Rendell: All state departments must cut spending by 2 percent

[The Northerner]

HARRISBURG -- Gov. Ed Rendell said today he is implementing a plan that calls for across-the-board departmental budget cuts of nearly 2 percent, which will mean laying off about 100 state workers, in an effort to save $212 million in the fiscal 2010-11 budget.

Mr. Rendell said he also is hoping the Legislature will soon adopt a new severance tax on natural gas pumped from areas of Marcellus Shale, which would generate $70 million in new revenue for the state budget.

Together, those two steps would fill a $282 million hole in the $28 billion budget that resulted when Congress didn't approve the full $850 million in extra Medicaid funding that state officials had hoped for.

Congress had originally talked of providing $23 billion nationally in additional Medicaid funds, but that was eventually reduced to $16 billion, so each state's allotment had to be cut.

Mr. Rendell said the 100 layoffs, while painful, are far less than the 12,000 that would have resulted if Congress hadn't approved about $600 million for Pennsylvania in additional Medicaid assistance. He said he didn't know yet which departments would lose workers but the layoffs would probably take effect by early September.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10230/1080917-100.stm

[cutlassmama]

1. Happens all the time, in all states. Usually it's the "vacant" positions that

are eliminated.