Editor's Note: Following is the text of the petition that was presented at the TEA Party and Rally in Harrisburg, PA, on November 14.  The petition was signed by hundreds of participants and will be presented to elected officials when the legislature returns to session.
 

To the Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Legislature, and the Judiciary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania:

We, the undersigned, representing every region of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, on behalf of ourselves and the inhabitants of this state, entreat your attention to this petition.

Pennsylvania has, since the ratification of the United State Constitution, enjoyed many generations of peace and it’s citizens have prospered under the auspices of a free and representative government, so much so that history can attest to the many innovations and advancements that have benefited our state, our nation and the world.

Pennsylvania has been blessed with the resources necessary to thrive and grow, and our citizens and taxpayers have, over these past many years, tolerated isolated episodes of misdeeds and poor judgment by both elected and non-elected officials, understanding that the actions of a few cannot condemn the intentions of the many.

In recent years, however, an increasing number of decisions and actions by members of the executive, legislative and judicial branches of this Commonwealth, have sufficiently provoked the patience of the people of Pennsylvania, to the point that they must now seek a redress of their grievances with their elected officers, all of whom have sworn to uphold and defend both the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 

Knowing to what violent resentments and incurable animosities civil discords are apt to exasperate and inflame in the hearts of the people, we think ourselves required by indispensable obligations to Almighty God, to our elected officials, to our fellow-citizens, and to ourselves, to lay before you those matters which have stirred the citizenry to demand an accounting for misdeeds committed in the name of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania:
 

• The failure of the executive and legislative branches to control spending which has resulted in eight straight years of grossly increased spending at the state level

• The failure of the executive and legislative branches to pursue and institute real and comprehensive property tax reform, forcing many of Pennsylvania’s citizens to abandon their homesteads and livelihoods

• The chronic failure of the legislative and executive branches to present and approve a state budget on a timely basis

• Present and former members of the legislature have been criminally charged with the abuse of public funds to benefit themselves and others in securing seats of public service

• The insatiable desire by the executive branch to increase taxes on the citizenry of Pennsylvania without regard for the excess burden such taxes place upon the families and the private enterprises of this Commonwealth

• The failure of the legislative branch to protect and preserve private enterprise from excessive and burdensome regulation, which has resulted in jobs fleeing the Commonwealth for more favorable regions

• False assurances by the executive branch to utilize the revenue generated from taxable games of chance to reduce property taxes, but using such revenues, instead, to fund projects of political expedience

• The indifference of the legislative and executive branches to the depletion of the Commonwealths financial reserves in order to satisfy short term spending, and the failure of these branches to properly prepare Pennsylvania for impending increases in the cost of living and pension commitments

• The efforts by some on the judiciary to intimidate and threaten private citizens who publicly criticize the actions of members of the judiciary

• The failure of the judiciary to properly regulate it’s own membership

• The failure of the executive and legislative branches to assert its authority and respective sovereignty against the excesses of an increasingly domineering federal authority

We, therefore, beseech the Governor, the Legislature and the Judiciary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, to interpose themselves to procure us relief from those actions which have caused our afflicting fears and concerns, to suspend their acts of fiscal and personal aggression against the citizens and taxpayers of Pennsylvania, and to suspend any and all further acts of largesse made in the name of the people of this Commonwealth.

We present this petition to you in the hopes that our elected officials will turn away from those actions which cripple economic prosperity and instill despair into the character of the people, and will, instead, create an environment whereby all Pennsylvanians will be honored and pleased to call this great Commonwealth home.

In witness thereof on the Fourteenth day of November in the Year of our Lord two thousand and nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America two hundred and thirty three.
 

####