Following is a listing of executive and legislative action from the week of Sept. 4. Both chambers of the General Assembly stood in recess at press time, subject to the call of their leadership.

'Taxpayers' Budget'

A group of Republican members of the state House of Representatives on Sept. 5 presented an alternative to the funding measure passed by the state Senate in June, which they are calling the “Taxpayers' Budget.” The group of 16 GOP state representatives said their proposal would fund the fiscal year 2017-18 budget without the need to borrow money or increase taxes. They have criticized the Senate plan as an unacceptable tax hike. In a statement carried on the House Republican caucus website, the working group said the “outcome of our work is a plan that would fund the budget while protecting taxpayers. This plan does not include borrowing money, nor would it raise taxes on natural gas, electric and telephone bills, which would hurt every taxpayer in the state.” They said more than 200 state accounts with high balances have been untapped in recent years and could be drawn down to fill some of the gaps in funding.

State Rep. Frank Dermody, D-Allegheny, took a shot at the Taxpayers' Budget, stressing that the $32 billion 2017-18 budget was passed on a bipartisan vote in the House and should be properly funded and not rely on what he termed “gimmicks.” Specifically Dermody questioned the legality tapping of restricted funds as proposed by the working group, and said that the dollar values may not support the spending plan.

“House Democrats believe that an honest budget solution must include the use of recurring revenue sources such as a severance tax on gas drillers and a higher minimum wage for Pennsylvania's workers, among other steps,” Dermody said in a press statement. “We are committed to working in a bipartisan way with Republicans to do the job that must be finished.”

Opioid Crisis

Drug companies Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen must act to address the heroin and opioid epidemic or face potential financial consequences in their stock prices, state treasurers from Pennsylvania, California, Illinois, and West Virginia and California said last week.