This article was originally published in The Notebook. In August 2020, The Notebook became Chalkbeat Philadelphia.
The centerpiece of Gov. Wolf’s Pennsylvania budget plan died its umpteenth death around a negotiating table this week.
Republican legislative leaders emerged from closed-door negotiations with the Democratic Wolf administration to announce that the governor’s proposed severance tax on natural gas drillers is a non-negotiable no-go.
"Our counterproposal was nothing," said Senate President Pro Tem Joe Scarnati. "Yeah, nothing."
Wolf adviser John Hanger said the administration offered major concessions on a Marcellus Shale tax — there would be no minimum price on gas, and drillers wouldn’t have someone looking over their shoulder to double-check how much they make off the gas.