Wows & Scowls
Wow: The Uniontown Area School District approved a tentative $38.8 million budget that includes no tax increase. And that’s a school district in the midst of a big (and controversial) high school renovation project. What this shows is that tax increases aren’t always inevitable. But don’t tell that to Brownsville Area School District Superintendent Larry Golembiewski, who recently said he plans to ask for a 1-mill tax hike each year that he’s at the helm, so taxpayers don’t get socked with a big increase all at one time. This year, that 1 mill translates into a 9-percent real estate tax hike. Here’s a hint for the BASD board: Buy your superintendent a calculator with a working “subtract” key. Wow: Fayette County has yet another social service initiative, a program called “Dads Matter of Fayette County.” Funded by a federal grant and sponsored by the Private Industry Council of Westmoreland/Fayette Inc., the goal is to send the community a message that “Dads do matter.” Parenting classes for men are also part of the effort. It’s probably a noble effort, but who doesn’t already know that Dads (and two-parent homes) do matter?
Wow: Hollywood is making a movie, “The Express,” about New Salem native Ernie Davis, a standout football running back who became the first black Heisman Trophy winner in 1961 while playing for Syracuse University. Davis tragically died of leukemia at age 23 before getting to achieve near-certain stardom in the NFL. Davis was one of the greats in a golden era for Fayette County athletics.
Scowl: Starting in 2009, revenues for the Federal Highway Trust Fund will start falling short of planned federal spending. Funded by the federal 18.4-cents-per-gallon gasoline tax, the fund provides the overwhelming bulk of federal dollars spent on highways. Two years ago, lawmakers proposed a 4-cent-per-gallon tax hike, but backed off under a threatened veto by President Bush. With gas prices now moving past $3 per gallon, the public and political appetite for any increase in the tax is likely to be nil. Especially in Pennsylvania, where Gov. Ed Rendell is exploring the lease of the turnpike in order to raise $1.7 billion to fix deteriorated roads and bridges, and to subsidize mass transit. At the same time, we’ve spent billions in federal money to improve Iraq. Something doesn’t seem right.
Wow: Congratulations to Jeff Baluch Jr. of Perryopolis, a graduate of Geibel Catholic High School who’s been accepted into the U.S. Naval Academy. Baluch plans to become a member of the elite Navy SEALs, which is shooting for a pretty high standard. We wish him luck.
Scowl: The state must have a budget by June 30, yet not a single Republican on the House Appropriations Committee voted in the affirmative to send that proposal to the House floor. Worse yet, members in both parties have filed 242 budget amendments, trying to finagle state money for their own pet projects or priorities. The next time you wonder why government spending is spiraling out of hand, remember that number: 242.
Wow: The Pennsylvania Senate has unanimously approved a bill that would make public on the Internet the names, job titles and salaries of all state employees, and would require counties, municipalities, school districts, authorities, commissions, etc., to do the same. It’s about time.