HARRISBURG PATRIOT-NEWS Editorial: … By now, most people understand how we got in this mess. They are aware that former Gov. Tom Ridge approved higher benefits for public sector workers from the governor and judges on down the line to teachers and janitors.
They are aware that the stock market has not been kind in the last decade and returns have been sub-par. And some also are aware that under Gov. Ed Rendell, school districts and the state were allowed to underfund or even skip their pension payments…
No one wants to tax [Marcellus Shale]drillers away, but there’s a “Goldilocks tax,” and Pennsylvania is well below that. When the impact fee was passed last year, various forecasters projected that the state left $24 billion to $48 billion on the table by not passing a higher tax. Imagine what that money would do if it went to pay off the state’s pension obligation. … (more)
