State Democratic lawmakers are urging their Republican colleagues to return to the Capitol to vote on a budget package, as Pittsburgh's transit system has six months — and Philadelphia's system has one week — before service cuts go into effect.
" Come back to Harrisburg and pass legislation that allows us to properly fund transit and also roads and bridges," Senate Democratic leader Jay Costa of Allegheny County urged Republicans during a Wednesday press conference in his office.
The nudge to Senate Republicans came hours before the state House Transportation committee passed a bill — mostly along party lines — to advance transit priorities. The bill would earmark roughly $300 million in sales tax money for transit agencies statewide, as previously proposed by Gov. Josh Shapiro. But Democrats also folded in $500 million in bonds for bridge and road repairs statewide, an effort to appeal to Republicans.
The compromise legislation also requires agreements from Pittsburgh Regional Transit and SEPTA — the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority — for more oversight and transparency. The House bill mirrors that of an earlier proposal, which didn't include a funding increase, put forth by Philly Republican Senator Joe Picozzi.
"We are out of time," said House Democrat Sean Dougherty, the bill's prime sponsor, during the committee meeting.
" The Senate said they cannot agree to transit funding without holding transit agencies accountable for bad performance," Dougherty said. His proposal "includes Republican language … requiring both SEPTA and Pittsburgh Regional Transit to meet new minimum performance standards or face a reduction in funding."
He added that he included other Republican proposals in the measure, including provisions to establish new public-private partnerships and modernize operations, as well as funding for road and bridge projects across the state.
The Transportation Committee passed the measure 16-10, with two Philly-area Republicans voting in favor. Allegheny County Democrats Lindsay Powell and Joe McAndrew also supported it.
Transit advocates in Philly warned earlier on Wednesday that rollbacks would be inevitable if lawmakers don't pass a state budget by Aug. 14. PRT officials said earlier this year that without new funds, they'd face a $100 million deficit starting in July and reduce service in February.
The Pennsylvania budget is now more than five weeks overdue. Public transit support is among several sticking points identified by negotiators. Other areas of dispute include public school funding, the high cost of Human Services, and an effort to generate revenue by taxing slot-like "skill games."
The Democratic-controlled state House passed a budget bill in mid-July, but Senate Republicans have so far not returned to the Capitol for session.
"All of this should have been wrapped up on June 30," said Philadelphia Sen. Vincent Hughes, the Democratic chair of the Appropriations committee, alongside Costa earlier in the day. A transit-only funding bill isn't Democrats' priority, he added: "We need to get the whole thing done."
Republican Senate leader Joe Pittman has said the delays stem from the fact that the two parties "have different visions for the future of the Commonwealth… Regardless of divided government or political philosophy, some of these issues are just extraordinarily complex, and they need to be done correctly," he said in a recent statement.
SEPTA, which is facing a much more imminent funding crunch than the system in Pittsburgh, says it's agreed to new state oversight measures to quell concerns about the $1.5 billion in state funds it receives each year.
The reforms include public reports on the system's efficiency and finances, as well as promises to rein in crime and halt fare evasion. Philly-area Senate Republicans have said those measures would help leadership in the upper chamber support the transit funding hike sought by Shapiro.
Though the Senate bill introduced last month focuses on SEPTA, transit agency reforms would be "system-wide," Costa told reporters Wednesday.
"Speaking with representatives of PRT, they're supportive of the reforms that have been proposed and they see it as a means to be able to get to an end," Costa said. "And we think that's an appropriate step for them as well."
A PRT spokesperson said Wednesday that officials are reviewing the House bill that passed the Transportation committee.
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