HARRISBURG Penn. (Reuters) - Pennsylvania
Governor Tom Corbett on Wednesday would not rule out a budget veto if
state lawmakers fail to enact reforms for the state's underfunded public
pension system.
The legislature passed a 2015 budget on June 30, the last day of
the fiscal year, but Corbett, who is facing a tough re-election
campaign this year, has not yet signed it.
He said at a press conference that he is still reviewing the
spending plan. When asked whether he would veto the bill without
pension reform legislation, he said that "all options are on the
table."
Corbett, a Republican, is among the weakest incumbent governors in
the United States, and he has struggled to get most of his major
policy initiatives through a legislature controlled by his own
party.
Just over a quarter of Pennsylvania voters believe he has performed
well enough to deserve re-election, according to a Franklin &
Marshall College poll.
On Tuesday, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives sent back to
committee a bill that would create a "hybrid" pension plan for new
state employees - one that combines elements of a traditional
public-sector defined benefit plan and a newer 401(k)-style defined
contribution plan.
After Corbett's press conference on Wednesday, however, the
committee voted it back to the full House.
Pension reform would help struggling school districts and local
governments and spare taxpayers from pension-driven property tax
increases, Corbett said.
He said that 165 of the state's 500 public school districts
requested tax increases above the statutory limit this year, and
that nearly all blamed pension costs.
Corbett has until Friday, July 11, at 11:59 p.m. to sign or veto the
budget. If he does neither, it becomes law without his signature.
(Reporting by David DeKok in Harrisburg; Editing by Hilary Russ and
Lisa Shumaker)
