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Motion of the Council of Allegheny County urging the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to reject any plan to balance the Commonwealth's budget by raising taxes.
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WHEREAS, Pennsylvania faces a $3 billion tax revenue shortfall in the state's General Fund Budget; and
WHEREAS, in order to produce a balanced budget, Governor Ed Rendell has proposed a 16% increase in Pennsylvania's personal income tax (PIT) rate from 3.07% to 3.57%; and
WHEREAS, the Commonwealth Foundation estimates that this tax increase will take $1.5 billion in additional tax dollars from Pennsylvania residents and small businesses, the majority of which pay the personal income tax; and
WHEREAS, using the Pennsylvania State Tax Analysis Modeling Program (PA-STAMP), an economic modeling program developed by the Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University, the Commonwealth Foundation projects that a 16% increase in the personal income tax would result in 23,960 fewer jobs within the Commonwealth next year; and
WHEREAS, if Governor Rendell's plan to raise taxes is approved, it would take Pennsylvania workers 111 days, or nearly one-third of the year, to pay off federal, state, and local tax bills; and
WHEREAS, Pennsylvania taxpayers currently owe $115 billion in state and local government debt, which amounts to over $9,000 for every resident of Pennsylvania, or over $36,000 for the average family of four; and
WHEREAS, in 2008, according to the Tax Foundation, Pennsylvania ranked 11th among the states in terms of highest combined state and local tax burden; and
WHEREAS, Pennsylvania state and local governments will spend approximately $10,000 for every man, woman, and child in the 2008-09 fiscal year, with state government spending per-capita at $4,925 and local government spending per-capita at $4,900; and
WHEREAS, it is the judgment of Council that the General Assembly should re-examine and address the state's spending habits before asking the ...
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