A Republican state senator running for governor is on a recording telling a crowd that he's urged House Appropriations Committee Chairman Stan Saylor to block a tax on Marcellus shale natural gas production to hurt Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf's re-election chances.
Scott Wagner's comments were recorded Sept. 14 at a York County event by a Democratic Party tracker.
On the recording, Wagner says, "I said, 'Stan you cannot let this severance tax get through and it gets to the governor's' desk, because if that happens the governor is going to get re-elected. Stan, you take that to the bank.'"
Wagner's campaign didn't challenge the recording's authenticity. Saylor's office says he already opposes the tax.
Saylor and other House Republican leaders oppose severance tax legislation as part of a budget deal with Wolf.
