|
|
Scarnati said again last week that he does not believe that Pennsylvania needs a separate, full-time lieutenant governor, especially not one with offices in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, a 16-person staff, a full-time state-furnished house, state police as driver/bodyguards, etc., etc.
Sen. Bob Jubelirer of Altoona also was lieutenant governor for a time, because he was president pro tempore of the state Senate when Mark Schweiker ascended to the governorship vacated by Tom Ridge.
Both Scarnati and Jubelirer continued to function as Senate leaders. They found the time to discharge the two key duties of the lieutenant governor: presiding over the Pardon/Parole board, and presiding over the Senate.
Jubelirer introduced legislation to eliminate the office. It went nowhere.
Pennsylvania does not need a lieutenant governor as a separate, full-time, cost-us-millions job.
But candidates for Pennsylvania's governorship need a lieutenant governor. Ed Rendell, from Philly, needed Knoll, from Pittsburgh, to "balance the ticket." Ridge, from Erie, needed Schweiker, from Levittown near Philly, to "balance the ticket." And on and on.
Why?
Why do Pennsylvanians have to spend millions of dollars per year to continue to have a full-time lieutenant governor?
In four states, the Senate leader assumes the governor's office if there is a vacancy: Maine, New Hampshire, Tennessee and West Virginia. In Arizona, Oregon and Wyoming, the Secretary of State becomes the governor. Ditto for the territory of Puerto Rico.
In Pennsylvania, we have three other independently elected statewide officials who could assume the office of governor, either temporarily or permanently: State treasurer, state attorney general, state auditor general. We also have the leaders of the Senate and of the House, who would seem to be the best bets.
The lieutenant governor elected in November of this year ought to be the last full-time, do-nothing-much, cost-us-millions lieutenant governor in Pennsylvania.
Let's see how skillful the current legislative leaders are in moving such a measure into law.
---
Denny Bonavita
