News & Brews June 16, 2022
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Senate votes to disapprove Gov. Wolf’s (anti-)charter school regulations
Yesterday, the Senate voted 30-20 to concur with a House resolution disapproving of Gov. Wolf’s rules targeting charter schools and students. In his remarks urging senators to support the disapproval, Senate Education Committee Chair Scott Martin stated, “This will rob students of future learning opportunities and send vulnerable students back to school districts that are ill-equipped to meet their needs.” Wolf is expected to veto the disapproval, and the General Assembly would need a two-thirds vote in each chamber to override the veto. PennLive has more.
Early poll shows Fetterman, Shapiro leading GOP nominees
A poll released yesterday by USA Today Network and Suffolk University shows Democrat Senate candidate John Fetterman leading Republican Mehmet Oz 46% to 37%, with 13% undecided. Meanwhile, Democrat gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro leads Republican Doug Mastriano 44%-40%, with 13% undecided. The same poll found 54% of Pennsylvanians think the state is heading in the wrong direction, with just 29% believing it’s on the right track. The Post-Gazette has more.
Senate votes to cut corporate net income tax rate
Yesterday, the Senate voted 31-19 to cut Pennsylvania’s highest-in-the-nation corporate net income tax rate. SB771, sponsored by Republican Sen. Ryan Aument (Lancaster County) “would gradually reduce the state’s Corporate Net Income (CNI) Tax from its current rate of 9.99% to 6.99% by 2024 to attract new employers and promote economic growth. The rate could then be further reduced only if it meets or exceeds the revenue projections for 2024 at the 9.99% rate.” The bill now heads to the House for consideration.
Grove seeks again to tackle election reform
GOP Rep. Seth Grove (York County) has been doggedly fighting for election reform for some time. His Voting Rights Protection Act passed the Legislature only to be vetoed by Gov. Wolf last summer. His second attempt (the Voting Rights Protection Act 2.0) remains in the House. Now, City & State PA reports that an “optimistic” Grove “has expressed a desire to begin bipartisan talks on election law changes ahead of the November general election.” While Democrat lawmakers indicate openness to discussion, unfortunately Gov. Wolf seems disinterested in engaging in the conversation. Read more here.
Philly looks to cut wage, business taxes
It’s no secret that many people living, working, and doing business in Philly set their sights on the side of City Avenue that’s technically NOT within the city limits. Just a few feet toward the city, and taxes go up. Well, now the city may just be set to (slightly) cut the wage tax, make some changes to property taxes, and reduce the business income and receipts tax on net profits. Will the change be enough to attract businesses and residents? Hmm. Meanwhile, Philly apparently isn’t attractive enough to keep the attention of the historic annual Army-Navy football game. Yesterday, the academies announced they’re ditching the Philly tradition in favor of rotating locations over the next five years.