June 9th, 2008

General Appropriations Bill – HB 2380 (D. Evans) – This bill remains in the House Appropriations Committee, as amendments continue to be posted.

Supplemental Appropriations Bill – SB 1389 (LaValle) – Currently on the Senate Calendar on third consideration.  It provides for supplemental funding for state agencies in the current fiscal year (July 1 ‘07 – June 30 ‘08).

Non-preferred Appropriations Bill – They were moved out of House Appropriations Committee last week.  They then recieved first and second consideration on the House calendar and were referred back to Appropriations.

Gov. Rendell met with Legislative Leaders last week to start budget negotiations.  The biggest difference that needs to be worked out between the Gov./Democrats and the Republicans is a $340 million funding gap.  The Gov. claims that his spending increase for this fiscal year is less than inflation, which was previously estimated by his office to be 4.4%.  However, Budget Secretary Michael Masch says a new estimate will be put out in the next week or two.  Republican Leaders say their party is concerned about a dissapearing surplus and the declining revenue outlook for next year — especially since the Gov’s proposed budget plan assumes a $400 million ending balance to begin the new fiscal  year.

At the heart of the healthcare debate is the House passed legislation (SB 1137) which enacts PA ABC, a plan to extend health insurance to uninsured adults, and also extends the MCARE fund.  Firstly, Republicans don’t think that these two proposals should be linked within the same bill.  They contend that if the two plan proposals are separated the MCARE fund extension legislation could be passed – to help doctors stay in the state – and the two parties can work out the differences of the extended insurance plan at a later date.

Secondly, Republicans are not happy that the Democrats want to use $504 million surplus in the MCARE fund to help fund the PA ABC program.  They say that surplus should be put towards helping doctors pay unfunded liability claims to help phase-out the MCARE program more quickly – which the Republicans favor.  Conversely, Democrats want a slower phase-out of the fund, saying it will help doctors transition to the new system of buying all liability insurance from private insurers.  Democrats also answer that (in the House-passed legislation) half of the MCARE surplus will be put into a fund, which will be used solely to help physicians pay off the unfunded liability claims.  In return, some Republicans voiced concern over that fund – asking what provision would prevent future Legislatures and Gov’s from dipping into that money when they face funding crunches in other areas.

Look for Senate Republicans to roll-out their own healthcare reform plans in the near future.

On the House Floor, a debate kicked off when going through the non-preferred appropriations bills Rep. Mike Fleck offered up an amendment that would block an appropriation to the Carnegie Science Center.  The debate escalated into something much larger when Democratic House Appropriations Chairman Dwight Evans told Fleck that his amendment was basically irrelevant because it would later be undone by budget negotiatons between Rendell and the Legislative Leaders.  House Republican Leader Sam Smith stepped in to back Fleck.  She said that the only way non-leaders in the House can make the needs and concerns of their constituents known in the budget process is to offer up these types of amendments on the floor.