Pa. Budget Negotiations Continue As Deadline Nears
By Tony Romeo
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Pennsylvania lawmakers are expected to be in session through the weekend as talks about a new state budget – due Tuesday – appear to be dead in the water.
On Thursday, all signs around the state capitol pointed to the increasing likelihood that the Republican-controlled legislature will send Democratic Governor Tom Wolf its version of a new budget -- a budget not likely to reflect the governor's proposals.
In that event, the question seems to be will the governor veto all of the budget, or, like former Governor Rendell in his first year, will he veto only part of it?
Wolf's spokesman Jeff Sheridan could shed no light on that Thursday:
"I can't speculate on what action the governor might take without seeing a final budget. That's his decision to make once he sees a budget. But he has very clear priorities, and that's what he wants to see."
In 2003, when then Governor Rendell signed most of the budget into law but line-item vetoed only the education spending, the budget was not completed until December.