This may come as shocking news to Gov. Ed Rendell and the Democrats who control the state House, but there's no law that prevents government from spending less than it did the previous year.

Rendell just has to look eastward to New Jersey, where Gov. Jon Corzine has agreed to a $100 million cut in his proposed state budget for the fiscal year starting July 1. New Jersey has the same June 30 deadline to adopt a budget and while there might be some more haggling, legislative leaders and Corzine have agreed to a $32.9 billion spending plan.

In Pennsylvania, Gov. Rendell is still pushing his $28.3 billion budget. State Rep. Dwight Evans, the Philadelphia Democrat who runs the House Budget Committee, wants to see a $28.5 billion budget approved.

But Senate Republicans voted Wednesday to adopt a $27.9 billion budget -- $400 million less than what Rendell is asking. That's a 2.8 percent increase over the current budget and is more in line with inflation. Rendell wants to increase state spending by 4.2 percent.

Now that the cards are on the table, it's time to start haggling.

Here's an idea. While every Pennsylvania taxpayer has had to tighten his or her belt because of rising energy costs and stagnant wages, why can't politicians live within their means?

Why can't they find $400 million in waste and fraud to cut from the $28 billion general fund budget or just put off some of their pet projects for another year?

Just once, I'd like to see Rendell and the free-spending Democrats learn to do with less.