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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2015 - 2016
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | August 24, 2015 02:40 PM |
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| From: | Representative Seth M. Grove |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Education Reinvestment Act |
| Throughout Governor Wolf’s government shutdown, the governor has continually argued for “a commonsense severance tax for education”. Unfortunately, we already have a commonsense severance tax which funds our local and state government impacts of natural gas drilling. Act 13 of 2011 has provided millions of dollars to deal with the real impacts of natural gas drilling. But in keeping with the governor’s recent call for alternative methods to raise revenues and focusing on the governor’s desire to have shale fund education, I plan to introduce legislation that utilizes Pennsylvania’s vast natural resources to invest in our classrooms across Pennsylvania. This legislation would lift the governor’s moratorium on non-surface horizontal drilling underneath state lands to generate an additional $95 million in new revenue, which added to this fiscal year’s deficit. Unlike the governor’s job crushing severance tax, this legislation would actually dedicate the revenue to education funding. This proposal would increase total education spending in the recently vetoed budget from $370 million to $465 million. According to the Independent Fiscal Office (IFO), the governor’s proposed severance tax would be one of the highest in the country and place our state at a competitive disadvantage. In their report, the IFO demonstrated the effective rate of Governor Wolf’s severance tax is 7.3%. The impact of this tax will drive away a growing Pennsylvanian industry and place the tax on Pennsylvania residents in the form of higher utility bills, including school districts. Yes, school districts will see increased utility costs as they will need to heat large buildings throughout the cold of winter. Instead under this legislation, the commonwealth will be able to continue to lower natural gas prices for all utility users, increase funding for school districts without saddling them with additional costs, and increases our economic activity and state revenue by creating private sector jobs. Please join me and co-sponsor the Education Reinvestment Act which safely allows DCNR to use non-surface horizontal drilling under state lands to increase education funding. If you have any questions please contact Jordan Grant by phone at 717 767 3947 or by email at Jgrant@pahousegop.com |
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Introduced as HB1570