PA PUBLIC SCHOOLS SITTING ON $2.75 BILLION IN RAINY DAY FUNDS
According to an article in the Patriot News, Governor Ed Rendell has made increasing investments in public schools his top priority. But much of that money has wound up in public schools’ rainy day funds. Since Rendell came to Harrisburg, public schools have amassed $2.75 billion in reserve accounts. That figure has climbed 83 percent from Rendell’s 2003 inauguration to June 30, 2009, according to the most recent data available from the state Department of Education. Click here to read the Patriot News article.
REPORT RANKS PA HIGHWAYS 38TH IN NATION
According to an WITF article, as policy makers in Harrisburg discuss transportation funding a new study from a libertarian think-tank ranks Pennsylvania’s roads near the bottom. The Reason Foundation’s 19th Annual Highway Report, which looks at 11 categories, puts the commonwealth’s roadways at 38th overall. Lead author David Hartgen says they get the lowest marks in the nation when it comes to “narrow rural lanes.” “The state has a relatively high percentage of narrow lanes on the primary system,” he says. “It’s a large system that Pennsylvania has — it’s the fourth-largest state-owned highway system in the country. Many of these roads have narrow sight distances and the topography is challenging, to say the least.” Click here to read the WITF article.
LAWRENCE COUNTY RACETRACK GIVEN MORE TIME
According to an article in the Pittsburgh Tribune Review, the state Harness Racing Commission gave the bankrupt developer of a proposed Lawrence County racetrack and casino one month to find someone to buy the project. If no one bids on the long-stalled Valley View Downs project, the commission said Friday it will revoke the harness-racing license, potentially killing a project Lawrence County was counting on to bring thousands of jobs. The license would become fair game for anyone who wants to build a racetrack and casino anywhere in the state. “If there’s no bidder, that pretty well puts an end to a possibility, at least in the short term, of a track in Lawrence County,” county Commissioner Dan Vogler said. Click here to read the Pittsburgh Tribune Review article.
Upcoming Meetings
House Judiciary
1:00 p.m., Room G-50, Irvis Office Building
Public hearing on: HB 2629 Costa, D Act re Pennsylvania Blue Alert System
