HARRISBURG - Gov. Tom Corbett is asking lawmakers to share the pain of the newest round of state budget cuts.
He is seeking a 3 percent or $8.1 million spending reduction in the Legislature's $272 million appropriation for fiscal 2011-12. This is in line with his requests for cuts to other state offices and branches outside the governor's control such as the Judiciary and offices of state attorney general, auditor general and treasurer.
Senate and House Republican leaders are reviewing the request, which they got when the governor announced the round of cuts Wednesday.
Citing a state tax revenue shortfall of $487 million, Corbett ordered nearly $160 million in spending cuts or freezes from the current $27.15 billion state budget. He is seeking an additional $66 million in total spending cuts from a dozen independent or autonomous agencies of state government, including the General Assembly.
The call for a 3 percent cut in legislative spending gets no argument from Rep. Ken Smith, D-112, Dunmore.
"So be it," he said. "Absolutely."
Sen. John Blake, D-22, Archbald, said he thinks the request for a 3 percent cut on a scale with other state agencies will be met.
"My guess is the caucus leaders will accept it," he added. Senate President Pro Tempore Joseph Scarnati, R-25, Jefferson County, discussed cost-containment efforts when he was re-elected to his post on Tuesday.
He said this has involved actions on both a large and small scale.
At the top end are a recent restructuring of health benefits projected to save $4.1 million during the next five years and an early retirement offering to employees projected to save $2 million in salary costs, said Scarnati.
On the smaller scale, the Senate saved $37,000 by reducing the printing of Pennsylvania manuals, put pay stubs online to save $15,000 and ended the framing of official photos to save $22,000, said Scarnati.
Also in the works is ending the practice of having a gold-embossed seal on Senate stationary, he added.
"We are continuously looking at cost-saving measures for the Legislature," said Stephen Miskin, spokesman for House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, R-28, Pittsburgh.
He said a salary freeze was in effect for House employees for three years until it ended last year. Under new procedures, employees no longer receive automatic salary hikes. Employees can get up to a 2.5 percent salary increase based on work performance and other criteria, added Miskin.