PITTSBURGH -- As the state budget battle progresses into its third week, paychecks for more than 70,000 Pennsylvania state workers remain in jeopardy without much hope of a resolution any time soon.
Gov. Ed Rendell -- at the center of the crisis -- made three stops in southwestern Pennsylvania on Saturday, hearing from families about just how desperate they are without their income. Already, some state workers have seen their paychecks reduced.
No budget deal by Friday would mean more state workers will receive smaller paychecks, and if there's no budget deal by July 31, paychecks will stop altogether.
Rendell: No Budget Means Thousands Of Layoffs
Speaking at the Fort Cherry School District in Washington County, Rendell said Saturday that if he signed off on the proposal the Republicans in the Legislature have put forward, 4,000 to 5,000 employees would be laid off.
"If I were a state worker, I'd rather miss a paycheck or two rather than having 5,000 people -- including possibly me -- laid off. That's what I'm fighting for," Rendell said.
Families of state workers asked tough questions about the budget impasse.
"Is the governor going to come pay our mortgages? Are they going to come pay our late fees when they don't get paid for the next two three months, however long it's going to take them? I don't think so," said Lois Nimal, of McDonald.
Additionally, if the paychecks for state workers stop, the stipends for inmates who do certain kinds of work at state correctional facilities would continue. So, convicts would get paid and the corrections officers would not.
"The inmates don't get their stipends from the state budget," Rendell said. "They get it by the work they do and it's a totally different fund."
The governor said there are low-interest loans available to state workers to get them through any period when they're not getting paid. Those with bad credit, can't get the loans, and some state workers said they can't get the loans because they're not members of the banks offering the loans, leaving few options.
"Hopefully, they have some reserve, or they can borrow money from their families, but they will get paid -- that's the good news," Rendell said. "The good news is they're guaranteed to be paid once there is a budget."
The governor has proposed raising the state income tax to balance the budget.
The Story Continues: 'Blue Dog' Dems Bite Into Budget Debate, see how some Democrats representing Western Pennsylvania are defying party leadership, standing against a proposed increase in the personal income tax
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