PA Gov. Corbett: Congress Cannot Avert Fiscal Cliff Without Tax Increases

Last Friday, Republican Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett said Congress cannot avert the fiscal cliff without raising taxes.

“I don’t think they can resolve it without an increase in some taxes, but they have to counterbalance it with entitlement reform and with fraud, abuse and waste reform,” Corbett said on Bloomberg TV.

Corbett has pledged he would not raise taxes in his state, and he reiterated he had  “no intention” of breaking his promise even though his state’s public pension funds “may be getting too small to meet future pensions without enacting additional taxes or cutting back on benefits,” according to reports. 

The Pennsylvania governor noted he did not think spending cuts could be avoided without federal tax increases. Corbett said spending cuts would hit states like his hard, saying they would have “an effect across the board” and “every state is going to be affected.” He cited cuts to aid for women and infants, elderly residents, and special education programs for the disabled as programs that would be impacted in Pennsylvania.