Wolf steps up to plate and swings for fences

It's a favorite phrase of surfers and X Games competitors, but it's rarely one that encapsulates a presentation by a politician. That's why Gov. Wolf's first budget address was so startling.

Pennsylvania's new governor threw down the gauntlet by telling legislators that if they want to change the way the commonwealth does business, they need to make major changes in multiple areas. Cherry-picking favorite proposals will not cut it.

There is much to be done in Pennsylvania, so let's start with taxes.

On the corporate side, the structure too often rewards all the wrong economic decisions. The business community has been clamoring for changes not just in the level of taxes - everyone wants a tax cut - but in the type of taxes paid. There has to be a better way, but what is it?

And does anyone really think that funding education largely through property taxes is the sanest way possible? Well, no, which is why there are all sorts of additional nuisance taxes. Even when school districts impose earned-income taxes, townships can get half the pie. Did the legislators who wrote this law have any contact with reality?

On the positive side, there is the state's income tax, which is one of the lowest in the nation. But no one is asking if the level makes financial or competitive sense, especially given the commonwealth's revenue needs. And why is it a flat tax, rather than the graduated tax that 33 states have? "It is what it is" is not a good explanation. Maybe a change is in order.

But these examples only encompass the revenue side of the budget. Spending is the other half. Start with education.

Seriously, are Pennsylvanians pleased with being near the bottom of the national rankings when it comes to state aid to education, but toward the top when it comes to dependence on local funding? Heard any suggestions how to change that, other than the governor's?

Spending on infrastructure is also suspect. We don't have a stable, long-term funding structure for infrastructure, especially highways. With hybrids, electric cars, and rising fuel-efficiency standards reducing gasoline-tax revenue, the current approaches make no sense. Suggestions, anyone?

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Wolf steps up to plate and swings for fences