RockTheCapital.org

From the Williamsport Sun-Gazette:

Reforming the state's public pension problems will mean refraining from the old politics of managing retirement systems and acknowledging that the status quo is no longer sustainable.

Rick Dreyfuss, a business consultant, actuary and a senior fellow with the Commonwealth Foundation, took time to dissect the state's principle retirement funds.

"The question is what are we going to do about it?" Dreyfuss asked those attending the Pennsylvania Economy League luncheon Wednesday at the Williamsport Country Club.

Statewide, the debt for pensions set aside for public employees and teachers comes to more than $20 billion, an amount that must be paid for by local school districts and municipalities.

That total, which could triple in the next several years, resulted over the years from increasing pension benefits, deferred costs and bad market conditions.

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From the Patriot News:

Harrisburg’s city government hit another pothole Wednesday when the state Supreme Court voided council’s power to make appointments to the Harrisburg Authority, and immediately stripped all sitting board members of their seats.
   
As for immediate impact, the ruling preempted a scheduled meeting of the five-member authority board Wednesday night.
  
“We’re just ordinary Joe Citizens now, and there is no meeting,” board chairman Marc Kurowski told a small group gathered for the session, some unaware of the court’s decision.

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From the Patriot News:

The Capitol corruption scandal CHRISTINE BAKER, The Patriot-News/filePennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett announced a second round of criminal charges flowing from the so-called 'Bonusgate' investigation of the state Legislature. A grand jury that investigated the state legislative corruption scandal known as Bonusgate wants the General Assembly to make sweeping changes, from how it hires and supervises employees to how it provides constituent services and even the way it debates passage of the annual budget.
   
A 34-page report obtained Monday by The Associated Press describes the Legislature as bloated with unnecessary staff and living in a time warp that reflects practices other states outlawed decades ago.
  
“This grand jury concludes, without any hesitation, that the current operational structure and ingrained procedures of the Pennsylvania House Democratic and Republican caucuses are irretrievably broken and in desperate need of systemic change,” the jury wrote.

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From the Patriot News:

In Pennsylvania, we have a long tradition of people running for elected office while holding another elected office.

This is not the case everywhere. Five states — Georgia, Texas, Florida, Hawaii and Arizona — have laws that prohibit certain public officials from campaigning for one office while sitting in another.

Some advocates think it’s time to do something similar here. They believe if someone wants to run for public office they should first step down from the one they hold.

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ASKS FOR CHIEF JUSTICE CASTILE’S RESIGNATION

1. Judicial Conduct Board complaint against PA Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille for violation of Judicial Conduct Code Canons 1, 2, AND 3b;
2. PA Supreme Court Justice Ronald D. Castille will be asked to resign and all the other justices of the PA Supreme Court are being asked to ask Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille to resign immediately;
3. Complaint and Request for Investigation with the U.S. Department of Justice in Harrisburg;
4. Complaint and Request for Investigation with the U.S. Department of Justice in Philadelphia;
5. Complaint and Request for Investigation with Philadelphia District Attorney;
6. Complaint and Request for Investigation with the PA Office of Auditor General;
7. Complaint and Request for Investigation with the PA Office of Attorney General; Office of Official Corruption (the Attorney General personally is being asked to recuse himself because of his current run for governor in order to avoid political complications);
8. Complaint and Request for Investigation with the PA Office of Inspector General;
9. Complaint and Request for Investigation with the Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives; and,
10. Complaint and Request for Investigation with the President Pro Tempore of the Senate.
     

From the York Daily Record:

At first glance, Tuesday's primary went badly for York County's contingent of the Tea Party.

Most of the candidates they backed -- for local congressman, governor, lieutenant governor and two statehouse seats -- took a beating from the Republican mainstream they'd identified as the enemy.

But they also managed to get a majority on the county's delegation to the state Republican committee.

Lee Ann Burkholder is one of those new state committee members. She said they've taken the first steps toward a strategy that will eventually give the Tea Party a far more powerful position within the Pennsylvania Republican Party, and within state politics as a whole.

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From the Scranton Times Tribune:

To avoid future pollution cleanup problems, a bipartisan consensus is emerging that Pennsylvania needs to significantly increase the bond amounts drillers post to cover the cost of plugging or closing natural gas wells.

Policymakers have yet to decide on a specific course of action.

The current bond requirements date to 1984, when the state tightened oil and gas laws in response to a short-lived drilling boom for shallow gas deposits in northwestern Pennsylvania. At that time, the technology wasn't available to reach the deep gas pockets of what is now called the Marcellus Shale formation underlying Northeast Pennsylvania and other regions.

Drillers are required to post a $2,500 bond for a single well and $25,000 blanket bond to cover any number of wells. The bonds are regarded as a financial incentive to ensure a driller will act responsibly and address any problems.

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From the Philadelphia Inquirer:

Gov. Rendell said Friday that the state would take over development of a new Family Court building, a decision that apparently kills a no-bid deal approved by the state's top judge.

Rendell said he would release the $200 million for the huge courthouse at 15th and Arch Streets, but would require competitive bids, even if that means delays, to make sure the project is scrubbed of any conflicts of interest.

Rendell's announcement means the apparent end of the court system's two-year-old development deal with Donald W. Pulver, a developer from Conshohocken.

From the Patriot News:

“You can’t claim you’re working a full-time job on behalf of the people while simultaneously running a full-time campaign on behalf of yourself,” said Eric Epstein of RockTheCapital.org.

Tim Potts of Democracy Rising PA said he views getting elected to an office as a contract with the voters.

“They gave you a vote in exchange for you to serve [the full term of office],” Potts said. “If you do not serve [the full term], you owe them a better explanation than, ‘I just want to take another step to the next rung on the political ladder.’ ”

If either Wagner or Corbett is elected, Potts said it becomes more unfair because it puts the next governor, and not voters, in charge of naming their successor to finish out their term.

Potts and Epstein are among those calling for the state to enact a law requiring elected officials to resign if they want to pursue another office.

Two gubernatorial candidates who responded indicated a modicum of interest in having such a law.

Corbett said, “I would certainly take a look at it particularly if it applied to everybody, including the state representatives and state senators.”

Wagner suggested the issue could be addressed at a constitutional convention, which he supports having.

Onorato and Hoeffel don’t support a resign-to-run law. Onorato considers it unnecessary. Hoeffel suggested serving in elected office is a way to develop the leadership skills needed for a higher office.

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By Mike Argento, first appearing in the York Daily Record: