HARRISBURG, Pa. — What’s old is new in the Pennsylvania State budget, as Governor Shapiro looks for ways to pay for his record-setting spending bill.
The Shapiro administration is projected to use $1.6 billion from the rainy day fund to balance the proposed $51 billion budget. On top of that, the governor reintroduced the idea of taxing skill games and legalizing recreational marijuana to bring in more revenue.
“People are interested in buying cannabis,” said Meredith Buettner, the director of the Pennsylvania Cannabis Coalition. “So how do we capture that revenue and keep it here? We have to legalize it.”
Buettner believes legalizing marijuana will help fund critical resources and create new jobs. Under Governor Shapiro’s plan, wholesale cannabis would be taxed at 20% and bring in around $536.5 million in revenue this year.
“We estimate that by legalizing marijuana in the Commonwealth, we can create 20,000 new jobs,” said Buettner.
The budget also calls for a 52% tax on 30,000 Pennsylvania Skill Game machines at bars and gas stations. The Shapiro administration estimates the tax would generate $368.9 million in revenue this year.
James DeLisio, who owns the Race Horse Tavern in Thomasville and is the president of the York County Licensed Beverage and Tavern Association, said he supports regulating skill games. However, he wants a lower tax rate to help local businesses who rely on the machines.
“Somewhere in the 16-20% range would be reasonable,” said DeLisio. “That would still leave quite a bit of the pie left to be dispersed amongst the people that it’s supposed to help.”
The divided legislature remains the biggest hurdle for Governor Shapiro’s budget proposal. Currently, House Democrats only hold a one-seat majority, while Republicans hold a 28-22 seat majority in the Senate.
Republican leaders called on Governor Shapiro to provide his plan to get both items passed.
“If he wants something done, he needs to lead on it,” said Senator Kim Ward (R-Westmoreland). “He can’t throw an idea out there, which he did last year, and say, ‘Let the legislature figure it out, and I’ll sign it.’”
