Letter to the Editor: County Councilman Edd Brominski pledges to pursue government ‘for all the people’

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Scranton-based rock band Family Animals to hold album release at The Bog in Scranton

<p>DALLAS &#8212; State Rep. Aaron Kaufer said he was &#8220;on a roll&#8221; Friday morning as he addressed the Back Mountain Chamber of Commerce at Irem Temple Country Club.</p><p>Kaufer talked about pension reform, property tax reduction/elimination and the ongoing budget negotiations.</p><p>Kaufer even took time to criticize the way state government operates, saying it&#8217;s time to work across party lines for the betterment of all Pennsylvanians.</p><p>As far as Gov. Tom Wolf&#8217;s prediction that there will be an approve state budget by Thanksgiving, Kaufer said he wasn&#8217;t so confident.</p><p>&#8220;We should know better on Monday,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But if you ask me now where we are, I really don&#8217;t know.&#8221;</p><p>Kaufer&#8217;s uncertainty is not from a lack of knowledge of the issues, but rather a lack of being able to read how his fellow legislators will vote.</p><p>Kaufer said the state Senate is considering taking a vote on property tax elimination. He said proponents in the senate feel they have the necessary votes to pass the measure.</p><p>Kaufer doesn&#8217;t think there weren&#8217;t enough votes in the House to approve the measure when it was last discussed. However, he said if the Senate approves it, that could sway enough member in the House to get it to the governor&#8217;s desk.</p><p>&#8220;If it does get to Gov. Wolf, I would hope that he would sign it and not veto it,&#8221; Kaufer said.</p><p>Kaufer said the proposed increase in the state sales tax from 6 percent to 7.25 percent will allow taxing some current exempt items, such as clothing items over $50.</p><p>&#8220;We are facing some very difficult decisions,&#8221; Kaufer said.</p><p>Pension reform is high on Kaufer&#8217;s agenda. He&#8217;s hopeful his bill that targets public-assistance abuse &#8212; that passed the state House by a vote of 149-48 with bipartisan support &#8212; will soon become law. It&#8217;s next stop is the state Senate.</p><p>Kaufer said the bill will put a stop to &#8220;double-dipping&#8221; &#8212; requiring Pennsylvania recipients to disclose states in which they previously received welfare benefits to allow cross-checking to guard against those recipients getting benefits from multiple states.</p><p>Kaufer said some Pennsylvania welfare recipients have been known to also receive benefits from states as far away as Hawaii and Alaska and as close as New Jersey.</p><p>We need to have agreements with other states to stop this double-dipping,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Recently Kaufer described Northeast Pennsylvania as a &#8220;welfare haven.&#8221; He said that designation was based on information provided by the state Auditor General&#8217;s Office indicating that Northeastern Pennsylvania residents receive a disproportionate amount of benefits when compared with other regions.</p><p>Kaufer said his bill would mandate informing states in which Pennsylvania welfare recipients have previously collected benefits that they are now receiving benefits here. Kaufer said 30 out of 32 county assistance offices &#8212; including Luzerne County &#8212; failed an audit review. He said discrepancies found inefficiencies of the system and the likelihood that people dishonestly collect benefits.</p><p>Kaufer said he favors adding 20 hours to the community service component of the welfare program as part of his welfare-to-work effort.</p><p>&#8220;We want to provide them with a hand up and not a handout,&#8221; he said.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">State Rep. Aaron Kaufer, R-Kingston, speaks at a breakfast meeting of the Back Mountain Chamber of Commerce Friday morning about new legislation being considered in Harrisburg. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/web1_TTL111415Kaufer.jpg</photo0><caption0>State Rep. Aaron Kaufer, R-Kingston, speaks at a breakfast meeting of the Back Mountain Chamber of Commerce Friday morning about new legislation being considered in Harrisburg. </caption0><photoCredit0>Charlotte Bartizek | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Kaufer tells Back Mountain Chamber his viewpoints on pending issues in Harrisburg