Harrisburg, PA — Yesterday, Tom Corbett took a strong stand to protect the profits of some of his largest donors by siding with natural gas companies over Pennsylvania taxpayers. While Dan Onorato repeated his reasonable proposal to hold companies responsible for the environmental impact of natural gas drilling, Tom Corbett wants taxpayers to pick up the tab.

“Tom Corbett’s plan to let his top donors off the hook when it comes to their impact on our environment and local communities is irresponsible and costly for Pennsylvania,” said Mark Nicastre, spokesman with the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. “Instead of protecting his top donors, Tom Corbett should protect Pennsylvania taxpayers.”

In May, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported, “Attorney General Tom Corbett, the leading Republican candidate in the Pennsylvania governor’s race, has received six times more campaign money from the natural-gas industry than any other gubernatorial candidate, according to a study done by Common Cause Education Fund.” Corbett received $361,207 from the natural gas industry through March. [Philadelphia Inquirer, May 12, 2010]

Yesterday, Dan Onorato repeated his plan to encourage Marcellus shale job creation while using a severance tax to fully fund enforcement and protection by the Department of Environmental Protection, create an impact fund for local communities and help preserve and restore open space. Onorato’s plan would ensure that natural gas companies, not Pennsylvania families, pay to address the impact of drilling.