Pennsylvania Facing $1.2B Budget Shortfall

Pennsylvania is facing a $1.2 billion budget shortfall for the next fiscal year, state Budget Secretary Charles Zogby said at a briefing in Harrisburg on Wednesday.

He did not say how how Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration plans to make up the difference, The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting.

Administration officials told the Inquirer that soaring pension and health-care costs were among the reasons the state will be in the red.

Corbett in his first year in office made deep cuts to public schools and social services, which led to some of the lowest approval ratings in Pennsylvania history, The Inquirer said. Zogby said similar cuts would not be an appealing way to make up the difference.

Corbett is running for reelection. He will release his budget proposal for the next fiscal year in February.