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PENNSYLVANIA
RESTAURANT & LODGING
matters
•
Winter 2017
legislator
spotlight
Senator Scott Martin
(R—13th District,
Lancaster County)
WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO RUN FOR STATE SENATOR?
As a county commissioner, I witnessed firsthand the impact difficult issues such
as pension reform, property taxes, and late budgets had on our taxpayers. I
decided that I wanted to be in the arena and part of the debate that addresses
these difficult issues while working to bring about that same positive change to
state government. Additionally, I see many ways in which our state government
could operate more efficiently and to the benefit of our constituents.
HOW DO YOU THINK YOUR BACKGROUND AS A
FORMER COUNTY COMMISSIONER WILL HELP YOU IN
YOUR NEW ROLE?
As a county commissioner, I saw firsthand how decisions made by the state
government directly impacts local governments and ultimately the taxpayers. Some
of these decisions made us less efficient and effective. One example would be the
unjustifiable cost increase prevailing wage has on government projects. Another
would be unfair funding formulas where cities like Philadelphia, which has only
four times the need for drug and alcohol funding than Lancaster County, receives
12 times the amount of funding needed. These few examples demonstrate the
importance of having perspective on the challenges facing local government.
As a commissioner, I also helped implement efficiency in county government
by eliminating duplications of services and improving the criminal justice
system. I am eager to bring that same spirit of collaboration and efficiency
to Harrisburg for the taxpayer. I also had the opportunity to be an active
member of the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania, an
organization which advocates for legislation benefiting counties throughout
the Commonwealth, where I gained a much broader perspective of
local needs in Pennsylvania beyond that of only Lancaster County.
WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR PRIORITIES AS A NEW SENATOR?
Property tax and pension reform are the two issues I hear most about from
my constituents and I fully expect them to be top priorities this session. I
also am passionate about Medicaid reform in hopes that we can control
costs and reduce its impact on the state’s budget. Lancaster County has
been ground zero for energy infrastructure development, with the Atlantic
Sunrise Pipeline set to run through parts of the county, so I’ve become
immersed in this issue. I’d like to continue to work towards promoting
infrastructure development to promote job growth and lower energy
costs, all of which can be done in an environmentally responsible way.
WHAT DO YOU THINK SOME OF THE BIGGEST STRUGGLES
WILL BE THIS LEGISLATIVE SESSION?
I expect one of the challenges we’ll face this year will be addressing the
current budget deficit and getting the next budget passed on time. We’re
looking at a significant shortfall and there are some difficult decisions that
will need to be made moving forward. We need to make sure we are running
government as efficiently as possible before we go digging in taxpayers’
pockets. There are a lot of opportunities for reform out there—Medicaid
and public pensions especially—and we can’t kick the can down the road.
We need to have the political courage to make these tough decisions.
“Property tax
and pension
reform are the
two issues
I hear most
about from my
constituents
and I fully
expect them to
be top priorities
this session.”