Death and higher taxes
Benjamin Franklin thought our Constitution had a good chance at becoming permanent, but he said, “In this world, nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”
In Pennsylvania, as we all know, nothing is certain except death and higher taxes. The recent round of tax increases by school districts is just another illustration.
The common cause of the increases is a rise in state-mandated contributions to Public School Employees’ Retirement System, which funds pensions for school workers. The state reimburses districts for roughly half their payments into the system. In at least one district – Central Greene – tax increases are not enough to plug the leaks and furloughing teachers is being considered.
Our lawmakers in Harrisburg have pretty much refused to address the pension crisis that is slowly driving the state toward bankruptcy, because they don’t want to be the ones to raise taxes.
But as sure as death, taxes will rise, and they can’t escape the blame for it.