Pennsylvania Politicians Say State's Surplus Should Be Put In Reserve

HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) - Pennsylvania's top fiscal watchdog, a Democrat, is siding with the Republican governor and the state House GOP in saying most of the half-billion dollar surplus in the current budget should be put in reserve.

Pennsylvania revenue collections are $540 million dollars above projections for the current fiscal year. But due, in part, to the loss of federal stimulus money, drastic cuts have been proposed for the next budget. State House Democrats invoke Global Insight, an economic consulting firm, saying that Pennsylvania is clearly on an "upward swing" as they argue for using the surplus, to mitigate some of those cuts. But Auditor General Jack Wagner, also a Democrat, pointed to a Wall Street Journal headline blaring dark economic news as he argued for the opposite…

"I think Governor Corbett is right to say that the majority of the surplus needs to be kept in reserve for the unknown going forward."

Wagner says Pennsylvania's fiscal obligations and liabilities "dwarf" the surplus.

Reported by Tony Romeo, KYW Newsradio