A top Republican state senator says it's looking more like Pennsylvania's budget package won't be finished by the start of the new fiscal year in three days as lawmakers grapple with the state's biggest cash shortfall since the recession.
Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman said Wednesday that the only agreement with House GOP leaders and Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf is on a spending figure, a number around $31.9 billion. That's about $600 million more than this year's budget figure, including money necessary to balance this year's books.
Corman says the Senate is trying to address concerns about cuts to spending approved by House Republicans, including to county social services. However, Corman says there's no agreement on how to come up with the roughly $2.2 billion necessary to foot the bill.
