GOP Pa. budget said to ignore Gov. Wolf

HARRISBURG - Republicans who control the legislature spent Thursday putting the finishing touches on their own budget blueprint, one that will exclude many of Gov. Wolf's priorities and pave the path for a veto.

The GOP-backed plan, details of which could be made public as early as Friday, will not contain any of Wolf's proposed tax increases, top Republicans said. It would seek to raise new revenue through privatizing liquor sales and making changes to the state's pension system.

Wolf has said he will not sign a budget that does not contain adequate funding for public schools and property-tax relief for homeowners.

To do so, he has proposed in his $30 billion spending plan to increase the state's sales and personal income tax and impose a new tax on natural gas drillers.

The deadline to enact a budget for the new fiscal year is July 1.

Wolf spokesman Jeff Sheridan on Thursday said Republicans "have made it clear they are going to move forward with their own budget," which he said was "destined to be full of gimmicks."

"It's what they are intent on doing, and it's disappointing," he said.

He would not say whether Wolf would veto the Republican budget, but he stressed the governor had been firm in his position that he will not sign a spending plan devoid of his fiscal priorities.

Wolf could strike the Republican plan in its entirety or just sections with which he does not agree.

Administration officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because negotiations are tense and still fluid, said that was the question being debated behind closed doors. The sources said there was also a faction urging Wolf to sign the GOP-backed plan to force Republicans to "own up" to their budget, although others have dismissed that as too politically risky.

Staffers familiar with the Republican plan said it would contain increases for public education, although less than the $400 million in basic education funding the governor had proposed.

Another issue is whether the proposed new education funding formula announced last week will be applied to the 2015-16 budget.

For the Philadelphia School District, at least, the question is worrisome.

If it will apply to the 2015-16 spending plan, Philadelphia would stand to receive $65 million less than what Wolf originally proposed in his budget.

Getting Wolf's proposal passed "is crucial for school districts across Pennsylvania that were hardest hit by funding cuts over the past several years," Philadelphia district spokesman Fernando Gallard said.

Although Gallard said the new proposed formula "acknowledges and addresses the challenges facing high-poverty, high-needs districts," he argued that the playing field needed to be leveled first.

The district has already received some disappointing funding news.

It had asked for $103 million in new funds from the city and received just $45 million in guaranteed money, plus $25 million with yet-to-be-determined strings attached.

Before it can start to invest any new money, the district must first cover an $85 million deficit. Fixed costs are rising far quicker than revenues in the state's largest school system, which educates 200,000 children in traditional public and charter schools.