Tuesday, July 10, 2007 - As we predicted, the ink wasn't even dry on our last post about the PA government shutdown before we had to print this update.
Not that the below post isn't timely and relevant, it is. But in today's 24-hour news cycle, what happened yesterday isn't just old news, it's ancient history. So here's what's going on today.
Late last night Governor Ed Rendell and members of the state legislature held a news conference in Harrisburg to announce the end of the budget standoff, the end of the forced furloughs, and the end of the short-lived government shutdown.
Lawmakers agreed to stop disagreeing, and the new budget will be on Rendell's desk by the end of the week. Although both sides claim victory, the agreement reached is based on good old fashioned compromise. There will be funding set aside for the expansion of the Pennsylvania Convention Center in downtown Philadelphia, $900 million for highways and mass transit, and a new arena for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Still up in the air is the governor's energy initiative, which would have amounted to a $5.40 surcharge on your monthly electric bill to pay for alternative energy research. Lawmakers have announced plans to meet on the energy bill in a special session.
In all, 25,000 state employees were affected by the less-than-24-hour furlough, and lost more than $3 million in the process. Still, the governor and legislators are smiling, and for now, all's well in the Keystone State.
Tomorrow, as the poet said, brings its own fresh Hell.
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