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Even though the new legislative sessionstarted a couple of months ago, it is already turning out to be one of the more challeng-ing ones I have witnessed in Harrisburg. Asidefrom duties in the district, I’m also continuingmy service on the House Appropriations Com-mittee. During February and March, we heardtestimony offered on the governor’s $29 billionbudget proposal.In these tough economic times, we know that many, many families are struggling, andeven more families and individuals are fearful of what their future may hold. is situation hasbeen at the forefront of our budget hearings anddiscussions. Members of the House Republican Appropriation Committee are unified on theneed to curtail state spending, and our caucushas taken that challenge very seriously by reduc-ing our expenses 10 percent in each of the lastthree budgets, and we have plans to cut ourcosts even more.Unfortunately, our priorities for next year’sbudget are not quite meshing with those of theadministration, and I foresee a very interest-ing budget approval process in the comingmonths. Also on the financial front, I’m including asurvey in this newsletter with which to gaugeyour opinions on some different options forpotential state revenue streams, as well as ideason a proposed property tax shift. I look forwardto hearing your reply.If you should ever need assistance with astate-related problem or issue, please do nothesitate to contact any of my offi ces. Completecontact information is on the last page of thisnewsletter. We’re here to help. With regards and respect,David MillardState Representative for the109th Legislative District
Dear Nighbor,
Spring 2009
Track the Federal Stimulus in PA
You cannot turn on the television news or read an article in thenewspaper these days without hearing about the federal stimulusplan and what it means in Pennsylvania.Known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, itsintent is to jumpstart the economy and get people working again. While the new law was very controversial in getting passed, it’snow a reality, and I hope this money can be spent in a way that will be beneficial to all. After all, it is YOUR money. As of this writing, Pennsylvania is expecting to receive upward of $16 billion in federal stimulus money for a wide range of projects–from transportation and infrastructure to health care and edu-cation to helping those who have been affected by the strugglingeconomy. Many of the details of funding are still being workedout, and there continues to be a lot of questions as the money isbeing committed and received.To ensure that the public is well informed of where their money is going, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has posted aWeb siteat
Recovery.PA.gov
that is your link to the stimulus. On this site,you can read the basics of the stimulus, review a presentation givento the Legislature, read the full text of the new law, learn aboutgrant opportunities, link to federal agency recovery sites, and findout where your money is going on a nationwide scale. You can access the stimulus information online through my Web site at
RepMillard.com.
Are you or a loved one age 60 or over?
Mark Rep. Millard’s annual
Senior Expo
on your calendar
Wednesday, Aug. 5at the Espy Fire Hall
More details will be forthcoming.
.
Take the State Funding Survey on pg. 3
Get the latest news on my
State to Track Consumer Complaints for Shoddy Home Improvement Projects
As of July 1, all contractors doingmore than $5,000 of home improve-ment work annually must be registered with the state. In an effort to provideresidents with better information whenchoosing a contractor, details of thecontactors’ registration will be placedon contracts, promotional materialsand business cards so that consumersmay use the information to reference astatewide database of complaints.Every year, thousands of Pennsylva-nians file consumer complaints abouthome improvement contractors whotake money and fail to perform satis-factory construction or repairs. esecomplaints typically increase duringthe spring, when homeowners are morelikely to hire contractors to performvarious projects.
ere are several things consumersshould look out for to protect them-selves from disreputable or fraudulenthome improvement contractors. Unso-licited, traveling contractors who cometo a home and point out specific prob-lems should be met with caution. If they arrive in an unmarked truck or van andrefuse to provide proof of insurance orreferences, it is safe to say they are notreputable contractors. Frequently, thesescams begin with a claim to have justfinished a job, and then offer a great dealon leftover material. ey also employ high-pressure sales tactics like limited-time offers. When hiring a contractor, homeown-ers should obtain a written contract thatincludes a start and finish date and athree-day right-to-cancel notice. Penalty clauses for late completion hav
e alsoproven helpful in ensuring timely projects. Individuals should neversign a blank contract or hire a con-tractor who does not have a businesscard or local phone number and ad-dress. Also, final payments shouldbe withheld until work is finishedand homeowners are completely satisfied.More information on the regis-tration program and the complaintsdatabase is expected to be availablein the near future as the attorney general’s offi ce continues with theprogram’s implementation. Formore information on consumer pro-tection, or to file a complaint withthe attorney general’s offi ce, visit my Web site at
RepMillard.com
.
Hybrid Vehicle Rebates Now Available
Pennsylvanians who purchase new hybrid vehicles may be eligible for a$500 rebate from the Commonwealth.e Pennsylvania Department of Envi-ronmental Protection (DEP) is directingthe program, which offers rebates on a“first-come, first-served” basis as longas funding is available. If you have pur-chased a hybrid vehicle in the past sixmonths or are in the market for one, thisrebate program could offer you valuablesavings. A hybrid is defined by the (DEP) as amotor vehicle that draws its propulsionenergy from an onboard source of storedenergy that is both:
An internal combustion engineusing combustible fuel.
A rechargeable energy storagesystem. While flexible fuel and diesel fuelvehicles are not eligible, DEP maintainsa list of specific vehicles whose ownerscan collect the rebate. ese vehiclesmust be classified as a hybrid, and musthave a combined Environmental Pro-tection Agency city and highway MPG(miles per gallon) rating of more than55 MPG. Additionally, the vehicle can-not emit more than seven tons per yearof carbon dioxide.Rebates are offered on a first-come,first-served basis until funding is nolonger available. Applicants must havepurchased or leased the vehicle new andinclude a completed rebate form, a copy of a valid Pennsylvania vehicle registra-tion, a copy of the invoice and proof of purchase. Rebate checks typically takebetween 10 and 14 weeks to process.For a full listing of eligible vehicles orfor more information about the rebateapplication process, visit
RepMillard.com
and click on “Hybrid Tax Credit.”
Rep. David Millard joins local officials at the former Starr Tire Pile site in Greenwood Townshipwhile the last of more than 6 million scrap tires were removed from the site a few months ago.With Millard are (from left) Greenwood Township supervisors John Beck Jr. and Jon Rider, Eric Hottenstein and Patrick Brennan with the state Department of Environmental Protection, and Craig Detweiler with Entech, a tire removal company. This massive project was completed inlate 2008 and effectively removed a huge environmental and safety hazard from the area. Rep. David Millard chats with a constituent after his recent Identity Theft PreventionSeminar in Benton.
Web site: RepMillard.com
Tell Me What You Think About State Funding Options
As we are all well aware, Pennsyl-vania, like every other state, has beendrastically affected by the economicdownturn that has gripped the nation.Revenues are down and all attention iskeenly focused on the state budget as weface a multi-billion dollar deficit.I am interested in gauging your sup-port for three separate options for staterevenue generation. Note: the property tax legislation and video poker havedefined uses for the revenue in currentlegislation. e table games proposaldoes not yet have a defined use forrevenue.
School Property Tax Elimination Act
e School Property Tax Elimination Act phases out school property and nui-sance taxes over a four-year time frame.e plan would replace the lost revenue with a blend of state taxes including anexpanded state sales tax to include mosttangible personal property and services,an increased state realty transfer tax (1.0percent to 1.5 percent), and an increasedstate personal income tax (3.07 percentto 3.62 percent). Note: this has not yetbeen reintroduced in the Legislaturefor the 2009-10 session, so details arebased on the proposal from the 2007-08 session.
Some specifics on the way this leg-islation would expand taxes:
Extends the current Sales and UseTax (6 percent) to most tangible personalproperty, as well as various services.
Food and clothing (currently exempt) would be taxed at 3 percent.
Items that would remain exempt from taxes:
Prescription drugs.
Medical supplies and goods andother specified medical items.
All other,non-exempted, services will be taxable.
Services provided by doctors, hos-pitals and dentists.
Fresh meat, fish, vegetables, fruitand juices.
Milk and milk substitutes, bread,cheese and eggs.
WIC and items purchased in con-nection with the Food Stamp Act.
e retail sale of insurance pre-miums, investments or gains on invest-ments, such as bank deposits, stocks andbonds, tuitions, and the rental of rentalproperty.
e sale to or use by businesses of legal services, accounting services, audit-ing services and bookkeeping services,engineering services, research and com-puter services and data processing.
Video Poker
The Rendell administration an-nounced in February that it wants tolegalize video poker machines at res-taurants, private clubs and corner barsto help Pennsylvania students pay forcollege. Under the proposal, the stateDepartment of Revenue would regulatethe industry - requiring establishmentsto apply for a license for the poker ma-chines - and oversee the taxes on pokerprofits. According to the governor’s an-nouncement, the plan is to use theproceeds from licensing and taxing thevideo poker machines for tuition relief.That relief would be made availablefor families earning up to $100,000 ayear who have students attending any of Pennsylvania’s 14 community col-leges or the 14 public universities in thePennsylvania State System of HigherEducation.Supporters praised the move as a way to capture untold dollars being paidout annually in the vast undergroundeconomy of illegal video poker, whilegambling opponents say they fear thesocial costs would be high.Gov. Rendell’s proposal to legalizevideo poker machines in Pennsylvaniahas garnered attention on a number of fronts – the most notable centers on theadministration’s claim that the move would not be an expansion of gaming.If in fact it is determined that legalizingvideo poker is an expansion of the state’scurrent gaming industry, then many question whether it would prompt thestate’s current casino license holders tofile suit in an effort to recover their $50million license fee. Current law statesthat any expansion of gaming couldresult in a full or partial return of thisfee. Specifically, it would need to be de-termined if a video poker machine is a“slot machine” under the existing law.
Table Games
Casino owners are pressing state lead-ers to OK table games such as poker,blackjack and craps. Rep. Bill DeWeese(D-Greene) wants to legalize table gameslike blackjack and roulette. He saysthe move would bring in an additional$400 million to the cash-strapped Com-monwealth. With three of the state’s 14casino licenses still unawarded, and con-struction of two casinos in Philadelphiabogged down in local disputes, Rendellbelieves this isn’t the time to legalizetable games. ere is no offi cial legisla-tion in place to define the distributionof potential funding raised through tablegames yet this legislative session.Now that you have a few details on these proposals, tell me what you think about these three options. Fill in this survey and mail it to my offi ce, or save a stamp and share your thoughts on my online survey, posted at
RepMillard.com.
School Property Tax Relief Act
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Please cut out and mail to: Rep. David Millard, 605 West Main St., Bloomsburg, PA 17815.Or fill out online at
RepMillard.com
. ank you!
Video Poker
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Table Games
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