[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 17]
[House]
[Page 23806]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                            GOOD FISCAL NEWS

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, good news on the fiscal front from 
Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania Secretary of Revenue Greg Fajt said this 
week that State revenues for September were up 6.4 percent, higher than 
expected. In fact, every revenue source has reported an increase for 
the fiscal year. Sales tax, corporate income tax, personal income tax 
and even the realty transfer tax and the inheritance tax have produced 
unexpected dollars for the State treasury. For the entire year, the 
cash has come in at 2.9 percent or $134.9 million over the estimate.
  In addition, the Small Business Survival Committee has ranked 
Pennsylvania's tax code 17th in the Nation for its friendliness to 
small business. That ranking was based on being last in corporate 
income taxes, 10th in personal income, 21st in property taxes and 2nd 
lowest in bureaucrats per 100 residents.
  I hope what is happening in Pennsylvania is symptomatic of what is 
happening in other States in our country as we seek to make 
Pennsylvania and America a better place to provide jobs and raise our 
families.

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