ICYMI: Williamsport Sun-Gazette: Josh Shapiro “Argues for Lower Corporate Taxes, More Police, More Vocational Education”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 28, 2022
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ICYMI: Williamsport Sun-Gazette: Josh Shapiro “Argues for Lower Corporate Taxes, More Police, More Vocational Education”
“I’ve always worked across the aisle, brining Republicans and Democrats together to get things done,” Shapiro said. “These are things that I think enjoy broad bipartisan support.”
PENNSYLVANIA – With less than two weeks until Election Day, Josh sat down with the Williamsport Sun-Gazette to talk about how he’ll address the issues important to voters in the Keystone State, like growing the economy, reducing taxes, reducing crime, and investing in our schools.
Josh has been traveling all across the Commonwealth, taking questions from voters and reporters alike to share his plans to embrace Pennsylvania’s role as an energy leader, lower the corporate net income tax, hire more police officers and invest in vocational and technical education so that all Pennsylvania students have ample opportunity to succeed.
While Josh Shapiro continues to reach voters everywhere and address the issues Pennsylvanians care about, Mastriano continues to go to great lengths to block reporters from getting a chance to ask him any questions about his close association with antisemitic extremists and his extreme agenda to ban abortion with no exceptions and upend Pennsylvania’s elections. In fact, Mastriano “did not respond to numerous requests over the past month” from the Sun-Gazette, the paper of record in a county that voted for Donald Trump by more than 40 points.
Read the Williamsport Sun-Gazette’s reporting below and see the full story here.
(The Williamsport Sun-Gazette invited the Republican and Democratic nominees in the 2022 governor’s race to answer questions in a recorded interview. Josh Shapiro, state attorney general and Democratic nominee, participated while Republican nominee and state Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Fayetteville, did not respond to numerous requests over the past month. Please scan the QR code to watch our interview.)
Josh Shapiro, state attorney general and Democratic nominee, wants to lower a key tax rate on businesses, promote vocational and trades education, hire more police and cap abandoned wells and mines.
These were a few of the priorities he told the Williamsport Sun-Gazette he would have if elected governor.
“I think we need to start in our schools,” Shapiro said, when asked about economic revitalization. “We need to bring vocational, technical and computer training back to Pennsylvania high schools.”
He said the state invests less in vocational education today than it did under Gov. Robert Casey, who was governor from 1987 to 1995, and added investment in vocational education would help the state offer young people “a pathway to success and opportunity.”
He detailed that high schools should provide a more “foundational” focus on trades, and craft a pipeline directly to apprenticeships.
Shapiro said the measures would help Pennsylvania ensure it has the workforce in place for more manufacturing and an “all-of-the-above” energy strategy.
He further called for greater broadband access and affordability and said Pennsylvania needs to invest in rural areas — not only cities, specifically calling for more investment in capital for agriculture.
“We need to make sure that the commonwealth makes clear that we are open for business,” Shapiro said.
Perhaps the linchpin of the economic platform he laid out is lowering the capital income tax to 4%. He noted Pennsylvania’s tax on corporate income, currently at 9.99%, is the second-highest in the nation. Gov. Tom Wolf signed legislation in July to gradually reduce the corporate net income tax rate to 4.99% by 2031.
“That’s more aggressive than even Republicans have been calling for in the legislature, but I think it’s necessary,” he said of his proposed 4% rate.
He noted his tenure as a Montgomery County commissioner and Montgomery County’s use of “zero-based budgeting.”
“Instead of taking the budget from the year before and just adding a few bucks on to every program, we actually sat down, and the theory behind zero-based budgeting is you begin at zero,” Shapiro said. “You actually force those who work on those programs to defend the initiative, to show their efficacy.”
He noted that under this approach, Montgomery County eliminated costly and ineffective programs and said Montgomery County had the lowest tax burdens in the “entire region.” He also cited a website the county unveiled to provide “total transparency” in spending as another tool the state could use.
Shapiro said “chronically underfunded” schools and policing are two functions of government he would consider for increased spending.
“I think we need to put more resources into policing,” he said. “I have a plan to hire 2,000 more police across Pennsylvania.”
On a related matter, Shapiro praised the work of former Auditor General Eugene DePasquale in “sounding the alarm” about a backlog of untested rape kits.
“It’s critically important that these rape test kits be prioritized and processed quickly,” Shapiro said.
“I think it’s really important that we have parents involved in setting that curriculum,” Shapiro said of public education.
He said he is the only candidate to call for adding parents to state Board of Education, which sets standards for school districts.
“I want parents directly involved,” Shapiro said.
When asked about the environment, Shapiro said he has taken the lead in prosecuting polluters — with a 100% conviction rate. He added his opponent, Republican gubernatorial nominee and state Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Fayetteville, has said climate change is “fake science.”
“Climate change is real,” Shapiro said. “I think it is fair to have different ideas on how to address it.”
He cited orphan wells and mines as a leading contributor to greenhouse gasses.
“I want to cap those nearly half million orphan wells,” he said, arguing it would create jobs rather than sacrifice them.
“I think it’s really important that we have an ‘all-of-the-above energy governor,” he said. “We are so uniquely focused here in the commonwealth with our natural gas and other energy opportunities to be able to really be a national leader.”
Shapiro said he believes his goals can be reached through bipartisanship. He noted he worked with the Corbett administration on transportation and infrastructure.
“I’ve always worked across the aisle, bringing Republicans and Democrats together to get things done,” Shapiro said. “These are things that I think enjoy broad bi-partisan support.”
The Williamsport Sun-Gazette reached out to Mastriano several times and through several channels in the past month to afford the Republican candidate the opportunity to answer the same questions. The Mastriano campaign has not responded.
“I think it’s really important that a leader be accountable to the people,” Shapiro said. “I understand that my opponent has refused to answer questions from local media, which is unfortunate. I think it raises the question, frankly, of what he’s hiding.”
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