The latest corruption scandal to hit Harrisburg has prompted calls for a Constitutional Convention to reform state government. The problem is that a convention needs approval by the Legislature. The people of Pennsylvania can clean up the mess in 2010 when all 203 members of the state House and 25 members of the state Senate are up for reelection.

Government Watchdogs Call for Constitutional Convention in Pa.|abc27 News

If you believe government is out of control, you're invited to attend the inaugural meeting of the Pennsylvania Coalition for Responsible Government, featuring Keynote Speaker Matthew J. Brouillette of The Commonwealth Foundation.

The event is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Thursday, April 23, at The Radisson Hotel in Greentree.

The Pennsylvania Coalition for Responsible Government (www.parespgov.org) seeks to unite people who believe American exceptionalism, America's founding documents, and individual liberty are under assault and need to be defended.

Featured speaker Matthew Brouillette, president & CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation, will deliver an address entitled, "Capitalism Still Works."

Those wishing to attend can register for the event at www.parespgov.org

From state Rep. Sam Rohrer, R-128th District:

Tea Anyone?

In just another day, April 15th will be here. This is the day we are all reminded of how much of our hard-earned wages are lifted by government – at all levels. From the property tax to the sales tax, to the State and federal income tax, to the myriad of fees on literally everything, to the excise taxes, to taxes when you are born to taxes when you die, we are taxed on almost everything.

It's not that every tax is onerous or evil. Some may not like any tax. But, taxes are a legitimate way to fund legitimate government. It's just that when government begins to spend our tax dollars on unconstitutional programs or bailouts and then expects us to continue to dig ever deeper to fund those illegitimate programs that folks develop a very bad taste in their mouths. And like bad tastes in our mouths, normal folks try to get rid of that bad taste. It's only normal.

So, the focus of the April 15th Tea Parties provides the opportunity to people across this Commonwealth and nation to gather peaceably together to say that we're tired of that very bad taste. But is it the taxes that are the cause of this very bad taste or is it something else? The truth be told, taxes aren't the cause, they are the symptom. Out-of-control, unconstitutional and illegitimate spending is the cause. Illegitimate spending is why a crumbling economic system confronts us today. Illegitimate spending including unconstitutional programs, bailouts, subsidizing of those who don't or won't work and earmarks of all types to the favored few identify both the cause and the solution.

The solution: quit spending on unconstitutional programs, quit spending on government programs that compete with private non-profits and churches that exist to meet the needs of the needy, and quit spending on things that grow the size of government beyond the restraints of constitutional boundaries! Just let the people keep their own money! The solution is very simple – if you support the concept of independence and personal freedom. I think the solution is easy to see, a little harder to accomplish, but impossible to oppose – if you support the concept of independence and personal freedom.

So, if you have not yet decided to attend a "Tea Party" on Wednesday, please plan on doing so. It will be good for you, your children, and the cause. I will be one of the speakers at the "Tea Party" in the front steps of the Capitol in Harrisburg beginning at noon and at Lancaster Tax Day Tea Party at 4 p.m. in Musser Park. Hope to see some of you at one of these events.

For the Cause of Independence and Personal Freedom,
Sam Rohrer

With two of the state's biggest Democratic political figures under indictment or already convicted for public corruption, you'd think the Democratic Party would take the lead in pushing ethics reform.

No so in Pennsylvania, where Democrats tend to look the other way when one of their own is caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

So it's up to the Republican Party to take up the cause of reforming what some consider to be the most corrupt state government in the country.

House GOP Leader Sam Smith unveiled the House Republican plan to help put state government on the right path: Pennsylvania's Agenda for Trust in Harrisburg, or PATH.

"We stand at a crossroads to either keep going in the direction of the status quo or change paths and make substantive changes in the way our government operates," Smith said at a Capitol new conference. "For the sake of our Commonwealth's future, I believe we have to change our ways."

Since the pay raise fiasco of July 2005, Pennsylvanians have lost trust in much of government, Smith said. The conviction of state Sen. Vince Fumo on 137 corruption charges and the Bonusgate charges against a dozen Democratic House staffers and elected officials have kept corruption in the headlines over the past few years.

Smith offered a 12-point agenda for dealing with the culture of corruption in Harrisburg.

Among the highlights: End the 'pay-to-play' system where campaign contributors receive lucrative state contracts; a ban on public officials starting nonprofit organizations while in office; strengthening the state Sunshine Law; creation of an Ethical Code of Conduct for executive branch; and independent audits of General Assembly spending.

"Pennsylvanians must believe their government is as effective, efficient, and accountable as it should be," Smith said. "I think it is the right thing to do. We have to stand up and say 'Enough, all this garbage must end now.'"

Read more of Smith's proposals in this press release posted at his Web site.

WTAE-TV4 in Pittsburgh has been doing some outstanding investigative reporting on the Pennsylvania Legislature, the most expensive in the country and arguably the most inefficient and corrupt state legislature in the U.S.

The latest investigation by reporter Jim Parsons exposes cases of lawmakers who benefit financially from ties to private interests, often leading to conflicts of interest.

A common example: Lawmakers leasing office space in buildings they own or buildings owned by political allies, all paid for by taxpayers.

From the Team 4 report:

Now, a Team 4 investigation finds many of our full-time legislators in Harrisburg get outside income from private interests -- and sometimes, those interests can conflict with the public's.

Remember, we pay our state lawmakers a minimum of almost $80,000 each to represent us full-time -- but our Team 4 investigation found a majority of lawmakers report income from at least one other source.

And in reading through this annual financial interest statement for each state lawmaker, we also discovered something else: More than one-third of state senators and a quarter of House members sit on legislative committees that oversee the industries from which those same lawmakers reported receiving income, owning stock or serving on a board of directors.

Critics say that's a conflict of interest. But there's no law against it.

You can read the transcript of the report online or watch the actually report by the Team 4 investigation online at the station's Web site, www.thepittsburghchannel.com

(H/T GrassrootsPA.com)

Camp Hill citizen-activist Bill McIntyre has been perusing the newspaper headlines lately and is having some doubts about the people running Pennsylvania and the United States, too.

Here is his latest mailing to "Friends of Responsible Government" and members of the Executive, Legislative & Judicial Branches of PA Government:

Dear Friends,

"Obama's plan: $9.3 trillion in red?" appeared as the lead headline at the top front page in today's Harrisburg Patriot-News. Another headline read "Rendell sees stimulus money as state's 'lifeline'" and appeared at the bottom of the page.

Headlines are defined as the most important items of news in a newspaper or broadcast news media. A well composed headline will draw the readers and/or listeners attention to the article that follows. Some headlines across the state that have caught my attention since my last letter were:

"Auditor General Wagner to audit liquor control board contract"

"Governor hires $100K publicist to tout stimulus money"

"GUILTY! BUT IS IT THE END OF AN ERA?"

"Fumo found guilty on all 137 counts"

"Fumo corruption case expands; others could be investigated"

"Pennsylvania lawmakers have history of criminal prosecution"

"Losses top $28 billion for 2 state pensions"

"Legislators want 'equitable' budget cuts"

"E-mail may tie DeWeese to scandal"

"DeWeese, Dems play tug-of-war with case file"

"Rendell says LCB deal should be investigated"

"President of PHEAA's fundraising arm fired"

"Former PHEAA head wants severance package"

It just goes on and on!

Do you get the idea that our nation and state are in deep dodo? We have mortgaged our future and future generations. Yet, government continues to grow and to spend beyond our means to pay for it all. One headline that caught my eye was "Speaker's pen gift adds $4,000 to Pa. red ink" by Eric Heyl of the Tribune-Review.

Eric wrote - "As is customary for new speakers, McCall rewarded all 203 well-compensated House members with a gift from their leader. He bought them each an $18.95 desktop pen set and purchased seven spare sets – spending nearly $4,000. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Tuesday."

I would have been impressed with Speaker McCall's generous gesture had he paid for the pens himself. Eric's article continues – "McCall's annual salary is $122,245, but he's having the public pick up the tab for the pens. McCall essentially is attempting to expense an outrageous and unnecessary expenditure, one that his bosses – state taxpayers – shouldn't tolerate."

With a projected $2.3 billion deficit in this year's budget, every penny counts. Speaker McCall evidently didn't listen to his grandmother who might have told him, like my grandmother told me; if you watch your pennies the dollars will take care of themselves. With our projected budget shortfall, $4,000 is pennies, precious pennies!

A very concerned,
Bill McIntyre
About spending ourselves into bankruptcy

Do you get the feeling members of Congress don't know what they're voting on?

The Institute for Policy Innovation has joined the Sunlight Foundation in the "Read the Bill" initiative designed to educate the public on the importance of Congress posting all proposed legislation online "to ensure both elected officials and citizens have the chance to read and understand legislation 72 hours before it is debated."

From an Institute for Policy Innovation release:

"Forty-two and a half seconds per page -- that's how long members of Congress were given to read, understand, evaluate and consider all the implications for the largest spending bill in history - the so-called 'stimulus' package," said Bartlett Cleland, director of the IPI Center for Technology Freedom.

"Even worse, the public never had a chance to access the language of the bill before passage," said Cleland.

Unfortunately, the recent stimulus bill was not the first legislation to fly through Congress with hardly a review. Too much groundbreaking legislation has done the same over the years with little to no time for a responsible, thorough assessment.

"By definition this is information that we, the people, own -- not to mention that we also pay for the repercussions," said Cleland.

For more information on "Read the Bill," visit www.ReadTheBill.org

For more on the Institute for Public Innovation, follow the link below:

Institute for Policy Innovation: Let Us Read the Bill

Brad Bumsted, writing in The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, says the only way to rein in the out-of-control expense of the Pennsylvania Legislature is to take an ax to the beast.

In addition to the 253 full-time elected lawmakers, there are more than 3,000 staff members who work for the Legislature, creating a huge, costly and unproductive bureaucracy the siphons more than $300 million a year from the state treasury.

"We have the second most costly General Assembly and yet we are the sixth-largest state with a population that's at best stagnant and, relative to other states, shrinking," Bumsted writes. "Reducing the size of the Pennsylvania Legislature was snubbed by the Reform Commission two years ago. There are pitfalls to be sure but there is no better time than now to revisit it."

The enormous size of the Legislature prevents the people's business from being done, Bumstead writes.

From Bustead's columnm:

In the House and Senate, there's a Democrat and Republican staffer for almost every position. That means four separate staffs: House Republicans and Democrats and Senate Republicans and Democrats.

The Democrat staffer answers to his Democrat masters. The GOP staffer reports to a GOP boss. It's why there's so much partisan bickering in the place.

It's reasonable for leaders to have partisan staff. They are elected by separate political parties and have their own vastly different ideas. But lawyers? One legal staff could serve the General Assembly like in New Jersey.

Here, each caucus also routinely hires private law firms for specialty issues, like the state attorney general's investigation into legislative corruption. Why are we paying so many high-priced outside lawyers -- and consultants like Casey?

Photographers and writers? One public relations unit should serve them all, not a separate staff for four caucuses churning out glowing news releases and newsletters at your expense.

Read the full column, "Shrink the beast," at the newspaper's Web site.

Philadelphia Daily News columnist John Baer, who has covered Harrisburg for decades, is having a difficult time understanding why members of the Pennsylvania Legislature, already among the highest-paid in the country, need to keep so many high-paid staffers around.

A recent Associated Press report listed 73 state legislative staffers who earned more than $100,000 in 2008, more than double what the average Pennsylvanian earns — $43,000. Two staffers brought home more than the governor's $174,914 salary, the wire service reported.

The Pennsylvania Legislature is already the most expensive in the nation, with an annual cost of $334 million, according to Baer.

In addition to 253 elected lawmakers, the Legislature employs 3,156 staffers, Baer says. Base pay for rank-and-file lawmakers is $78,315, but the job, with perks and benefits, is really six figures, Baer writes.

From Baer's column:

I never understood why the sixth-largest state needs the largest legislature (technically, New Hampshire's is larger, but part-time; its 424 lawmakers are paid $100 a year), especially given the legislature's performance, venality and, if you believe the state attorney general, level of corruption.

I sure don't understand why we need the largest staff - especially as thousands of regular state workers face layoffs.

Our bloated Legislature has a bloated underbelly.

Read the full column, "Our state lawmakers are tops ... when it comes to staff numbers," at the newspaper's Web site.

The Center for Public Integrity has launched a new blog called The Daily Watchdog, which will compile investigative reports from around Washington, D.C. -- from the Government Accountability Office to Inspectors General to Congressional oversight committees.

"We'll be compiling these (often-overlooked) investigative reports, so you don't have to go searching for them," the Center said in announcing the new site. "The Daily Watchdog is your go-to resource for the latest results of important federal investigations."

Be sure to bookmark the site and check it often. The Democrats are back in power in Washington, but I'm afraid little has changed.

I've been beating the drum for reducing the size of the Pennsylvania Legislature for a long time. I'm glad to see others are joining the chorus.

The Delaware County Daily & Sunday Times says in an editorial that cutting the size of the Legislature might be the smart thing to do in these tough economic times.

From the editorial:

As more and more workers in the state lose their jobs, there is one sure way to ease the tax burden, but it is the one thing this state’s elected representatives refuse to consider.

Pennsylvania should have a smaller Legislature. Honest, caring legislators have tried to make that happen. From 1997 through 2008, attempts have been made for those in General Assembly to reduce the House and Senate through passage of introduced legislation or through a constitutional convention, where the issue of a reduced Legislature could be addressed and put on the ballot. Those efforts did not muster enough votes for passage.

Pennsylvania has 253 members, second only to New Hampshire. Of course, New Hampshire's Legislature meets a limited number of days at $200 a day. That's a far cry from the $340 million price tag put on Pennsylvania’s Harrisburg Hilton crew last year.

The Delco Times also has trouble with the fact that 73 Legislative staffers earn at least $100,000 a year.

From the editorial:

An Associated Press report last week claimed 73 state legislative staffers earned more than $100,000 in 2008, more than double what the average Pennsylvanian earns — $43,000. Two staffers brought home more than the governor’s $174,914 salary.

These are the aides to the men and women voters send to Harrisburg each year.

It's getting harder to justify such exorbitant spending to maintain the political aristocracy in Harrisburg.

Read the full editorial at the newspaper's Web site.

Brad Bumstead, who covers Harrisburg for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, has a knack for cutting through the BS and getting to the heart of an issue.

Commenting on the recent move by House Democratic leadership to undo the Legislative reforms enacted over the past two years, Bumstead says the members of the entrenched Harrisburg political class "still don't get it."

From his column:

Then on the night two weeks ago when Gov. Ed Rendell unveiled his $29 billion state spending plan and most reporters were paying no attention to the House, the Democrats struck:

• They made it easier and more likely that the House will be able to hold late-night sessions. The 11 p.m. curfew can be suspended with fewer votes.

• Realizing they had erred in approving an amendment by Rep. John Maher, R-Upper St. Clair, that prevented legislators from working as lobbyists, the Democrat majority approved a motion that declared Maher's amendment unconstitutional and allowed a handful of Democrat members to continue working at big law firms with lobbying arms.

• They restored the power of the House Rules Committee, a panel controlled by leaders, to serve as a mechanism to kill any bill or alter the face of legislation.

• They weakened the 24-hour rule before the House can vote on legislation. The previous rule was supposed to give lawmakers a chance to read the bills they'd be voting on. "In essence, I don't think we have a 24-hour rule any longer," said Rep. Curt Schroder, a Chester County Republican.

It's clearly a retreat from the measures proposed by the Speaker's Reform Commission and adopted by the House in 2007. And Schroder reminds that some Democrats who served on the reform panel voted for "this destruction of openness."

Read the full column at the newspaper's Web site.

Originally posted at TONY PHYRILLAS

A group of House Republicans introduced a package of bills today to end "pay-to-play" politics in Pennsylvania.

The bills are aimed squarely at Gov. Ed Rendell, who has awarded more than $1 billion worth of no-bid contracts to politically connected firms during his six years as governor.

From a press release issued by the GOP lawmakers:

"The recent allegations of corruption against Blagojevich, the swirling situation surrounding the award of millions of dollars in no-bid legal services contracts by Governor Ed Rendell to his old law firm, and now the information that Deloitte Touche has turned the Department of Public Welfare (DPW) into its own satellite office compel all Pennsylvanians to be concerned about the manner in which the public dollars are being spent," said state Rep. Douglas Reichley. "The disclosures over the last year of possible favoritism in awarding contracts leads us to worry that Pennsylvania is not immune to the perception that it’s not what you can do but who you know that gets you preferential treatment in government contracts. Pennsylvania needs laws in place to ensure that nothing like this can ever occur in our state."

During his six years in office, Rendell has taken advantage of a weak state law to give preferential consideration to former associates in his former law firm and campaign contributors who have received lucrative contracts for state services without any competitive bidding.

Read the full statement at Reichley's Web site.

And this from an article in today's edition of The Harrisburg Patriot-News by reporter Jan Murphy:

House Republicans, reacting to state Auditor General Jack Wagner's preliminary audit findings on questionable practices that resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in technology contracts for Deloitte, called for state contract reform and a criminal investigation.

At a Capitol news conference, state Rep. Doug Reichley, R-Lehigh, outlined a list of bills aimed at ending what they describe as "pay-to-play politics in Pennsylvania" and afterward urged Attorney General Tom Corbett to investigate whether improprieties occurred involving Deloitte's work on state contracts as well as Gov. Ed Rendell's administration's failure to cooperate with auditors.

A report in today's edition of The Patriot-News shares findings from Wagner's preliminary audit that cites allegations ranging from vendor favoritism to no-bid contracts, along with concerns about the agencies' secrecy surrounding documents that led to Deloitte landing state contracts.

Read "House Republicans call for contract reform, criminal investigation" at The Patriot-News Web site.

Don't miss the final installment of Robert Swift's excellent three-part series on the Pennsylvania Legislature, published in The Times-Tribune.

The main story is a cautionary tale of the evolution of the Legislature into the most expensive in the country.

A report by the Commission for Legislative Modernization in 1969 paved the way for transforming the General Assembly from a body of part-timers to one in which members consider themselves on the job full-time, Swift writes.

More from Swift's story about the skyrocketing cost of state government:

While Pennsylvania voters never gave formal approval to this change, they elected candidates who ran during the 1970s promising to be a "full-time" lawmaker.

The transformed Legislature, with its greater scope of activity, equal footing with the executive branch and higher costs has seen relatively few changes. During the past 40 years, reforms have come slowly and grudgingly.

In the 1960s, the legislative staff totaled more than 500 people, but it wasn't equipped to do extensive policy research. The bureaucracy swelled to 1,700 people by 1984 and to nearly 3,000 staffers by 2003 even though voters set the number of lawmakers at 253 in 1968.

In 1964, it cost Pennsylvania taxpayers $6 million out of a $1 billion state budget to operate the part-time Legislature. In 1985, it cost taxpayers $80 million out of a $15 billion state budget for the Legislature. In 2008, legislative spending reached $316 million out of a $28.3 billion state budget.

Legislative pay increased from $7,200 in 1969 to $78,314 this year.

Per capita costs zoomed upward as well.

In 1981, the legislative operations cost $3.40 for every Pennsylvania resident. In 2007, the cost of the General Assembly was eight times that at $25 for every resident, according to an analysis by the National Conference of State Legislatures. Pennsylvania ranks third among the states in per capita legislative costs.

Read the full story, along with all the stories in the series, at The Times-Tribune Web site.

The Times-Tribune is running a three-part series about the Pennsylvania Legislature, the most expensive state legislature in the country.

The first story, "Pennsylvania Legislature's growing girth," was published Sunday.

A few gems from Robert Swift, the newspaper's Harrisburg bureau chief:

In addition to salary (the fourth-highest in the nation), House lawmakers receive an average $11,349 toward health insurance, an average $5,351 for prescription drugs with a co-pay, dental and vision benefits and a number of per-diem payments. Pensions and life and disability insurance benefits also count as individual benefits.

Support costs for House lawmakers include a $20,000 office expense account, a $7,800 vehicle expense reimbursement and $4,000 postage account. House lawmakers can use a car from the state government’s fleet of more than 16,000 or be reimbursed for driving their own cars.

Senators receive an average $13,791 toward health insurance and dental and vision benefits. Since 2007, senators pay 1 percent of their salary to participate in the health care plan. They receive per diems, pensions and life and long-term care insurance as well.

Support costs for senators, who have larger constituencies, include a $25,000 expense account and $26,500 postage account. They can use a state car or claim mileage, currently at 55 cents a mile.

House and Senate lawmakers can claim a $143 per diem to cover costs of lodging and meals. The per diem amount fluctuates annually based on federal guidelines. Estimates of total annual per-diem costs are in the $2 million range. House members can claim per diems for voting and nonvoting session days, attending committee meetings, the day after the last weekday of a session and for overnight stays.

Swift also examines the perpetual debate of whether serving in the Pennsylvania Legislature is a part-time job:

Despite the Legislature's full-time status, Pennsylvania lawmakers don't put in a five-day workweek at the Capitol. The Senate is scheduled to be in session 54 days scattered through the end of June; the House has scheduled 50 days.

Lawmakers also spend time in their districts engaged in "constituent work," a wide-ranging category of activity without a common definition. It can run the gamut from handling driver's license and vehicle registration applications to guiding major economic-development projects. A key part of their job is making the rounds of civic events in their districts on nights and weekends.

Read the full story, along with a sidebar on the history of legislative corruption, at the newspaper's Web site.

The second part of the series, a look at how difficult it is a bill to make it through the Legislature, is in today's edition of the newspaper.

Critics began referring to the Pennsylvania Legislature as the House of Lords a few years ago. Things toned down a bit after the imperial reign of John Perzel came to an end, but now it appears that Keith McCall, the new Speaker of the House, is attempting to bring back the royal trappings of his office.

From the Whispers column in The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

UPLIFTING ITEM. Talk about a sense of entitlement.

At the state Capitol, one of two elevators on the House side is blocked by a guard when Speaker Keith McCall is headed somewhere important. No one else can get on.

Before Gov. Ed Rendell's budget address to the Legislature last week, people were turned away from one of the lifts because it was being reserved for McCall.

In the past, one of the two elevators on the Senate side has been reserved when senators were heading to session.

McCall isn't the first legislative leader to have an elevator reserved for him. But why should a Democrat legislator from Carbon County -- indeed, why should any legislator -- deserve such royal treatment?

Next he'll be sporting a signet ring.

The "Year of Reform" is a distant memory in Harrisburg.

With a five-member majority in the state House of Representatives, Democrats moved quickly to reverse most of the reforms enacted last year to prevent the kind of maneuvering that brought middle-of-the-night votes to legalize slot parlors and grant politicians outrageous pay raise.

It's business as usual in Harrisburg as the professional politicians erased rules designed to make the people's business more transparent.

The new House leadership is firmly in control of the same political hacks who have given Pennsylvania the reputation of having the most corrupt state government in the country.

From an editorial in today's edition of The Pottstown Mercury:

Not only have the House Democrats proven that business goes on as usual in Harrisburg, but they have undone the hope for change their own Speaker's Commission on Reform had begun.

The Democratic leadership and membership in the House have demonstrated just how seriously they view the opinions of Pennsylvania voters.

Apparently, not seriously at all.

Read the full editorial, "House Democrats undo last year's reforms with party-line vote on rules," at the newspaper's Web site.

In an after-hours vote Wednesday, Democrats repealed the reform measures instituted in the state House of Representatives two years ago.

The move opens the way for more late-night votes similar to the legislation that legalized casino gambling in 2004 and the pay raise lawmakers gave themselves in 2005.

On the House floor Wednesday night, Rep. Curt Schroder (R-155th Dist.) spoke out against proposed changes to House rules that would restore "the bad old days" before the Speaker's Reform Commission put an end to late-night voting and "gut-and-run" amendments.

From a statement issued by Schroder:

"The Speaker's Reform Commission's goals were to make sure House members, the press and the public could see what legislation was being proposed and have time to study it," said Schroder. "The commission's goal was to ensure transparency. Yes, it takes more time, but it is necessary to ensure openness."

Schroder said the vote by House Democrats to restore the old policies was akin to exchanging openness for expediency.

"This action rolls back and retreats from the rules established by the bipartisan Speaker's Reform Commission a couple of years ago that required 24 hours before an amended bill could be considered on final passage," said Schroder. "We are indeed opening the door to the bad old days. Under the new House rules, legislation may be rewritten at the last minute and brought to the floor for a vote and become law without giving adequate time for legislators and the public to absorb the changes."

In addition to the 24-hour rule change, the new rules pave the way for sessions to go past the 11 p.m. deadline established by the Reform Commission. They also give the Rules Committee more power to manipulate bills.

"The House rules adopted Wednesday night dim the light that was shone on the legislative process by the work of the Speaker's Reform Commission. The rule requiring a 24-hour waiting period to vote a bill after it is amended is now rendered ineffective; gut-and-run, last-minute amendments can once again be passed by the House Rules Committee and the likelihood is now greater that bills will be passed in the middle of the night once again," Schroder said. "The Democrat members of the Reform Commission and first-term Democrats who ran on a reform agenda were party to this destruction of openness."

Also Wednesday night, Schroder voted for an amendment that would have prohibited House members from being employed by lobbying firms. House Democrats defeated it.

This is the result of voters sending a Democratic majority back to Harrisburg despite the fact that 12 people connected with the House Democratic Caucus have been indicted in the "Bonusgate" corruption probe. You wanted business as usual in Harrisburg ... and you got it.

I've used a few choice words through the years to describe the members of the Pennsylvania Legislature, but "reprobates" is not one of them.

rep·ro·bate: A morally unprincipled person; One who is predestined to damnation; Morally unprincipled; shameless; Rejected by God and without hope of salvation.

Yep, sounds like the typical member of the Pennsylvania Legislature.

The Pittsburgh Tribune Review says the new Democratic leadership in the state House of Representatives is attempting to undo the reforms of the past two years and return the Legislature to the corrupt system that led to the infamous middle-of-the-night pay raise in 2005.

From the editorial:

Democrat House leaders have circulated a draft proposal to water down legislative reforms designed to end the shafting of state taxpayers. Among the measures they hope to ram into place by Friday:

• Reduce from three-fourths to a simple majority the number of votes required to allow House votes after 11 p.m.

• Reduce from 24 hours to six hours the waiting period for voting on bill amendments

• Again allow the leadership-controlled Rules Committee to "adjust" legislation.

Read the full editorial, "Harrisburg reprobates," at the newspaper's Web site.

Emboldened by their five-seat majority in the state House of Representatives, Democratic Party leaders are moving quickly to undo many of the legislative reforms enacted in Harrisburg over the past two years.

DemocracyRisingPA, the reform watchdog group, has issued an "urgent alert" warning that "when the House resumes session on Tuesday, the Democratic majority will propose new rules that will turn back the clock to the bad old days of the Pay Raise of 2005, the slots gambling law and other stealth lawmaking. A summary - not an actual draft - began circulating in the Capitol at the end of last week, but it is not available to the public on the House web site. Members of the 2007 Speaker's Commission on Legislative Reform received a briefing on the changes last Wednesday, according to House sources."

Citizens and media who want to know how their representatives plan to vote and why will have to act fast, DemocracyRisingPA says. "Although the current temporary House rules don't expire until February 6, Democratic leaders plan to rush the new rules to a vote on Tuesday. If House Democrats have their way, it may be the last time citizens are able to ask such questions about any important legislation before it's too late," DemocracyRisingPA says on its Web site.

From the DemocracyRisingPA post:

The Bottom Line

The Democrats' proposals will make it much harder for citizens to know what their government is doing in time to express their opinion either for or against proposed laws. They would repeal reforms adopted with great fanfare just two years ago through the Speaker's Commission on Legislative Reform. Among dozens of proposals, House Democrats propose to:

* Render meaningless the rule requiring the House to stop session at 11:00 p.m. unless three-fourths of the members vote to continue.

* Repeal the rule allowing citizens and their representatives at least 24 hours to see amendments before voting on them, at least 24 hours to consider bills after their last amendment, and at least 24 hours before a vote on a report by a conference committee. Conference committee reports, such as every budget and the Pay Raise of 2005, are often the most complicated, controversial and important laws proposed in any session. As in the past, the proposal would allow action after as little as six hours.

* Repeal the rule prohibiting the Rules Committee from amending bills after they have been considered by another committee.

Read more and learn how you can fight the effort to turn back the reform movement at the DemocracyRisingPA Web site.

Matthew J. Brouillette, a former high school history teacher, coach and school board member, knows something about the public education system.

As president and CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation, Brouillette spends much of his professional time researching the impact the state's largest teachers' union has on Pennsylvania schools.

Writing recently in The Mercury, Brouillette says there's no disputing the fact that the political agenda pursued by the Pennsylvania State Education Association has caused a great deal of harm to teachers, children and taxpayers.

"I know first-hand the challenges inside and out of the classroom," Brouillette writes in a guest column. "Until we address the systemic problems associated with who controls public education and how we deliver it, simply spending more money will fail to improve our schools."

From Brouillette's column:

Even Albert Shanker, the late American Federation of Teachers labor union president, recognized the need for systemic change when he candidly said: "It's time to admit that public education operates like a planned economy, a bureaucratic system in which everybody's role is spelled out in advance and there are few incentives for innovation and productivity. It's no surprise that our school system doesn't improve: It more resembles the communist economy than our own market economy."

In spite of the inherent problems noted by Shanker, most public schools are able to teach our children to read, write, and figure. But when comparing the academic performance of our students to those in other countries, it's clear our current system is failing both our children and our nation.

Brouillette offers several solutions to improving our schools and invites the teachers' union to become part of the solution.

Read the full op-ed at the newspaper's Web site.

And you wonder why Pennsylvania is facing a potential $2 billion budget shortfall?

Gov. Ed Rendell continues to defend the hiring of political crony Dan Surra to a $95,000 patronage job despite a hiring freeze that has left 5,000 other state jobs unfilled.

Rendell himself admitted this week that the state's General Fund deficit will likely reach $1.6 billion to $1.9 billion by the the end of June. Republican lawmakers say the deficit could top $2.1 billion.

"Everyone has to understand that what has happened leaves us no option," Rendell said this week. "We're going to have to cut virtually every program that there is."

But giving a $95,000-a-year-job to an ousted state lawmaker is not among the cuts Rendell is willing to make.

Reporter Brad Bumstead has more on Rendell's hypocrisy and "Go to hell" attitude toward Pennsylvania taxpayers in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

From Bumstead's article:

"Let me stress, I reserved the right when I announced the hiring freeze to make exceptions," Rendell told reporters while visiting the Pennsylvania Farm Show. During a speech at the farm show, he boosted his predicted budget deficit for 2008-09 from $1.6 billion to $1.9 billion.

Rendell said he did not create a special job for Surra, but he acknowledged the DCNR job was not posted and others weren't considered.

The Democratic governor's decision to hire Surra, a Democrat who failed to win re-election to the state House of Representatives in November, has been universally panned by the state's newspapers.

From The Pottstown Mercury:

THORNS to Gov. Ed Rendell for creating a job for a former state legislator, violating a hiring freeze imposed during the current state budget crisis ... Rendell also has slashed hundreds of millions of dollars from the budget to help offset a projected $1.7 billion shortfall this fiscal year. Creating a job for an ousted legislator in this fiscally-stressed environment was a slap in the face to state taxpayers. The governor should know better.

Reform advocate Eric Epstein, a veteran observer of the Harrisburg scene, is not impressed with the "new" Democratic House leadership in the state Legislature.

Epstein is very familiar with Rep. Todd Eachus, the new House majority leader.

From Epstein's Capitol Domes blog:

On Monday, the Pennsylvania Legislature's "new" majority leader, Todd Eachus, announced that the House of Representatives was under "new management." The same day, the "new" majority whip, Bill DeWeese, introduced HB 21 to promote table games at Pennsylvania casinos. The next day, Dan Surra, former majority caucus administrator, landed a "new" job during a hiring freeze.

Alakazamm! Whoosh! Everything is fine.

Wait a minute. I think we've seen this magic act before.

Who is the new magician?

Eachus voted to increase his salary 22 percent from $69,648 to $85,102, defended the pay grab and kept the money. Mr. New Management never paid back the unconstitutional pay raise.

Eachus is a protégée of indicted former Whip Mike Veon. In fact, it was Mr. New Management who retired Veon's campaign debt. "Mike's contribution as a leader to our collective effort meant a lot to us," said House Majority Policy Chairman Eachus of Luzerne County, who chairs the campaign committee. But the committee's other three leaders -- Reps. Joe Preston, Dan Frankel and Jennifer Mann -- apparently had no knowledge of the two payments

As that great British philosopher Pete Townshend once said, "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss."

Read Epstein's full blog posting, "Todd Eachus: New boss, same magic tricks," at Capitol Domes.

Those very helpful folks at The Commonwealth Foundation have launched a new Web site to help Pennsylvania residents keep an eye on the state Legislature.

PennsylvaniaVotes.org provides "concise, non-partisan, plain-English descriptions of every bill and vote in the Pennsylvania House and Senate," according to the site.

Visitors can search bills and votes by legislator, category or keyword.

Guests can also post comments about bills and discuss other state policy issues on the Web sites' forums. People have already left comments on Judicial Elections, Transparency and Mandatory Minimum Sentencing.

PennsylvaniaVotes.org also features handy links to other Web sites that offer information about public policy issues.

This is wrong on so many levels.

Facing a projected $1.7 billion budget deficit, Gov. Ed Rendell imposed a hiring freeze last fall, which was a sensible thing to do.

But apparently the hiring freeze doesn't apply to career politicians tossed from office by voters. Especially when that lawmaker is a longtime political ally of the Democratic governor.

The Associated Press reports that Rendell made an exception to the hiring freeze and created a new job for former state Rep. Dan A. Surra, a Democrat who represented Elk and Clearfield counties before losing his re-election bid in November.

The new job title is "senior adviser" for the the "Pennsylvania Wilds" tourism program, which promotes outdoor activities in northern Pennsylvania.

The job pays -- are you ready for this? -- $95,000 a year — which is about $20,000 more than the starting salary of a Pennsylvania legislator. Surla was making $89,000 last year as a member of the Democratic Caucus leadership, so it's still a substantial pay raise, paid for by the taxpayers of Pennsylvania

Rendell's press secretary told the Associated Press the new job for Surra is a wise investment for Pennsylvania taxpayers. Surra's primary responsibility will be to balance the region's tourism with the surging interest in drilling for natural gas, Chuck Ardo told the wire service.

Let's review. The voters kick Surra out after 17 years in Harrisburg, but Gov. Rendell rewards the veteran politician with a cushy state job and a $6,000 pay raise. Surra can now pad his generous state pension with even more taxpayer dollars.

Only in Pennsylvania. Only under the "pay-to-play" politics that Rendell brought to Harrisburg six years ago.

Brad Bumstead, the veteran Harrisburg reporter for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, offers some advice for the 34 freshman state legislators sworn in last week.

While the lawmakers go through an extensive orientation program, Bumstead's advice should be taken to heart.

"For the most part, don't emulate the freshmen class of 2007-2008," Bumstead writes. "Elected in the aftermath of the 2005 pay raise debacle, the 50-plus member class was expected to be the catalyst for wide-ranging reform. With a few notable exceptions -- like Rep. Tim Mahoney, D-Uniontown, on open records and Rep. Mike Vereb, R-Montgomery County, who is bulldogging the Gaming Control Board -- that class was largely a bust."

Some other good advice offered by Bustead:

Don't take dinners from lobbyists or other members who get lobbyists to pick up the tab. It's another step on the road to corruption. Meet with lobbyists in your office during business hours.

Don't overdo it with press releases. Few news outlets use them. Wait until you really have something important to say. Less is better.

Never vote for a bill increasing your pay or benefits. If you hear it's happening, speak out against it ahead of time -- not afterward.

Check out Bumstead's "Top 10 rules for new legislators" at the newspaper's Web site.

Citizen activist Bill McIntyre welcomes the 2009-10 edition of the Pennsylvania Legislature, but isn't holding his breath that much will change in Harrisburg. Here's a copy of a letter he sent today to our fearless leaders:

To: PA General Assembly
Subject: Welcome!

Dear Senators & Representatives,

We welcome your return to Harrisburg and the Capitol! Things have been a little quiet around here in your absence. Hopefully you’ve enjoyed your vacation time away and the holidays with family and friends.

We need your help. The ship of state, the USS Pennsylvania, is sinking and is taking down our over 12 million passengers into a sea of red ink. We will need a like number of life preservers if you don’t plug the leaks in our budget. You had that chance in the last budget but, instead, you and the governor gave us a time bomb termed Act 44 that exploded in our hull, thus hastening our demise.

The Harrisburg Patriot-News last Saturday, January 3, 2009 contained a headline titled – “State revenues fall in November” by star reporter Jan Murphy. In the second paragraph Jan wrote – “The report released Friday by the state Revenue Department shows general fund collections in November fell $156.6 million short of estimates, bringing the year-to-date general fund collections to $11.2 billion. That is $814.5 million less than projected.” How large will the deficit grow in the next 7 months?

You were voted in as leaders to represent the residents in your district. As leaders, we have depended upon you to represent us and our needs throughout the state. I’m sorry to report that many of you have failed in this mission. Leaders lead by example. The majority of you have failed the test.

The example the majority of you have set is – every man or women for him or herself and the hell with the taxpayer. The proof of that was the infamous pay grab of July 7, 2005. Three and one half years later not much has changed except we can’t afford you and your lifestyles (refer to paragraph 3 above). So far, most of you have failed yourselves and the people who have placed you in office.

There is a solution to again regain public trust. A friend of mine, Gene Stilp wrote a letter published in today’s Patriot-News titled – “Legislators can show mettle by going on financial diet.” I quote Gene’s 8th paragraph – “It is time for the Legislature to show the way with a 10% cut in their own salaries, along with a law to rescind the recent and future cost-of-living increases for the Legislature, which incidentally met for only nine days in the past six months. It is also time to discard the entire incumbent protection system, which costs tens of millions of taxpayer dollars each year.”

I concur. We have a part-time Legislature that we’re paying full-time, outlandish benefits. Future letters will bear this out and prove that we’re correct. Pennsylvania desperately needs a Constitutional Convention to reign in a runaway state government and return it to the citizens. Where are the reformers we’ve elected? Our fears are you’ve been bought by the present perks of office. Where are our real leaders? Hiding in perks? Your constitutes are hurting. Do you really care?

A thoroughly disgusted,
Bill McIntyre
Camp Hill
Continuing the fight for true government reform, not just window dressing rules.

CC: Executive & Judicial Branches of PA government

All Media and Friends of Responsible Government

Citizen activist Bill McIntyre, a Camp Hill, Pa., resident best known for his open letters to Pennsylvania elected officials, has decided to go right to the top this time. He's writing to Santa Claus.

To: Santa Claus
North Pole
Subject: Merry Christmas!

Dear Santa Claus,

Last year I wrote you requesting three items: True government reform in Pennsylvania, an Open Records law and the repeal of Act 44 although there was much more I could have requested. I didn't want to be greedy like some in our state government. You were able to grant one request of an open records law and I want to thank you for it.

Time will tell if it was well constructed or poorly put together. It goes into effect next month. Our governor has been playing with it and I just hope he doesn't break it before we get our chance to use it.

I've watched and listened to the many boys and girls who make up our three branches of government in Pennsylvania. Some, Santa, are still very bad and they will write in an attempt to fool you. They get many gifts from the taxpayers and seldom give a gift in return. They think only of themselves.

We do have many good girls and boys who are trying to change things here in Harrisburg. The problem is they are outnumbered by the bad ones.

We can't place all the blame on the bad ones as they were sent here by the voters. I hope you have a list of the voters who returned them to office for they shouldn't get gifts either, not even coal in their stockings.

As you may be aware, the economy has not performed well this year. As usual, our governor and state legislature overreached when passing the budget in July. They had visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads. The economy rapidly turned those plums into prunes.

Many good boys and girls have been laid off and are looking for work this Christmas. It is difficult to enjoy and celebrate the season when you’re unemployed. Edward Langley, the artist once said – "What this country (state) needs are more unemployed politicians." Maybe then they would see what it is like out here in the "real world" and be satisfied with what we give to them.

Please visit the good politicians and ignore the bad ones this year. That would help balance your budget in these difficult times. It might even help with our future budgets.

Thank you for considering my request,

Bill McIntyre
Looking forward to your visit

CC: All the good and bad government officials
All the friends of responsible government

State Rep. David Argall was a leader of the House Republican Caucus when then-Speaker John Perzel pushed for the infamous middle-of-the-night pay raise in July 2005. Argall dutifully followed along and voted for the pay raise and also took the money as unvouchered expenses. Thanks mostly to pressure by reform groups, newspaper editorialists and bloggers, the pay raise was repealed. After the repeal vote, many lawmakers paid back the money. But not Argall.

Now Republican Argall wants to move to the state Senate, where the 29th District seat held by the late Jim Rhoades is vacant. Argall is the front-runner in the race, but before Argall moves to the Senate, a group of reformers want him to pay back the pay raise money and "per diem" money that Argall may or may not have been entitled to.

Below is a letter sent by five prominent citizen reformers.

Dear Rep. Argall,

It has been widely reported that you are seeking to the fill the late Sen. Jim Rhoades' vacant seat.

Before pursuing your newest political endeavor, however, we implore you to repay to the taxpayers the tens of thousands of dollars you owe them for: 1) tax-free, supplemental "per diem" money you've collected in excess of your actual expenses for food and lodging; and 2) the money you collected from the repealed pay raise of 2005.

With regard to the per diem money: a thorough review of official records from the House Chief Clerk's office indicates that, from 2005 to 2007 alone, you collected more than $48,000 in per diem money for food and lodging expenses that were incurred on approximately 420 separate business days in Harrisburg. That averages out to a per diem payment to you of $115 per day. This money of course was collected above and beyond your base salary of more than $100,000, and in addition to the money you collected for transportation expenses.

As you know, you and your fellow legislators have made it such that you don't even have to provide receipts for, or documentation of, your actual expenses for food and lodging. Therefore, it is difficult to calculate precisely how much tax-free, supplemental per diem money you collected above and beyond those expenses.

This much we know, however: in 2007, the average resident in Schuylkill County was living on $41.93 per day, and the average resident in Berks County on $49.43 per day – for housing costs, health care, food, transportation, utilities, etc. (United States Census Bureau). On average, you collected $113 a day in tax-free, supplemental income, - just for food and lodging – which is more than double what your constituents had to live on for all the costs of life.

We also know that it is only 78 miles from your Lake Hautto home to the Capitol (a drive of 1 hour and 28 minutes), which means you are often able to drive home from the Capitol after a session day or nonvoting business day, and not need taxpayer-funded lodging.

Further, we know that oftentimes during session days, representatives are usually provided with catered meals out of leadership accounts, or lobbyists simply pick up the tab – further driving down your actual expenses for which you collected per diem money.

Concluding our first item on per diems: given that your average per diem check for food and lodging expenses in 2007 ($113) was more than double what your constituents had to live on for all the expenses of life that year ($45, when averaging between Schuylkill and Berks counties' residents), and multiplying the differential ($68) by the number of days for which you collected a per diem in 2007 (149), we believe you overcharged the taxpayers by $10,000 (rounding down), just for calendar year 2007. We believe this figure to be a conservative estimate given that it does not factor in the abovementioned free meals provided to you from leadership accounts and lobbyists. Furthermore, if we were to multiply your years in the House (24) by the excess per diem money collected for each year, we'd likely compute an amount well over $100,000 in tax-free, supplemental income owed to the taxpayers (after adjusting for inflation). Again, this is a very conservative estimate.

Regarding the second item mentioned above – the 2005 pay raise money: according to news reports in the Morning Call, you collected $7,000 in so-called "unvouchered expense" money from a 2005 pay raise that was not only repealed, but ruled unconstitutional. Many legislators never collected a penny of this illicit raise. Of those that did collect, the overwhelming majority paid the money back, either upon its repeal, or upon its being ruled unconstitutional. Indeed, the man who once walked in the very large shoes you aspire to fill – Sen. James Rhoades – did the honorable thing and paid back every single cent.

You've stubbornly refused paying back the pay raise money, citing the fact that you gave it to charity, which in your belief should excuse you from reimbursing the taxpayers. We would remind you that in American jurisprudence, giving ill-gotten gains to charity is never an acceptable defense. To say it in other words, someone who robs a bank could never tell the judge he gave the money to charity, and expect to get off the hook.

Our first appeal is to your sense of integrity: Giving back the rather large sum of money you owe the taxpayers is simply the right thing to do.

Our second appeal is to your sense for fiscal need: the Commonwealth is presently staring at a budget deficit that experts predict will reach anywhere from $1 billion to $2 billion. We are likely facing a combination of tax increases and painful cuts in vital state services and programs. What a shame it would be, for instance, if we had to cut $100,000 for library services, when you alone owe the taxpayers at least that much in excess per diem money and unconstitutional, unvouchered expenses. Combined with like amounts owed by your colleagues, the figure grows exponentially.

Failing our first two appeals, our final appeal is to the political sense for which you are famous. It would simply be political suicide to seek an open state Senate seat when you owe a very large sum of money to the taxpayers for unvouchered expenses and excess, tax-free per diem money. This is akin to expecting to be granted approval for a mortgage with deficiencies in your credit history, something your constituents are painfully aware of during these rough economic times.

We look forward to receiving word from you in the very near future that you have decided to do right by the taxpayers you seek to represent in Senate by paying back your unvouchered expenses and excess, tax-free per diem money.

Sincerely,
Eric Epstein
Rock the Capital
Gene Stilp
Taxpayers & Ratepayers United
Russ Diamond
PA Clean Sweep
Tim Potts
Democracy Rising
Dennis Baylor
PA Accountability Project

Gov. Ed Rendell has spent months going over the state budget and has come up with $439 million in proposed cuts to stem the massive red ink pouring from the 2008-09 General Fund budget.

The current budget deficit has already topped $658 million in just the first five months of the fiscal year. Projections have the deficit reaching $2 billion by the end of the fiscal year in June 2009.

At a recent press conference the governor asked for help in finding more cuts.

Eric Epstein, coordinator of RocktheCapital.org, a Harrisburg-based reform group, has answered the call. Epstein has released a list of $313 million that can be cut in state spending without impacting Pennsylvania residents.

Among the cuts:

Liquidate non-lapsing, leadership accounts $241.5 million

Eliminate Public Service Announcements by lawmakers: $1.35 million in annual savings

Reduce PHEAA funding by the amount spent on "lobbying fees": $1 million

For the full list, click here. Also visit RocktheCapital.org for more on the group's efforts to reform state government.

Brian O'Neill, a columnist for The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, recently interviewed citizen activist Tim Potts about his ongoing effort to reform Harrisburg.

Potts, a former legislative aide who founded DemocracyRisingPA, has a new strategy to keep the reform movement alive.

Potts is attempting to create a citizens watchdog network across Pennsylvania to keep an eye on state legislators, according to O'Neill.

From O'Neill's column:

Mr. Potts, of Carlisle, puts about 30,000 miles on his car each year talking to folks like these. He doesn't want to hear that Joe Citizen can't do anything about the systemic corruption in Harrisburg, and so is trying to counter it with systemic civic vigilance.

It's an ambitious, localized plan, and the punster in Mr. Potts can't resist calling it "Local Eyes." Citizen volunteers will home in on one state representative or senator and track all recorded votes on integrity issues, all sponsorships of reform legislation and any statements on public integrity.

Democracy Rising will provide volunteers with a list of bills and the voting schedule, but volunteers will be expected to meet each month with each lawmaker "for updates on activities toward the highest standards of public integrity in America."

Read the full column, Staring down a corrupt Legislature, at the newspaper's Web site.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has concluded that the only way to reform Harrisburg is the clean house in the Pennsylvania Legislature. Voters can accomplish that task on Nov. 4.

Pennsylvania voters, angry over the middle-of-the-night legislative pay raise in 2005, replaced 55 incumbents in 2006. So far this year, 27 incumbents have retired or lost their re-election bids in the primary, but real change can occur on Nov. 4 when 104 incumbents face opposition on the ballot.

Pennsylvania voters can put the fear of God into the Harrisburg political elite by throwing out scores of incumbents.

From the Tribune-Review editorial:

Why do Pennsylvania's leading lawmakers treat their constituents with such disdain? More to the point, how much more mistreatment are the people prepared to take?

In the twilight of yet another legislative session, for which so many spent so much to accomplish so little, bills to expand state transparency and promote better governance fade ever so deliberately into the haze that is Harrisburg.

For this inaction some Senate leaders blame an obstinate House. House Republicans slam the Democrat leadership. And the House leadership argues that it was the Senate that canned a lame-duck session -- which has been an excuse for all manner of mischief.

Funny how all the gibber-jabber about good government -- even for a fully warranted constitutional convention -- arises in the 11th hour when there was abundant opportunity for reforms this year, beginning with the state's overblown $28.2 billion budget.

Reform begins by pitching them on Nov. 4.

Read the full editorial, "Reforming Harrisburg: Throw 'em out" at the newspaper's Web site.

Curt Schroder, who has served in the state Legislature since 1995, has rubbed the Harrisburg establishment the wrong way in recent years, but he hasn't suffered any political consequences, says Daily Local News columnist Jim Callahan.

Schroder, a Republican who represents the 155th House District in Chester County, did not face a primary opponent and won't have to worry about re-election on Nov. 4 since the Democratic Party couldn't find anyone to run against him.

That's surprising since Schroder was one of the "gang of six" who led a revolt against House Speaker John Perzel in January 2007, denying Perzel another term as leader of the state House.

Perzel has been known to fund candidates to run against people who cross him, regardless of their party affiliation.

Fed up with abuses of power and the direction of the House under Perzel, Schroder and five other Republicans wanted change, Callahan writes.

The GOP revolt (and a similar uprising against Democratic Leader Bill DeWeese) left the Speaker's post in the hands of Dennis O'Brien, a little-known Philadelphia Republican who was elected House Speaker mostly by Democrats.

O'Brien promised to usher in "The Year of Reform," but very little was accomplished in that area during his tenure.

"We've made progress, but no, I'm not completely satisfied," Schroder told Callahan.

Read the rest of the column, "A political rarity: Schoeder gets a pass," at the newspaper's Web site.

Hold on to you wallet. The most expensive state legislature in the United States is back in session.

Fresh from a two-month vacation, the Pennsylvania Legislature reconvened for its fall session today. The Legislature is expected to work another nine to 16 days this year before taking a two-month holiday break.

So what important legislation is on the agenda today? Property tax reform? Fixing the state's deteriorating roads and bridges? Health care for the state's uninsured? Reforming what many observers consider the most corrupt state government in the country? None of the above.

The state Legislature is looking at changing he state's dog laws today.

For more on what to expect in Harrisburg, check out Capitol Ideas and POLICY BLOG

One other thing to look for in the next few weeks: More Bonusgate indictments.

Coincidentally, the grand jury that recommended charges against 12 people connected to the House Democratic Caucus over the summer also reconvenes today.

Read Brad Bumstead's column, "Here Comes The Other Shoe," at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Web site.

It may be the most expensive state legislature in the United States, but nobody can accuse the Pennsylvania Legislature of burning the midnight oil.

Actually that may be a good thing because when the Legislature stays in session after midnight, bad things happen, like the casino gambling bill in 2004 and the pay hike in 2005.

Eric Heyl, a columnist for The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, recently totaled the number of days the Pennsylvania Legislature was in session in 2007.

From Heyl's column:

Many readers were upset to learn recently in this space that lawmakers with base salaries of more than $76,000 annually spend more time in recess than they do in session.

For those who missed that column, a brief recap: From January through June, legislators rarely spent more than three consecutive days in Harrisburg performing what is supposed to be their primary professional function: passing legislation.

Before beginning a recess in early July from which they haven't returned, lawmakers took breaks of three and four weeks at a time. In fact, they were not in session at all for 11 of the first 26 weeks of the year.

Now comes the kicker: The Legislature is planning to be in session for just 16 more days in 2008, Heyl says. You heard it right. The most expensive state Legislature in the U.S., costing Pennsylvania taxpayers $300 million a year for the 253 legislators and their 3,000+ staffers, is planning to work just 16 more days this year.

Click here to read "16 days of work in six months may tire House"

From Russ Diamond at PACleanSweep:

Why Haven't They Signed?

It's been almost a month since Senator Jeffrey Piccola launched his petition drive within the legislature to call for a special session on ethics and reform, yet only 34 legislators have signed on. This, despite 76 percent of Pennsylvanians agreeing that such a special session is needed, according to a recent Quinnipiac University poll.

Are they deaf? Is it too much trouble for them to make a trip to Harrisburg to sign? Or do they simply not believe that reform is a priority? Perhaps though, they understand what PACleanSweep already believes: that the General Assembly is just not capable of reforming government. If so, they should just come out and say it.

Those legislators who have not yet signed the petition are listed on the PACleanSweep Hall of Shame with their Harrisburg and district phone numbers. We urge all Pennsylvanians to reach out and touch these lawmakers to find out exactly why they haven't signed. The time for reform is now. If they won't commit to it, then we'll have to do it for them.

We also invite you report their reactions to us via email; we'd love to help make their excuses public.

Visit the PACleanSweep Hall of Shame

PACleanSweep on WHP 580 AM All Week

Join PACleanSweep chair Russ Diamond as he and fellow activist Eric Epstein fill in for talk radio legend Bob Durgin all this week from 3-6 pm on WHP 580 AM, Harrisburg.

If you can't get WHP 580 AM from Harrisburg on your radio, you can listen live online by clicking the link below. All Pennsylvanians are encouraged to call in live and voice their opinion!

The Bob Durgin Show's toll-free talk line is 1.800.724.5801. Call in, pipe up & lock down your radio dial! Listen to WHP 580 Online by clicking here.

There are two possible outcomes from the Bonusgate scandal, according to an editorial in The Delaware County Daily Times:

One, voters will give up, saying they can't change the culture of corruption that pervades state government in Pennsylvania.

Two, voters will rise up and demand accountability by voting out incumbents, just like they did in 2006 in the aftermath of the pay raise scandal.

From the editorial:

People get so discouraged with the process, they begin to withdraw altogether. They shrug their shoulders, roll their eyes. Another day, another scandal in Harrisburg.

Now there is once again talk of reform in Harrisburg, with a handful of legislators pushing for a constitutional convention to address need change in the capital. The last time they did that was back in 1967. If you listen to the poll, the response from the public is clear: Don't bother, or waste the money.

It was just a few years ago when voters, outraged over a midnight pay raise voted by the Legislature in the wee hours of the morning, took out their revenge in a more practical manner.

First they vented their spleen. They demonstrated. They wrote letters. They held protests at the state Capitol.

Then they got serious. They voted.

A lot of politicians didn't even wait for the dust to settle. They left Harrisburg before they could be shown the door in the primaries. Several long-time pols who dared appear on the ballot were unceremoniously dumped from office. In one unheard of event, a sitting state Supreme Court justice was denied what is almost a formality in a retention vote.

It's time for voters to get involved one more time. Three of four people in the state do not believe the Legislature will take the necessary steps to clean up their act.

Citizens should do it for them. At the voting booth.

Read the full editorial, "Pa. voters need to clean up Capitol politics," at the newspaper's Web site.

This just in from our good friend Russ Diamond:

PACleanSweep, a non-partisan organization aimed at reforming state government in Pennsylvania, today revived its online Hall of Shame feature to pressure lawmakers into signing a petition to call a special session of the General Assembly focusing on ethics and reform in Harrisburg.

The Web page lists all incumbent legislators who have not signed the petition launched on July 21st by Senator Jeffrey Piccola. Also listed are the Harrisburg and district office phone numbers of the legislators to enable Pennsylvanians to easily contact them.

"We're stunned that more legislators have not yet signed the petition," said Russ Diamond, chairman of the group. "There are 55 freshman legislators in Harrisburg, most of whom were elected in 2006 based on their campaign promises of reform. We're especially disappointed with the individuals that PACleanSweep backed who have not signed on."

In the wake of the first round of "Bonusgate" indictments, Pennsylvanians are increasingly calling for reform in Harrisburg. A recent Quinnipiac University poll conducted in the Commonwealth reported that 76 percent of voters believe such a special session is in order. The poll results were fairly consistent across all regions of the state on the issue of reform.

Diamond anticipates that some lawmakers will claim to have not been in Harrisburg to have an opportunity to sign the petition, but are intent on signing it at a later date.

"Intent is not good enough. We all know where the road paved with good intentions leads," said Diamond. "The road to reform is paved with action. Pennsylvanians clearly want action and their elected servants ought to comply."

PACleanSweep previously used a similar web page to successfully pressure legislators into agreeing to pay back the unconstitutional "unvouchered expenses" received as a result of the ill-fated 2005 pay raise. The group also added support for a special session to the list of criteria for its online Legislative Report Card, a scoring system for all incumbent lawmakers.

Although a special session would not guarantee the enactment of any actual reforms, it would put the General Assembly in a position where reform is a priority. Overhauling the way the institution operates is a key component in moving Pennsylvania beyond its current crisis of confidence.

"Many compare the art of making law with the art of making sausage," Diamond added. "If that's the case, then our sausage machine is contaminated with salmonella. Until we disinfect the machine, all sausage produced is guaranteed to make Pennsylvanians ill."

PACleanSweep Hall of Shame

Senator Piccola's Petition for a Special Session

PACleanSweep Legislative Report Card

Quinnipiac Poll

Pick Up the Phone for a Convention!

Now that PACleanSweep's recommended language to enable a constitutional convention has been introduced in both the Senate and House, it's time to get on the phone and start pressuring members of the two State Government Committees to move this bill along.

Below, you'll find a phone list of all the members of these committees, the leadership of both chambers and the Governor. Without input from citizens, these people will not act. The most effective citizen input is via live phone calls.

It is highly recommended that you call ALL elected officials listed in bold, because in their committee or leadership roles they are acting on behalf of all Pennsylvanians. If your own Senator or Representative is a member of the committee, place a call to them as well.

When you call these folks, simply urge them to support SB1290 (for Senators) or HB2714 (for Representatives) and ask what they will do to move it along, get it out of committee and on the floor for a vote. Be courteous!

Then call again in a week or so to follow up on what they've done. Keep calling until we get some results!

Each legislator's Harrisburg office number is listed first and the subsequent phone numbers will put you in touch with their district offices.

In the Senate (SB1290)

Senate State Government Committee

Sen. Jeffrey E. Piccola, Chair (co-sponsor)
(717) 787-6801
(717) 896- 7714

Sen. Mike Folmer, Vice Chair (prime sponsor)
(717) 787-5708
(717) 274-7705
(610) 693-3200
(717) 361-8623

Sen. Anthony H. Williams, Minority Chair
(717) 787-5970
(215) 492-2980

Sen. Michael W. Brubaker
(717) 787-4420
(717) 627-0036

Sen. Jake Corman
(717) 787-1377
(814) 355- 0477

Sen. Wayne D. Fontana
(717) 787-5300
(412) 344-2551

Sen. Vincent J. Hughes
(717) 787-7112
(215) 471-0490

Sen. Charles T. McIlhinney, Jr.
(717) 787- 7305
(215) 489-5000

Sen. Terry L. Punt
(717) 787-4651
(717) 264- 6100

Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione
(717) 787-1141
(215) 533-0440

Senate Leadership

Sen. Joseph B. Scarnati, III, Senate Pro Tempore
(717) 787-7084
(814) 726- 7201

Sen. Dominic Pileggi, Senate Majority (Republican) Leader
(717) 787-4712
(610) 565-9100

Sen. Robert J. Mellow, Senate Minority (Democrat) Leader
(717) 787-6481
(570) 489-0336
Click here to track SB1290

In the House (HB2714)

House State Government Committee

Rep. Babette Josephs, Majority Chairman
(717) 787-8529
(215) 893-1515

Rep. Thomas W. Blackwell, Majority Vice Chairman
(717) 783-1491
(215) 748- 7808
(215) 978-2595

Rep. Jaret Gibbons, Majority Secretary
(717) 705- 2060
(724) 752-1133
(724) 794-1215
(724) 773-7499

Rep. Matthew E. Baker, Minority Chairman
(717) 772-5371
(717) 772-5371

Rep. Carl W. Mantz, Minority Secretary
(717) 787- 3017
(610) 366-2330

Rep. Kerry A. Benninghoff
(717) 783-1918
(814) 355-1300

Rep. Mike Carroll
(717) 787-3589
(610) 681- 2940
(570) 655-4883

Rep. Paul I. Clymer
(717) 783-3154
(215) 257-0279

Rep. Tom C. Creighton
(717) 772-5290
(717) 336-2199
(717) 664-4979

Rep. Mark B. Cohen
(717) 787-4117
(215) 924-0895

Rep. Lawrence H. Curry
(717) 783-1079
(215) 572-5210

Rep. Florindo J. Fabrizio
(717) 787-4358
(814) 455-6319

Rep. Robert Freeman
(717) 783-3815
(610) 253-5543

Rep. Mauree Gingrich
(717) 783-1815
(717) 270-1905

Rep. Glen R. Grell
(717) 783-2063
(717) 795- 6091

Rep. William C. Kortz, II (co-sponsor)
(717) 787-8175
(412) 466-1940
(412) 886- 2870

Rep. Deberah Kula
(717) 772-1858
(724) 547-4057
(724) 626-2761

Rep. Jim Marshall
(717) 260-6432
(724) 847- 1352

Rep. Fred McIlhattan
(717) 772-9908
(814) 226-9000

Rep. Michael H. O'Brien
(717) 783-8098
(215) 503-3245

Rep. Frank Louis Oliver
(717) 787-3480
(215) 684-3738

Rep. Cherelle L. Parker
(717) 783-2178
(215) 242-7300

Rep. Thomas J. Quigley
(717) 772-9963
(610) 326-9563

Rep. Sean M. Ramaley
(717) 787-4444
(724) 266-7774
(412) 761-1701

Rep. Kathy L. Rapp
(717) 787-1367
(814) 723-5203

Rep. Mike Vereb
(717) 705-7164
(610) 409- 2615

Rep. Greg Vitali
(717) 787-7647
(610) 789- 3900

Rep. Katharine M. Watson
(717) 787-5452
(215) 674-0500

Rep. Rosita C. Youngblood
(717) 787-7727
(215) 849-6426

House Leadership

Rep. Dennis M. O'Brien, Speaker of the House
(717) 787-5689
(215) 632- 5150

Rep. H. William DeWeese, House Majority (Democrat) Leader
(717) 783-3797
(724) 627-8683

Rep. Samuel H. Smith, House Minority (Republican) Leader
(717) 787-3845
(814) 938-4225
Click here to track HB2714

Call the Governor, too!

Edward Rendell, Governor
(717) 787-2500

The (Delaware County) Daily Times says things are so out-of-control in Harrisburg that only a constitutional convention could straighten out the mess our lawmakers have made.

From a Daily Times editorial:

A recent history of the men and women sent to serve the public in Harrisburg includes a middle-of-the-night pay raise, followed two years later by indictments of lawmakers and their aides for using state resources for personal election campaigns.

"Bonus Gate" alleges taxpayer money rewarded legislative staff with bonuses for doing campaign work for their bosses. That alone begs the question: If all that time can be spent on personal work, why is there a need for such a large staff for every elected legislator?

The moment has come for voters to make the hard financial decisions those in Harrisburg have demonstrated time after time that they never will. A constitutional convention would give the electorate that chance.

Read the full editorial, "It's time for a big change in Harrisburg," at the newspaper's Web site.

At least Gene Stilp remembered.

Today marks the third anniversary of the infamous Pennsylvania payjacking. How quickly we forget.

Stilp, one of the founders of the reform movement launched after the middle-of-the-night pay raise the Pennsylvania Legislature gave itself, the governor and the state's judges, marked the anniversary with a ceremony in the state Capitol.

From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

HARRISBURG -- A slim slice of carrot cake sat on a podium in the state Capitol rotunda today, marking the third anniversary of the infamous legislative pay-raise vote of July 7, 2005.

A coalition of citizens' groups said the small piece of cake represented the state's new open records law -- the one and only piece of reform legislation that the General Assembly has enacted in the wake of a huge public outcry over the 2 a.m. vote to increase legislative salaries by up to 34 percent, an increase that was later repealed.

"There is not very much cake for the people of Pennsylvania to eat," said Gene Stilp of Taxpayers & Ratepayers United, who hauled an inflatable pink pig around the state in late 2005 and 2006 to protest the pay raise.

Read the full story by reporter Christopher Wink, "Third anniversary of infamous pay-raise recognized," at the Post-Gazette Web site.

Where does the reform movement stand three years into the people's revolution?

About 100 of the lawmakers who voted for the pay raise will no longer be members of the Pennsylvania Legislature by the end of this year, having been ousted by voters or forced into retirement.

The Legislature has made internal changes in the way it conducts business, eliminating late-night sessions and requiring a waiting period for bills to be voted on so a last-minute scam like the pay raise can't be rushed through at 2 a.m. again.

But there's still a long way to go.

Pennsylvania voters have an opportunity to clean house again this November when all 203 members of the House and 25 members of the Senate face re-election.

State Rep. Sam Rohrer (R-Berks) issued the following statement regarding his NO vote on the $28.3 billion, 2008-09 state budget:

Totaling $1.08 billion in General Fund increases, this year's budget represents a 3.98 percent spending increase over last year's budget. Combined with the $2.9 billion in additional borrowing, the total amount of increased spending contained in or connected to this year's budget inflates to roughly $4 billion.

"Unfortunately for Pennsylvania taxpayers, the driving forces behind 'Rendell-a-nomics' and in turn the driving forces behind our state economy still revolve around the 'Big Three' - increasing taxation, increasing spending, and increasing debt," said Rohrer. "The $28.3 billion spending plan that was approved by the General Assembly on Independence Day is effectively unconstitutional because it is demonstrably out of balance ignoring clear financial data and accurate economic forecasts.

"This year's budget is problematic because it will predictably force the legislature to completely defund the Commonwealth's already largely depleted $740 million Rainy Day fund next year with no justifiable emergency or fiscally responsible reason for doing so. This year's budget is fiscally out of balance because without dispute this 3.98 percent spending increase is more than twice the rate of revenue growth (1.7 percent) over the last 12 months.

"In other words, spending in this year's budget is built on the extremely flawed assumption of nearly 4 percent economic growth over the next twelve months, when at best economic experts are predicting no more than 2 percent. While there may be no broad-based new tax increases or fees in this year's budget, next year Pennsylvania taxpayers, at minimum, could be asked to foot the bill for a $600 to $900 million budgetary shortfall next year. Even statements from Senate Democrat Appropriations staff and the Senate Republican Appropriations Committee Chairman place the deficit at between $800 million and $2 billion!

"In order to forestall an illegitimate raid of our Rainy Day Fund next year and most likely a massive tax increase, at best, state government needed to adopt a zero growth state budget that contained no more taxes, no more spending, and no more borrowing this year. Despite Pennsylvania's bottom of the barrel rankings across several critical economic indicators (49 th in job growth, 45 th in personal income growth, and 48 th in population growth among the 50 states) the 2008-09 state budget once again failed at limiting the growth of government spending in a fiscally responsible manner.

"While the governor has publicly acknowledged that a 'recession is a distinct possibility,' he continues to foster the idea to tax, borrow, and spend as the panacea to solve Pennsylvania's fiscal problems. After increasing spending by more than $7 billion in only five years time, the governor is once again extending his empty hands and demanding that Pennsylvania taxpayers allow him another opportunity to 'strategically invest' more than $4 billion more of their hard-earned money over the next several years in order to 'stimulate' the economy.

"If state government has failed to deliver a tangible rate of economic return for Pennsylvania's families in terms of property tax relief, job creation, improved roads and bridges, and reduced energy prices with $7 billion over five years, what reputable financial institution would hand over an additional $4 billion based on even more empty promises? How much spending is enough?"

State Rep. Sam Rohrer represents the 128th House District in Berks County. Rohrer has been a leader in pushing for the elimination of property taxes in Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania spends $10 billion a year on welfare benefits for its residents and perhaps 150,000 illegal aliens. "Don't ask, don't tell" appears to be the policy for determining eligibility for welfare payments in the Keystone State.

By cutting welfare programs by just 10 percent, the state could save $1 billion a year. That money could be put to other uses, such as repairing the state's deteriorating bridges.

That plan is being floated by state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, a Republican from western Pennsylvania. It's a lot easier than leasing the Pennsylvania Turnpike to a foreign company for the next 75 years or tolling Interstate 80, two proposals Gov. Ed Rendell has backed to find enough money to repair the state's bridges and highways.

Metcalf criticized the Rendell administration for not doing enough to rein in the Department of Public Welfare's spending, according to The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

"We are here to present our drunk-with-power, spend-a-holic governor with a legitimate zero-growth budgetary solution that does not involve excessive spending, increased debt, higher taxes, or recklessly . . . leasing the Pennsylvania Turnpike to a foreign entity," Metcalfe told reporter Tom Barnes, who covered the Tuesday press conference.

Read the full story at the Post-Gazette Web site here.

And as long as we're talking about finding better use of tax dollars, the folks at POLICY BLOG are wondering why Gov. Rendell insists on giving away millions in tax breaks to Hollywood moguls to make bad films.

Read "Tax credits and stupid Hollywood movies" at POLICY BLOG.

Republican lawmakers in Harrisburg continue to push for ways to reform state government.

Unfortunately, the Democrats who control the House continue to put obstacles up for any reform measures.

Barry L. Kauffman, executive director of Common Cause/Pennsylvania, reports that the Senate State Government Committee passed two important government reform bills on Tuesday.

Senate Bill 346 upgrades the way that legislative and congressional districts would be redesigned after each census, Kauffman says.

Changing the way Pennsylvania politicians draw political boundaries is "considered one of the critical pillars of reform," Kauffman says.

SB 346 moved out of committee by an 8-3 vote.

Kauffman complimented Committee Chairmen Jeffrey Piccola and Anthony Williams for working together to get the bill moving and give it a chance to meet the mid-July constitutional deadline.

"This redistricting reform bill is crucial to making Pennsylvania’s legislative and congressional elections meaningful again. When SB-346 becomes law, there will be much greater likelihood that voters will have meaningful choices on election day, and therefore have a greater ability to hold their elected officials accountable." Kauffman said.

A companion piece of legislation is bogged down in the House, where the Democratic chairwoman of the House State Government Committee, Rep. Babette Josephs, D-Phila., is refusing to allow a vote on the measure.

The Senate committee also unanimously approved Senate Bill 1488, which would make it illegal for lobbyists and those who hire lobbyists to provide gifts, hospitality, entertainment, meals or lodging to state-level officials and employees, Kauffman says.

The bill contains a reasonable exemption for plaques and also permits an official to participate in a group meal when speaking at a major organizational event that pertains to official duties, according to Kauffman.

"The Piccola gift ban proposal largely closes one of the big loopholes in the recently passed lobbyist disclosure; and in so doing ends a practice that appears to have raised serious concerns with most citizens. Lobbyists themselves have raised concerns about demands from officials for gifts and meals, while most citizens want to feel assured that their officials’ loyalties lie with them rather than with special interest lobbyists that provide the largesse," Kauffman says.

Despite his continuing personal likability, Gov. Ed Rendell is driving people out of Pennsylvania.

Higher taxes, deeper debt and out-of-control state spending are Rendell's legacy after five years as governor.

Nathan A. Benefield of The Commonwealth Foundation recently posted a commentary under the headline "Movin' Out" showing that Pennsylvania is losing many of its young people, who are fleeing the state because of the high cost of living and the lack of opportunity.

From Benefield:

During the 1990s, Pennsylvania lost over 250,000 net residents to interstate migration — the 5th highest state total, according to the U.S. Census. That trend has continued in recent years, at a slower pace, as Pennsylvania lost another 28,000 net residents to other states from 2000-2006. For the past several years, United Van Lines has classified Pennsylvania as a high "outbound" state, meaning more moves out of the state than into it. In 2007, 57% of shipments were moves out of Pennsylvania.

As of 2006, over 75% of Pennsylvania residents were born in the commonwealth — the 3rd highest percentage among states, trailing only Michigan and Louisiana (big population losers of late). Certainly, some Pennsylvanians think their state is the best place to live. But it is clear that Pennsylvania is not an attractive place to move to from most other states.

What happens when younger people move away?

You end up with "an aging population, stagnant economic growth, a loss of Congressional seats, and a growing tax burden on remaining residents," Benefield argues.

Read his full column at The Commonwealth Foundation's Web site.

There's also more info on migration patterns at POLICY BLOG.

The state's biggest newspaper recently published an editorial about a move in the state Legislature to allow government entities to place public meeting notices and other legal advertisements in shopping circulars and online instead of newspapers with widespread circulation in a community.

It's another effort by politicians to keep residents in the dark. For every door that opens on Pennsylvania's antiquated Sunshine Law, another one closes.

Politicians want residents to remain in the dark so they don't see how tax dollars are spent.

"The biggest and most important issue is the public's right to know and how best to get the information distributed to the broadest audience," The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. "Newspapers face many challenges these days, but they remain the cheapest and most reliable way to keep the public informed."

Tell you legislator to start working on real problems like property taxes, repairing roads and bridges and providing affordable health care instead of spending time on something that doesn't need fixing.

Read the full editorial, "Public Notices: Keep them where the audience is," here.

Gov. Ed Rendell issued a letter Friday urging the chairpersons of the House and Senate State Government committees to support legislation to change how Pennsylvania redraws its legislative district boundaries.

Redistricting reform is backed by most advocates of good government as a way to end the virtual lock incumbents have on most legislative districts.

A permanent political class has developed in Pennsylvania. Politicians spend 30 or 40 years in office by redrawing their districts to prevent challenges from other other political party.

"The Commonwealth's existing redistricting process undermines democracy by institutionalizing a powerful system of incumbent protection," Rendell wrote in a letter to Sens. Anthony H. Williams (D-Philadelphia) and Jeffrey Piccola (R-Dauphin), and Reps. Babette Josephs (D-Philadelphia) and Mathew E. Baker (R-Bradford).

More from the governor's plea for reform:

"For every vote to truly count, we must have competitive elections where voters have the opportunity to choose between viable candidates. I am convinced that the only way to ensure meaningful elections is to take politics out of the process of drawing legislative boundaries.

"This issue is neither arcane nor academic; how we draw legislative boundaries impacts the daily lives of Pennsylvanians because competitive elections in rationally drawn districts are the only way that voters can make their voices heard on the issues that matter to them," he said.

About a year ago, Rendell called for creation of a nine-member citizens' commission that would be charged with redrawing legislative boundaries.

I wrote at the time, that Rendell and I finally see eye-to-eye on an issue.

If the citizens' commission plan is adopted, districts would be required to be drawn based on population.

Deviations from the most populous to the least populous would not be greater than 8 percent under Rendell's proposal. Also, counties, cities, towns, boroughs and incorporated towns would not be divided unless it became unavoidable, Rendell says.

"People should be choosing their representatives, not the other way around," Rendell said.

By acting now on bills pending before the General Assembly, Rendell said redistricting reform would make it possible to amend the Pennsylvania Constitution and allow changes to be made before district borders are redrawn following the 2010 U.S. Census.

Now let's see Rendell put his money where his mouth is. Democrats (specifically Rep. Babette Josephs) are blocking redistricting reform in the House of Representatives.

Rep. Carole Rubley, R-157th Dist., and Tim Potts, co-founder of Democracy Rising PA, recently spoke to Great Valley Citizens Forum about reforming state government.

"To accomplish reform, the most important thing you need to have is persistence." Potts told the group. "You don't let a day go by without talking to somebody."

Rubley, a 16-year veteran of Harrisburg, is retiring at the end of the year. She told the forum that while individual lawmakers want to see changes, leadership continues to be the main obstacle.

Read the full story, "Forum focuses on reforming Legislature" in the West Chester Daily Local News.

State Sen. John Rafferty Jr. (R-44th Dist.) has introduced legislation to reform the executive nomination process in state government to avoid potential conflicts of interest and other ethical lapses.

The two bills would place certain limits on the executive nominations to serve on boards and commissions, according to Rafferty.

Senate Bill 1404 would prohibit an individual from being nominated to or serving on a board or commission if that individual already serves on another board or commission, or if that individual has a pecuniary interest in a contract that has been granted or approved by another board or commission.

The companion piece of legislation, Senate Bill 1405, would prohibit any individual who has an ownership interest in a casino located in the Commonwealth, or who is applying for a casino or slot machine license from being nominated to or serving on a board or commission.

"There is a definite need to prohibit individuals from serving on more than one state board or commission simultaneously. It is equally important that we prohibit them from being a public board member and then have a pecuniary interest with another board or agency, such as a bond counsel or accountant," Rafferty said in a written statement. "In my mind this is just common sense legislation from an ethical standpoint. No one with a financial interest in a gaming license, a gambling casino, shall serve on a public board, commission, authority or agency."

The governor currently nominates individuals to serve on boards and commissions, and the nominations then go to the Senate for approval.

The two bills will place certain restrictions on who the governor can nominate and eliminate any potential for a conflict of interest.

Co-sponsoring the bills with Rafferty are Sens. Jane Clare Orie (R-40th), John H. Eichelberger (R-30th), Mike Folmer (R-48th) , Terry L. Punt (R-33th), Edwin B.Erickson (R-26th), Jeffrey E. Piccola (R-15th), Michael L. Waugh (R-28th) and Patricia H. Vance (R-31th).

Both bills have been sent to the Executive Nominations Committee for consideration.

For more, visit Rafferty's Web site at www.senatorrafferty.com