Voters have more work to do in Pa.

The executives of PHEAA have been awarded five- and six-figure bonuses on top of their six-figure salaries by state legislators who sit on PHEAA’s board, some of who had promised to reform this organization. Coming on the heels of exposing PHEAA’s wasteful expenditure of nearly $1 million on junkets and another $400,000 to try to hide the details of this embarrassment from the press, it is disheartening that only Sen Jane Orie, and, of all people, Gov. Ed Rendell, have expressed any outrage. Where are the other 252 legislators? Where is the reform movement that was so in vogue several months ago?

Many of us are outraged at what this General Assembly has done, but more so because of what it has not done. With the notable exception of the efforts of a few conscientious lawmakers like Sens. Mike Folmer and John Eichelberger and a handful of House members, this Legislature has approved an irresponsible budget; allowed our huge property taxes to continue to increase; reconfirmed some of Rendell’s top-level appointees, who had authorized the payment of millions of dollars to their spouses’ companies; refused to authorize an audit of the spending of tens of millions of dollars from House and Senate leadership accounts; continues to watch the state audit of bonuses to legislative staff members languish; totally ignored tort reform; crushed any hope of term limits; refused to pass totally open sunshine rules or eliminate political bribery by special interests; gave brief lip-service to a constitutional convention; and supported most of the governor’s spendthrift agenda. There is the record-to-date of the new leadership and those who replaced 25 percent of the House and Senate in January of 2007.

The bad guys are as firmly in charge of political corruption in Pennsylvania government as ever, and most lawmakers are passively standing aside, ignoring their commitments to much-needed reforms and busily planning their re-election campaigns. But some of us are tracking this disgraceful record and are planning the un-election of another 55 or more legislators in 2007 and 2008, until we have a state government that represents the will of the people. What say you?

Stan Alekna

co-chairman

Vote for Integrity PAC

Cornwall