by Scott Detrow
Public Radio Capitol News
(Harrisburg) -- Governor Rendell says he’s decided on an additional half-billion dollars worth of cuts to his original budget, but he’s waiting until next week to announce them.
He’ll share the details with his cabinet in the coming days, and then release the figures.
House Republican spokesman Steve Miskin says he doubts Rendell is interested in meeting the GOP halfway, and he’s skeptical the governor’s cuts will be substantial.
"Why can’t he come out today? Why can’t he come out right now and let the people of Pennsylvania know what he supports and what he doesn’t? And further, exactly specify to everybody how he intends to fund—I mean, right now it’s still a 29 billion dollar budget. How will he fund it?"
There’s roughly 1.5 billion dollars separating the Senate Republican budget rejected by the House Appropriations Committee this week, and the 29 billion dollar spending plan Rendell announced in February.
The majority of debate at the Capitol this week has centered around the need for a personal income tax hike, which some Democrats are supporting.
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About PRCN's - Scott Detrow
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- Scott Detrow covers state politics for Pennsylvania's public radio stations. Detrow came to the Capitol from WITF-FM, where he covered Central Pennsylvania news and anchored local "All Things Considered" segments. Much of his reporting focused on the 2008 presidential primary and general election. He also covered the Pennsylvania National Guard, and won a national Edward R. Murrow award for reports on the 56th Stryker Brigade's preparations for a 2009 deployment to Iraq. Detrow has also covered New York City politics for WFUV-FM, earning a distinction from the New York Press Club, and won a Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award for a radio documentary on South Africa's AIDS pandemic in 2007. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Fordham University with degrees in political science and English.