Sep 19, 2017 2 min read

The Pennsylvania Constitution requires that a balanced budget be enacted by June 30 of each year. Regrettably, it makes no provision for any penalty to be imposed upon our elected officials if they refuse to do their jobs.

The dereliction of duty displayed by our legislators has consistently made the commonwealth stick out like a sore thumb. This year, they are shirking their duties like never before.

At the eleventh hour in June, the House and Senate approved a blueprint to spend $32.2 billion with no revenue stream to pay for it. Gov. Tom Wolf accepted this scam, expressing optimism that the Legislature would quickly follow with the required amount of revenue to fund the spending.

He should have known better than to place his faith in this bunch, as we now find ourselves in dire straits three months after the point at which a balanced budget was required to be adopted.

Instead of remaining in session to hammer out a legitimate agreement, the members took a lengthy summer recess while continuing to enjoy their handsome salary and benefit packages. They returned to Harrisburg this month, but even now they are not in session full time.

Wolf and Joe Torsella, the state treasurer, have consistently warned of grave consequences if a revenue package is not enacted, but that has not prompted the General Assembly to act. The treasurer had allowed the commonwealth to borrow funds to meet its obligations, something which is no longer an option.

Now, the chickens have come home to roost. The governor has declined to pay $1.2 billion due to Medicaid providers, many of which are small entities that are heavily dependent on revenue from the commonwealth. He is also planning to withhold payment that is required to be made to ailing state pension funds, which are currently as much as $70 billion in the red. Will these actions spur the General Assembly to finally fulfill its duties? I would not bet on it. This is a body that has shown in the past that it is willing to endure long, drawn-out budget stalemates that inflict harm on ordinary Pennsylvanians. It takes a long time before either side blinks.

Where do we turn when those we have placed in office refuse to do their jobs, placing the commonwealth in harm’s way?

Spiegler is a resident of Upper St. Clair.