Dear Friends and Neighbors,

In tough economic times, the last thing any governmentshould consider is raising taxes or increasing spending. Andyet, as he has done in the past, Gov. Ed Rendell is proposing just that with his budget proposal for fiscal year 2010-11: atax increase of $874 million this year and $1.4 billion nextyear. e governor is also calling for a budget of $29 billion,an INCREASE of $1.2 billion more than last year.Pennsylvania’s revenue for the current fiscal year is esti-mated to be at least $500 million short of the governor’s pro- jections from last year. e governor believes the best andeasiest way to rescue our Commonwealth from the fiscal defi-cit that he helped to create is to, once again, ask hard-workingPennsylvania families to pay for it.Some of the additional taxes he proposes include loweringthe sales tax to 4 percent and expanding it to 74 currently ex-empted items, and the implementation of a severance tax onthe extraction of natural gas, including the Marcellus Shale.Higher taxes equal increased costs for residents and business-es. is will cause a trickle-down effect that will eventually cost Pennsylvanians jobs. I find this extremely irresponsibleand cannot imagine why the governor has proposed such abudget.e governor’s budget proposal also anticipates Pennsyl-vania receiving $850 million from the federal government, which is far from guaranteed.Bailouts, tax increases, and increased spending mark yetanother chapter in the fiscally irresponsible book of the cur-rent administration. It is a book that Pennsylvanians are tiredof reading. Let’s turn the page and craft a realistic budgetthat reflects our current economical situation: controlled andreasonable funding of our state. What are your thoughts on this issue? Please visit my Website,

RepChristiana.com

, to complete a brief survey aboutthe governor’s latest budget proposal. You may also mail yourcomments to me at: 3468 Brodhead Road, Suite 9, Monaca,PA, 15061-3149. Your input will be very helpful to me as Icontinue ﬁghting for a responsible state budget.

Upcoming Events:

Job Fair

Thursday, March 1810 a.m. to 2 p.m.Penn State Beaver Campus100 University Drive, Monaca

Springtime Open House

Thursday, April 223 p.m. to 6 p.m.3468 Brodhead Rd., Suite 9, Monaca

Veterans CelebrationBreakfast

Friday, July 9More details to come!Please contact my office at (724) 728-7655 to berecognized.

Please visit my Web site for a complete list of my upcoming events.

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGEPAIDHARRISBURG, PA PERMIT NO. 529

State Representative

Jim Christiana

15th Legislative District