HARRISBURG - Gov. Rendell today gave legislative leaders a Sunday deadline to deliver to him an approved state budget to sign.

"We need to bring this to a conclusion," said Rendell at a news conference this afternoon after a meeting with House and Senate leaders at the Governor's Mansion.

Rendell said counties, municipalities and non-profit groups are struggling to make ends meet in the absence of state funding.

Ten days ago, Rendell and Democratic legislative leaders, joined by Senate Republicans, announced a handshake agreement to end the state's three-month-old budget impasse. But details on the $27.9 billion deal promised at that time have not yet emerged and Rendell wants to see legislature work through the week and the weekend if necessary to get the fine-tuning on the budget completed.

Rendell's deadline order comes as growing discontent among factions of rank-and-file lawmakers which oppose various revenue-generating options. Some are opposed to expanded natural gas drilling on state land. Some are against a tax on small games of chance. Others are dead-set against a tax on arts events.

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Attorney General Tom Corbett and the Humane Society of the United States are hoping a little cash will help crack down on dog fighting in Pennsylvania.

Corbett and several animal welfare groups on Monday will announce a program to reward tipsters up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone engaging in dog fighting or the fighting of other animals, according to a press advisory that will be released tomorrow.

A Corbett spokesman said the effort is not specifically related to the arrival of Michael Vick in Philadelphia, but is part of HSUS's national anti-dog fighting campaign. Vick, who admitted to torturing dogs as part of a fighting ring, is working with HSUS as part of his rehabilitation.

The Pennsylvania SPCA says there has been a surge in the number of dog fighting cases in Philadelphia. Last year the Allegheny County District Attorney's office estimated there are as many as 8,000 dog fighting rings throughout Pennsylvania.

The press conference will be held at 11 a.m. at Corbett's Philadelphia office on Essington Ave. Also on hand will be dogs saved from fighting rings.

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A group of Democratic lawmakers and environmentalists say the current budget proposal that calls for reductions in funding and increased gas exploration on state land would cause irreparable environmental harm.

The proposal, agreed upon by three of the four legislative caucuses and Gov. Rendell would "put revenue ahead of science" by opening up an additional 250,000 acres of state land to gas leasing and would compel the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to generate revenue at the expense of land protection, said Rep. David Levdansky (D., Allegheny).

"The damages and consequences will haunt us forever," he said. "It sacrifices the integrity of the state forest by tying DCNR's hands."

The lawmakers, who are pushing budget negotiators to reconsider their proposal, said they also oppose the planned elimination of the state's Oil and Gas Fund, which supports state parks, and the reduction in the Department of Environmental Protection budget by 25 percent.

At the same time, they said, the state is allowing multi-billion gas companies off the hook by not imposing a tax on natural gas extraction in the lucrative Marcellus Shale deposit.

The Marcellus Shale formation is a rich, underground natural gas reserve that runs from the northeast to the southwestern corner of Pennsylvania.

About 660,000 acres of the 1.5 million acres of state forest land in the Marcellus Shale region has already being made available for drilling. Estimates suggest a tax on the extraction of natural gas would generate as much as $600 million in five years.

Jan Jarrett, president of PennFuture, a statewide environmental advocacy group, said the proposal helps only the natural gas industry.

"To add insult to injury, this proposal hands over public lands to the natural gas industry," she said. "This budget deal is not in the public interest."

Rep. Greg Vitali (D., Delaware) said he is angry that DEP budget is being slashed and that hundreds of people risk losing jobs as a result.

"Under this budget agreement as we understand it, DEP's budget would fall from $229 million to $173 million," Vitali said. "DEP's programs have already been cut, including the black fly and West Nile virus programs. The Keystone Help Energy Program cut half of its 1,500 contractors as of August, and the entire program will close in December."

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There could be Southeast showdown in the Republican primary for lieutenant governor next year.

Bucks County Commissioner Jim Cawley says he's forming an exploratory committee to seek the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor in 2010.

Cawley, in a press release today, touted his record of reform and cost saving measures he has helped implement during five years in county government.

“ I have high goals for Pennsylvania: restore public trust in Harrisburg, bring innovation to state government so that it works for the people and create economic growth so that our children can find good paying career sustaining jobs in our Commonwealth,” Cawley said.

Earlier this month, state Rep. Tom Killion (R., Delaware) announced he was putting together an exploratory committee for the race.

Between 2001 and 2004, Cawley was an associate with the law firm of Rudolph, Pizzo and Clarke LLC, and served as chief of staff to state Sen. Robert “Tommy” Tomlinson.

Cawley has adovocated for open space preservation and recycling programs and helped expand Bucks County Community College. Cawley sits on the boards of the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission and the Delaware Valley Regional Finance Authority.

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Gov. Rendell and legislative leaders are expected to announced tonight that they have reached an agreement on a $28 billion state spending plan.

The governor has scheduled a Capitol press briefing for 8 p.m.

“It’s good news,” Rendell told the Patriot-News of Harrisburg as he was leaving the Capitol at 5:30 p.m. “It’s not the budget I would have chosen, but it fits my two markers.”

Details of the budget, which is now 80 days passed due, were not immediatley known.
 

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Former U.S. Rep. Joe Hoeffel, now a Montgomery County comissioner, leads several announced candidates for governor among likely voters in the 2010 Democratic primary, a recent statewide poll found.

The survey also found that the Democratic governor's race is up for grabs - as would be expected this early in the campaign - with half the electorate undecided. In addition, 50 percent of Democrats labeled themselves liberal, compared to 29 percent who described themselves as moderate and 17 percent who said they were conservative.

"The real importance is it shows strong support for progressive ideas and policies," Hoeffel said. "I have sensed a vacuum in the gubernatorial race, a lack of a liberal voice, and the poll confirms that."

He said he was moving forward with an exploratory campaign, raising money and building an organization. In 2004, Hoeffel was the Democratic nominee for Senate, losing to then-Republican-now-Democrat Arlen Specter.

Hoeffel was supported by 15 percent of the poll's respondents, while Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato and state Sen. Jack Wagner (D.,Allegheny) each got 12 percent - a lead for Hoeffel within the polls 3.5-percentage-point margin of error. Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty drew 6 percent support, and Philadelphia businessman Tom Knox had 5 percent.

Onorato and Wagner oppose abortion rights, and Hoeffel thinks he has an opening as an unabashed liberal on social issues. (Doherty and Knox also support abortion rights.)

Moreover, the survey found a strong regional base for Hoeffel in the Philadelphia suburbs, where he has high name recognition after years in public office there. Hoeffel own 41 percent of the vote in the four suburban counties, while Wagner had 8 percent, Knox 7 percent, Onorato 3 percent and Doherty 2 percent.

With Philadelphia added in, the race stood: Hoeffel 30 percent, Knox 10 percent; Wagner 6 percent; Doherty at 4 percent and Onorato at 3 percent.

The survey was conducted for Hoeffel by the respected polling firm of Lake Research Partners. From Sept. 8-13,  800 registered Democrats who told interviewers they were likely to vote in the primary next year were surveyed by telephone.

"I was very encouraged," Hoeffel said.

Rep. Joe Sestak's campaign is out with a tough web ad that makes his Democratic primary opponent, 79-year-old Sen. Arlen Specter, look cranky, old and out of touch. It's called a "New Generation of Leadership," and the soundtrack sounds kind of like the lullabye you'd hear if you cranked a child's music box and let it rip. Ouch. Is this the way they're going to go? View ad here.

A couple of weeks ago, CC reported that Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty was thinking about running for governor and had commissioned a poll that showed a wide-open field. Today, Dan Hirschhorn at pa2010.com reports that Doherty is quite far along in his effort. Sounds like it's on!

Read Dan's exclusive report here.

The Delaware County AFL-CIO has endorsed Democratic state Rep. Bryan R. Lentz for Congress in the Seventh District, giving him an early boost in the 2010 race to succeed U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak (D.,Pa.).

"It was an unprecedented vote because not only was it unanimous, it came early in the process," Obie O'Brien, president of the labor federation in Delco, said in a statement. "We wanted to get behind Brian quickly because we know him, we trust him and have complete confidence that he will continue to fight for the men and women who are the backbone of our economy when he goes to Washington."

The Delaware County AFL-CIO claims the loyalties of 7,000 dues-paying members and their families in the county where about 70 percent of the congressional district's voters reside. The district also includes portions of Mongtomery and Chester counties.

Lentz, who is in his second term representing a predominantly Republican district in Harrisburg, is an Army veteran of the Iraq war who was awarded the Bronze Star for service. He also served on peacekeeping missions in Bosnia and on the Sinai Peninsula.

Sestak is running in the primary for U.S. Senate, challenging incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter (D.,Pa.).

Earlier this week, former U.S. Attorney Pat Meehan announced his candidacy for the seat as a Republican. Lentz said he will schedule an announcement soon, and has been raising money and building an organization for an expected campaign.