Rendell: Only 100 Layoffs Despite Spending Cuts
Governor Rendell says he will be able to keep state worker layoffs to just about 100, even though he will proceed with a plan to cut spending by nearly 2-percent because the state will be getting less federal funding than expected.
KYW's Tony Romeo reports Governor Rendell had anticipated as many as a thousand layoffs because of cuts in the state budget, even before the status of federal funds was known. But he says that won't be necessary, thanks to a hiring freeze and more retirements than expected:
"The good news is that we'll probably only have to issue approximately 100 layoff notices. Don't know where they are yet, what departments they're from. The secretaries will be working on that."
While the federal government did approve less medical assistance money than expected, it also approved more money for schools. As a result, Senate Republican leaders wanted Rendell to eliminate all of the increase in state funds for basic education and apply it toward the state's underfunded pension plans. But the governor is rejecting that proposal, saying the Senate should instead pass pension reform legislation.
(File photo: CBS3)
