From House Republican Leader Sam Smith (R-Jefferson County) on the announcement that Gov. Ed Renell will kick off a statewide bus tour outlining the "evils" of the no tax increase balanced budget passed by Senate Republicans:

"The governor is hitting the campaign trail again, only this time for higher taxes. A few weeks ago, we predicted the series of scare press releases, and his administration orchestrated at least 15 so far. We should have predicted the scare bus tour, because here it comes. It's a campaign tactic to support unrealistic spending increases and push for large tax increase. It's the 'Tax You More Bus Tour.'

"Increasing taxes is wrong, and now is possibly the worst time to take any more money out of the wallets of Pennsylvanians."

Despite a record $3.2 billion budget deficit projected for the current fiscal year, Rendell and House Democrats want to raise taxes and increase state spending to an astronomical $29 billion for the 2009-10 fiscal year.

Senate Republicans passed an alternative $27.3 billion that calls for no new taxes, but maintains funding for essential state programs. The vote was 30-20, with every single Senate Democrat opposing the budget.

The Senate version of the budget has been praised by independent organizations (The Commonwealth Foundation, Lincoln Institute) as a fiscally-responsible alternative to Rendell's uncontrolled spending.

Despite the scare tactics by the Rendell Administration and their teachers union allies, the Senate-passed education funding plan provides a minimum increase of 3.1 percent funding over the current year for every school district in the state, Smith noted.

Originally posted at TONY PHYRILLAS