, which includes all of Clarion, Forest and Venango counties, as well as parts of Butler and Warren counties. He is based in Oil City.
