Should small PA communities pay the state for police protection?

Should state taxpayers be footing the bill for police services to Pennsylvania's small unprotected communities, asks PennLive.com?

That's a question being asked after the governor floated a new plan to help close the budget deficit and fund new hires of state police amid a statewide budget crunch and expected trooper shortage.

Specifically, Gov. Tom Wolf has proposed a new fee on municipalities relying on state police coverage the most - an unwelcome change for some, especially the communities that would need to pay $25 per resident.

Nearly half of Pennsylvania's 2,500 municipalities rely solely on state police protection. Critics of the arrangement say some of these communities are able to afford their own police forces and have instead taken advantage of an outdated system. As a result, they argue, taxpayers statewide have been forced to subsidize those services -- often while also paying to fund their own local departments. 

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