Really Great Analysis of Corbett's Pennsylvania Budget, and What It Really Means to People [View all]

[JPZenger]

http://pennbpc.org/sites/pennbpc.org/files/Budget-Summit-2012-PBPC.pdf

The link is to a really informative set of slides about Corbett's proposed budget and trends, from a budget summit held this week by the PA. Budget and Policy Center.

Some highlights, with my own commentary:

- PA. ranks 42nd among the 50 states in the percentage of public school costs that is funded by the state.

- If Corbett's budget is approved, PA. will be spending twice as much on prisons as on higher education.

- Most sources of tax revenue to PA. have recovered - except real estate transfer taxes (because of the weak housing and construction market) and corporate taxes. This reduction in corporate taxes occurred because:

1. one corporate tax rate has been reduced each year (including the next proposed year, costing ANOTHER $250 MILLION),
2. corporate loopholes have not been closed including the loophole that lets PA companies funnel profits through Delaware, and
3. Corbett changed business depreciation rules in 2011 that cost PA. $200 million. Therefore, the reduction in state revenues has really been a "Corbett-inflicted wound."

- If Corbett's budget is approved, funding of public universities will have been cut by one-third in 4 years. I wonder why tuition increases?

- Corbett's budget cut funding to 29 school districts by an average of over $700 per student. Those school districts had an average of 59% of their students living in poverty. Meanwhile, of the school districts that had cuts of less than $150 per student, they had an average of only 12% of students living in poverty.