Tom Wolf in 2015 Governor's State of the State speeches

On Budget & Economy: Cut personal taxes 13%; fund schools by gas extraction tax

It starts by doing what every other major gas producing state has already done. We are going to place a severance tax on the extraction of natural gas. And we are going to tie the revenues from the tax to funding for public education.

I am proposing a five percent severance tax that is projected to generate more than $1 billion in annual revenues. While local communities will continue to receive funding to address the impact of the drilling, the bulk of these funds will be used to invest in public education.

This is not about politics or ideology. It is simply common sense.

On Corporations: Lower corporate tax rate by 50%, and close loopholes

At the same time, loopholes in that tax code allow many companies to avoid paying state income taxes altogether. Because of these loopholes, more than 70 percent of companies that do business in Pennsylvania do not pay corporate net income taxes at all. That forces more of the burden onto small businesses and families across our state

In other words, the problem is not only that our corporate net income tax rate is too high. The problem is that we are not even seeing the revenues the tax is supposed to generate. It is the worst of both possible worlds.

My budget will close the Delaware loophole and cut the corporate net income tax rate by 40 percent in the first year and 50 percent by 2018. That will take us from the one of the highest in the country to one of the lowest in the country.

On Education: $15M for community colleges but they must freeze tuition

But those improvements come with a string attached. In return for these increases, today I am calling on our institutions of higher education to freeze tuition, and I expect them to answer that call. These investments in higher education and community colleges will help prepare our young people for jobs that pay.

On Free Trade: Create "Made in Pennsylvania" cash-back jobs program

For manufacturing companies that increase their annual taxable payroll by at least one million dollars to create solid, middle-class jobs: they will receive cash payments of up to five percent of new taxable income the following year.

And let's go one step further: In our Grant and Loan Programs we should give priority to Pennsylvania companies. We should and we will.

Source: State of the State address to 2015 Pennsylvania Legislature Mar 3, 2015

On Principles & Values: Schools that teach; jobs that pay; government that works

1. Schools that teach: because for our children to succeed tomorrow, every child must have access to a great education, and teachers must have the resources they need to deliver a great education;
2. Jobs that pay: because for our economy to begin humming again, we need to be good partners with the private sector, enabling it to grow and create good jobs that will strengthen our middle-class families; and
3. Government that works: because for our state to be great again, we need a government that is more efficient and less wasteful. One that restores faith in the fundamental notion that our democracy still works.

On Social Security: Stop paying Wall Street millions to manage PA pension fund

So, here's what we are going to do: We are going to stop excessive fees to Wall Street managers. We're going to improve retirement security for state workers. With these and other improvements, we are going to save taxpayers nearly 1.3 billion dollars over the next five years while creating savings of 10 billion dollars in the unfunded liability.

Individually, these reforms aim to increase efficiency and eliminate wasteful spending. But taken together, they make big strides toward a larger goal: a government that works.

On Tax Reform: Cut property tax; raise sales tax & income tax

In fact, under my plan, many senior citizens will see their property taxes eliminated altogether. My plan raises the personal income tax to 3.7 percent. And it will make up for lost revenue by increasing the sales tax from 6 to 6.6 percent, while broadening the base to include services that currently are not taxed because special interest groups have lobbied for special exemptions. These changes will allow us to make a historic commitment to our schools.