The Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a bill shortly after 10 p.m. on Friday that would provide the state with a budget.
The Democrat-controlled House passed the bill mostly along party lines on Pennsylvania's 94th day without a budget by a 103-98 vote. It has now moved to the Senate.
The bill would bring in approximately $1 billion in renewable revenue, including new taxes. Republicans argued more cuts should have been made in the prospective budget, which is already trimmer than last year's. The budget bill includes new taxes on cigars, smokeless tobacco, casino table games and gas drilling.
Despite the House's approval, the bill may still face a battle in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The House budget bill contains significant differences from the proposal agreed upon two weeks ago by leaders of both parties in the Senate and Gov. Ed Rendell.
The current bill passed would introduce a 30 percent tax on the retail price of tobacco in Pennsylvania. It would also increase the license fee cost for table games in Pennsylvania casinos to $20 million per casino from the previous proposal's $15 million. The bill will maintain the proposal's 34 percent tax on daily revenue from the table games.
"This budget is 90, 95 percent of what was negotiated," said Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster. Sturla went on to endorse the gas and tobacco taxes and denounce the former plan's tax on performance arts.
"I think they will meet us somewhere along the way here," Sturla said.
However, Sturla and his colleagues probably should not hold their breath. The Democrats' decision to modify the deal will delay the budget process, Senate Republican spokesman Erik Arneson said.
"It is extremely disappointing that House leaders were unable to live up to the bipartisan agreement ... and chose instead to push legislation which does not have sufficient support to pass in the Senate," Arneson said after the House vote. He said the Senate GOP is reviewing the tax bill and considering its options, possibly to include weekend voting sessions.
"None of this is take-it-or-leave-it," Speaker of the House Keith McCall, D-Carbon, said after the vote. "Politics is the art of compromise."
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
