May 31, 2006 By Alison Hawkes For The 5 min read

HARRISBURG – Conservative groups are taking the recent ousting of at least 17 lawmakers at the polls as a rallying call for stamping out billions of dollars in so-called “pork” from the governor’s proposed $25.4 billion state budget. The groups’ announcement of the “Pennsylvania Piglet Book of 2006” came in advance of next week’s return of lawmakers into the normally rancorous June budget season. The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Foundation and the Washington, D.C.-based Citizens Against Government Waste outlined $8 billion in what they termed “waste” in Gov. Ed Rendell’s budgets of last year and for the coming year, costing the average family of four in Pennsylvania $675.

“The message of May 16 continues to resonate,” said Commonwealth Foundation President Matthew Brouillette. “Business as usual is not acceptable for the people of Pennsylvania. We certainly hope that as Pennsylvanians are paying more and more attention to how lawmakers are making decisions and spending our money that we start to get a focus on some of these programs that the taxpayers should not be forced to fund.”

Among the “waste” the groups identified were some items already well-criticized as political patronage, such as the more than $65 million legislative leaders dole out to members and $48 million lawmakers hand out in economic development grants to their districts, otherwise known as “walking around money” or WAMs.

But the conservative groups also targeted as wasteful, items that fit more narrowly into their own limited government philosophy, such as a $25 million state bureau that oversees licensing of hairdressers and funeral directors, among others. Also, hundreds of millions of dollars in “corporate welfare” in the form of grants to companies to help locate or expand business and create jobs.

The pressure to spend less may not come at a better time. It’s an election year, so tax increases are not on the table, but rather a straitjacket on many departmental and agency programs. Rendell’s budget would eliminate 1,300 state worker positions through attrition.

The House and Senate have demonstrated – at least legislatively – that they’re willing to cap state budget spending to the rate of inflation. A final bill, however, has not passed both chambers. And Rendell’s GOP opponent, Lynn Swann, has picked up the spending cap ball.

Steve Miskin, spokesman for the House Republican Leader Sam Smith, said his caucus’ goal is to limit a spending increase this year to $800 million to $900 million, or a little more than 3 percent. Rendell’s $25.4 billion budget raises spending by roughly 4 percent. Although Republicans say that budget is closer to $26 billion because expenses were shifted from the general fund into ancillary funds, such as the $210 million for long-term care under Medicaid into the state lottery fund for seniors.

But Miskin explained that without the spending cap legislation in place, it’s difficult to reign in the growth.

“Part of the nature of any legislative body – state or federal – is to look out for the local or parochial interests of your district, so that’s why you have spending for different types of things,” he said. “Every dollar is important to somebody.”

Rendell spokeswoman Kate Philips said the governor has saved more than $1 billion in his three years in office through greater efficiencies in government purchasing. But he believes that many of the programs targeted by the conservative, taxpayer groups are needed to create jobs and improve public education.

“We support cutting waste, we just question their description of waste,” Philips said. “If you’re spending a dime on a box of paper clips when as a government and a large purchasing body you could be spending two cents, that is wasteful. But creating full-day kindergarten for Pennsylvania children … we certainly don’t believe is wasteful.”

Brouillette said he realizes some will argue that certain government services are needed. But he said that’s all the more reason why Pennsylvania needs a commission similar to President Ronald Reagan’s 1982 panel of 161 business executives who did a comprehensive review of federal government spending.

South Carolina did a similar study and cut $225 million a year out of its budget, according to David Williams, vice president of policy for Citizens Against Government Waste.

“States that spend a lot on ‘economic development’ are not economically prosperous,” Brouillette said. “It hasn’t been an effective tool. And just because other states are giving out taxpayer money to Cabela’s, or Wal-Mart, or Comcast, or PNC, that doesn’t mean we should be doing it. That money goes directly to the bottom line of these corporations.”

As for whether lawmakers bent on curbing state government spending will look to their own legislative largess, Brouillette said he has hope this year. But lawmakers – even those who argue strongly for an overall government spending limit – sometimes see most clearly the need for more money on items they directly control.

“I don’t know any one of them I would consider wasteful spending,” said Bucks County Rep. Scott Petri about WAMs, or the legislative grants for economic development. “When my library in Upper Southampton needed new doors because they were a health and safety risk, I considered the $20,000 grant we got them very worthwhile.”

Alison Hawkes can be reached at 717-705-6330 or begin ahawkes@calkins-media.com ahawkes@calkins-media.com end

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