February 2006

155th LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT

URT

CHRODER

STATE REPRESENTATIVE

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGEPAIDHARRISBURG, PAPERMIT NO. 529

Spring 2010

Time is Now to Get Serious About State Budget

I commend the governor for hisstated intention to get the budget doneon time this year. In each of his sevenyears however, the governor hascreated a crisis and only negotiatedseriously after the fiscal year ended.In fact, this tactic last year led to abudget stalemate that went a record101 days beyond the state mandatedJune 30 deadline. It disrupted lives,hurt families and interrupted importantprogram funding. To get this budgetdone on time, the governor must provehe is serious and get to work beforeJune 30. If he does, both parties in theLegislature will gladly reciprocate.In his remarks, the governor boasted about digging out of a budgethole. However, it is a budget hole of his making. While state revenues arein decline, the budget hole of whichhe speaks cannot be blamed on thisalone. In fact, our current fiscal crisisis as much the result of the governor’sspending policies as any reduction inrevenue.During eight years of Gov. Rendellbudgets, the rate of inflation has risenby about 24 percent, yet state spend-ing is nearly double that in the sameperiod! If state spending increasesunder Rendell had kept pace with in-flation, we would be looking at a $25.2billion budget this year, instead of $29billion. Revenue would be sufficient tosustain this level of spending.Another problem with the pro-posed budget is that it relies heavilyon federal stimulus dollars, which willhelp to grow state programs for whichfunding will not be available in futureyears.The governor’s current budget planis only balanced assuming the federalgovernment comes through with the$800 million in stimulus funding itpromised; $92.5 million in revenue israised through table games and $180million is raised through leasing morestate land for Marcellus shale gasdrilling. This revenue is speculativeat best and a perfect storm is looming.Two years from now, federal stimulusfunds will dry up at the same timePennsylvania’s pension crisis will hit.This could leave the state billions of dollars in debt.Governor Rendell also proposes toreduce the sales tax rate from 6 per-cent to 4 percent and broaden the listof products and services to be taxed.Yet, when I supported efforts to do thisto

eliminate

school property taxes,Democrats in the Legislature decriedit as regressive, unfair and unwork-able. I believe this action should onlybe taken for the purpose of eliminat-ing school property taxes as opposedto a tax increase to accommodateincreased state spending.Pennsylvania is facing a potential$525 million shortfall by the end of thisfiscal year (June 30). Now is not thetime to ramp up spending on the hopethat Pennsylvania’s economy will turnaround. While the governor brags of eliminating programs and positions tocut spending, he continues to fund andpropose tax credits for big Hollywoodin the amount of $60 million.We must pass a budget that re-flects the economic realities our stateand our citizens are facing. To avoidlayoffs and disruption of governmentservices, I am urging legislation be ad-opted to continue the previous year’sbudget, minus a percentage acrossthe board reduction reflecting anyend of year deficit. This proposal willensure a continuation of state servicesand funding for vital needs while a finalbudget is negotiated.

As your state legislator, I have been exploring more cost effective ways of communicating with you. You are currentlyreceiving my printed newsletter. While many of you have told me these newsletters are informative, they are costly tomail. That is why I am offering you the opportunity to receive my newsletters via e-mail and on the Web. It’s convenientand cost effective.If you would like to make the switch, please take a moment and log onto my Web site at

CurtSchroder.com.

Oncethere, click the “Have Your Newsletter Delivered Online” icon and sign up. It’s that simple! If, on the other hand, you stillwant to receive my printed newsletter, do nothing. It will continue to be mailed to you.

Visit me on the Intern

Rep. Schroder hosts a rally at the state Capitol to stop federal health care at Pennsylvania’s border and he vows to fight proposed single-payer legislation now pending in the state Legislature.

Schroder Bill Aims to Protect Health Care Choices

Unveils legislation at Capitol rally to stop federal health care takeover

Protecting the right of Pennsylvania citizens tochoose their own health care is essential. That is whyI am sponsoring House Bill 2179, which would enablePennsylvania citizens to reject federally mandated healthcare and maintaincontrol of their health care deci-sions.House Bill2179 would protectthe freedoms andliberties of Penn-sylvania residentsfrom forced federalhealth care by put-ting those decisionsback in the handsof citizens. My billwould do this byamending our stateconstitution, effec-tively removing thehand of the federalgovernment fromour pockets andensuring the rightsof Pennsylvaniansto choose their health care plansand providers.A state constitutional amendment must be approvedby the voters, making us the last line of defense againstfederal and state schemes to take over health care suchas the single-payer legislation that has been introducedin the Pennsylvania House.

I am also co-sponsoring House Bill 2053, known asthe “Health Care Freedom Act,” which would preserveindividual rights to reject government-run health careplans in favor of choice and preservation of the doc-tor-patient relationship. The legislation would protect acitizen’s right to pay directly for medical care and prohibitan individual from being penalized for not purchasingfederally sanctioned health insurance. Virginia haspassed similar legislation into law and, in Tennessee,a comparable bill has made it through one chamber of the state Legislature. Thirty-four other states, includingPennsylvania, have introduced similar measures in reac-tion to the federal health care plan under considerationnow in Washington, D.C.Both HB 2179 and HB 2053 are now pending in theHouse Insurance Committee.House Re-publicans haveput forth a pack-age of health careproposals to en-hance the qualityand availabilityof health care inPennsylvaniaand reduce thecost to consum-ers. Medical mal-practice reformwould cap mal-practice claims,discourage frivo-lous lawsuits andhelp Pennsylva-nia to retain phy-sicians in highrisk specialties. Itwould also havea positive impacton health insur-ance rates in theCommonwealthby reducing overutilization of services that come fromthe practice of defensive medicine.Other measures would reform the adultBasic pro-gram, which serves low-income people; expand the useand availability of community health clinics; and make iteasier for small businesses to offer health care to their employees through tax credits and low-cost basic plans.There is also legislation to promote greater use of tech-nology to reduce medical and prescription errors, andenhancements to health savings accounts.For those who insist that government must providefor their health care needs, these options will not be sat-isfactory. For those who believe, as I do, that governmentshould promote opportunity by creating a competitiveenvironment for the private sector to deliver services atreduced costs, these bills will begin to ﬁx problems inour health care delivery system.

BONUSGATE:Schroder Urges Attorney Generalto Follow Evidence Where it Leads

The so-called Bonusgate scandal is casting a dark cloud over the state Legislature. Charges involve usingmillions of taxpayer dollars to allegedly fuel bonuses for House Democrat staffers who were charged with per-forming campaign-related activity on state time and former Republican Speaker John Perzel’s alleged use of taxpayer-funded technology for campaign purposes. Perzel even went so far as to use state funds to attack mewith recorded telephone calls because I acted independently, promoted reform and stood up to his abuse of power according to the facts in the attorney general’s case presentment. I condemn the use of public money to fundpolitical campaign activity inside the walls of state government. These activities must be rooted out and stopped.I call upon Attorney General Tom Corbett to follow leads wherever they go, without regard to political party.

t at curtschroder.com

The Potential Impact ofUniversal Health Care on You

A report issued last fall by Price-waterhouseCoopers on the potentialimpact of health reform on privatehealth insurance coverage showsthat the federal health reform pro-posal would have a significantimpact on the cost of private healthinsurance coverage.We need only look at Massa-chusetts or Wisconsin as evidenceof the exorbitant cost of universalhealth care plans. A proposal inWisconsin would have required thestate to double its tax collections ina single year. Massachusetts, whichalready implemented a universalhealth care plan, is suffering froman annual 10 percent increase inthe cost of health care and it ranksnumber one in the nation for hav-ing the most expensive insurancepremiums. Still, Massachusetts isnot achieving 100 percent coveragefor all residents because the cost of insurance remains out of reach for many people. In fact, those who areable to find inexpensive policies mayhave a tough time finding a physicianto accept their insurance plan.Pennsylvania is somewhatunique in that it has a diverse un-insured population. Yet, some inCongress want to adopt a one-size-fits-all, universal health coveragesystem that will prevent our diverseconstituency from selecting theprivate coverage most suited totheir needs. Universal systems limitmedical choices by restricting peopleto the options included under thegovernment plan, and requires themto pay out of pocket for options notincluded in the government-run plan.Some proposals even prohibit ac-cess to services not covered or de-nied by the government-run plan.Proposals currently before Con-gress and the Pennsylvania Gen-eral Assembly are an assault onthe rights, freedoms and liberties of all Pennsylvanians to choose their health care without limits on thosechoices by government.I believe health care should stayin the private marketplace with con-sumer choice and competitive pric-ing through interstate competitionamong insurers. In addition, medicalmalpractice reform and communityrating must also be included in anyhealth care reform measure.Medical malpractice costs con-tribute significantly to the rising costof health care, making tort reform apriority when it comes to health carelegislation. Utilization of services isa prime reason for health care costescalation. This results when doc-tors over prescribe and over testout of fear of being sued. I haveintroduced House Bill 1228, whichsets limitations on the recovery of punitive damages, and requiresthat 80 percent of these awards bepayable to the state Medical CareAvailability and Reduction of Error (MCARE) fund, which helps to keepdoctors in the Commonwealth.In another measure to controlthe cost of health insurance for manysmall businesses, I have introducedlegislation establishing a communityrate for businesses with 50 or fewer employees, which spreads the riskacross all employees that are cov-ered by that health plan. There existmany sensible alternatives that willaddress the core problem of risinghealth care costs without a govern-ment takeover.Our health care is too importantto leave to government. Let’s keepthe power of choice where it belongs – with you.

Apply Now for State Education Assistance Grants

Applications are available in my district office for state higher education assistance grants for the 2010-11 aca-demic year. The need-based Pennsylvania State Grants are provided to qualified Pennsylvania residents through thePennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) and do not have to be repaid.Interested students must complete and submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered. Individuals with Internetaccess may file their FAFSA electronically at

PHEAA.org/FAFSA

or at

fafsa.ed.gov.

Completing the FAFSA online reduces errors and speedsup processing time. While May 1 is the deadline for the PennsylvaniaState Grant, families should be aware that federal, state and institutionalstudent aid programs have varying deadlines. It is recommended thatfamilies contact the schools their son or daughter is interested in attend-ing, as many have earlier ﬁnancial aid deadlines. For more information onFAFSA Workshops, PHEAA grants or for an application, visit my Web siteat

CurtSchroder.com

or contact my district ofﬁce at (610) 524-5595.

Rep. Schroder was recently honored as Small Business Advocate of the Year by the Exton Region Chamber of Commerce. (L-R) Robert Johnson, Executive Director of the Exton Region Chamber,Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, Schroder,Robert Hall and Bill Friedmann both of the chamber.