Huntingdon County Representative Larry Sather tells The Daily Herald he will challenge and fight any effort by Governor Ed Rendell to force school districts to participate in the controversial Act 72 plan.
Rendell, and some legislators, have said in recent days they may try to force school boards to opt in to the plan.
Sather says he will work with other lawmakers in Harrisburg to try to block any such legislation from being considered or passed.
“I have a problem with state government micromanaging at the local level,” Sather said. “The governor has failed to convince communities of the benefits of this program and now has discussed the possibility of trying to force it on school districts. I will work with others to block any attempt to eliminate a local communities’ right to decide whether or not to accept this program using money created by slot machines.”
Under the current legislation, the 501 school boards in the state have until May 30 to either opt in or opt out of what the governor has called a property-tax reduction plan.
Legal efforts spearheaded by several school districts and the association which represents school boards in the state to extend the deadline have failed so far in the courts.
Sather said it is not fair for a school board to be forced into making a decision about budget matters two years away.
If school boards opt to share in the revenue from gambling, school boards must agree to raise local income taxes and seek voter approval for any future property-tax increase that exceeds the inflation rate.
At the last tally, only 30 of the state’s 501 school districts have agreed to the plan, while 53 have voted against participating in the Act 72 program.
Sather has been on record as opposing the expansion of gambling in the commonwealth.
“There are other proposals for property-tax reduction or elimination that have been proposed by members of the Republican Caucus but all the governor wants to focus on is gaming,” said Sather.
