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Wine, gambling, cigarettes: How the Pa. House proposes to fund its $31.5B budget

HARRISBURG - There may soon be a budget bill, but there is no budget deal. The proposal that cleared the House Appropriations Committee on Monday night calls for the state to spend about 5 percent more next year than it did under this year's $30 billion budget.

HARRISBURG - There may soon be a budget bill, but there is no budget deal.

The proposal that cleared the House Appropriations Committee on Monday night calls for the state to spend about 5 percent more next year than it did under this year's $30 billion budget.

The boost in spending would be propped up by legalizing online gambling, loosening the state's monopoly over the sale of wine, imposing new taxes on tobacco, and instituting a tax amnesty program.

But neither the GOP-dominated Senate nor the administration of the Democratic governor have committed to support it.

Jeff Sheridan, Gov. Wolf's spokesman, said Monday that the governor had not agreed to the plan. It doesn't fully fund one of Wolf's spending priorities: new dollars for opioid abuse treatment and prevention.

Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman (R., Centre) expressed skepticism about aspects of the House plan. "We haven't finalized anything," he said, later noting, "There is no sense sending the governor something he doesn't want, or at least won't agree to sign."

The new fiscal year may begin Friday, but Wolf and legislators blew past that deadline last year - by nine months.

In the House Appropriations Committee meeting late Monday, that recent discord was nowhere to be seen. The committee voted unanimously to amend the spending plan into a bill and then voted, 36-1, to send it to the House floor.

"This is, I think, a very good example of what we can do when we work together," said Rep. Joe Markosek of Allegheny County, the ranking Democrat on the committee.

Chairman Bill Adolph (R., Delaware) said the plan is for the House to vote Tuesday to send the bill to the Senate.

Wolf has backed off his position that only increases in broad-based taxes like the sales and personal income taxes can raise the kind of money he believes is necessary to close a $1.8 billion deficit while also boosting funding for public education.

Republicans who last year insisted on privatizing the state's liquor system and changing pension benefits for future employees have not made those demands part of negotiations.

But fundamental differences still remain over how much to spend and how to raise the money to support that spending.

As House Majority Leader Dave Reed (R., Indiana) told reporters earlier Monday, the $31.5 billion budget includes $200 million more for basic education, about a 3 percent increase. Wolf had sought $250 million extra.

The plan includes an additional $15 million targeted at the opioid medication epidemic, according to House Republicans staff. Wolf has called for $34 million.

"As Gov. Wolf has said, he is focused on a final budget that is balanced with sustainable revenue, invests in education, and provides funding to combat the heroin crisis," Sheridan said in a statement after the vote. "The governor looks forward to continuing to work with the legislature, and as the budget moves through the process, he is hopeful all sides can reach an agreement that achieves these goals."

acouloumbis@phillynews.com

717-787-5934 @AngelasInk