HARRISBURG -- The state Legislature is one step closer to creating a fiscal oversight committee to try to straighten out Pittsburgh's financial mess.

After two hours of impassioned debate yesterday, House members voted 116-79 to approve "tough love" legislation that calls for a five-member, state-appointed board to recommend ways to trim city spending, including possibly merging services with Allegheny County or turning them over to private firms.

But the Republican-backed bill, strongly opposed by Mayor Tom Murphy, doesn't allow any new revenues for the city and bans the use of a commuter wage tax.

It would prohibit the city from using Act 47, a 1987 state law for financially distressed cities, which allows a city to seek court approval for a wage tax on suburbanites.

"The city is not financially distressed. It's financially irresponsible," said state Rep. Tom Stevenson, R-Mt. Lebanon.

Republican lawmakers, in the majority in the House, accused Murphy and other city officials of mismanaging city finances for years and then asking the Legislature to bail them out by opening up the possibility of a wage tax.

"A lot of legislators, including some Democrats from Allegheny and other counties, aren't enthralled about a commuter tax," said state Rep. Jeff Habay, R-Shaler.

The bill must now go back to the Senate, perhaps as early as today, because it differs slightly from an oversight bill the Senate approved last month.

The measure the House passed yesterday was authored by state Sen. Jane Orie, R-McCandless, and Senate approval is expected.

Then it would go to Gov. Ed Rendell, who has vowed to veto any bill that doesn't give Pittsburgh some sort of additional revenue-raising ability.

But Habay and state Rep. Mike Turzai, R-Bradford Woods, say they haven't given up on Rendell signing the bill.

"We're taking it one step at a time," said Turzai. "You don't draft legislation solely on what you think the governor will sign. You draft legislation because you think it's the right thing."

If the oversight board were to start its work in January, it would have 90 days to recommend ways to cut city spending.

The board could recommend new tax ideas to the Legislature, but at least four of the five board members would have to agree on that step.

Murphy has already asked the state to grant Act 47 status to the city.

Turzai said he thinks the Orie bill "trumps" that request, but said the question could end up in court if the state approves Act 47 status before the bill is signed into law.

Legislative Republicans said the city still has revenue-raising options it hasn't used, such as higher wage taxes on city residents, increased property taxes, or a new garbage collection fee, so it shouldn't look to suburban residents for revenue.

But Democrats, such as state Rep. Dan Frankel of Squirrel Hill, said the city's current tax structure is outdated and unfair and that the city cannot burden its residents with more taxes.

He said the city's population has declined from about 650,000 residents in the 1950s to about 330,000 now, and many of them are older and on limited incomes, so its tax base is narrow.

Frankel contended that many businesses are exempt from paying the business privilege tax, many nonprofit organizations don't pay any taxes, and people who work in the city pay only a $10 annual occupation tax, unchanged for 40 years.

Frankel said he didn't oppose creation of an oversight board and welcomed any cost-cutting ideas it comes up with. But he said that additional taxes on city residents "would be the death knell for the city."

"There is an umbilical cord between Pittsburgh and communities not just in Allegheny County but in other parts of southwest Pennsylvania," he said. "The city is entitled to have a fair tax system. All citizens in the city and region have a stake in the city's financial future."

State Rep. Jake Wheatley, D-Hill District, pleaded in vain to fellow legislators.

"No one wants to be for imposing taxes, but we need help," he said. "I am asking for mercy from my colleagues, to get this done in a way that's fair, in a way that we can all share this pain."

Turzai said the Legislature has helped the city out in the past, yet its financial problems have continued.

He noted the 1 percent county sales tax approved in 1994, which gives about $15 million to Pittsburgh annually, plus additional funds for city parks and libraries through the Regional Asset District.

He said the state gave the city pension aid in 1998 and then $150 million to build the new stadiums in 1999, yet the city comes back for more, asking for a 3 percent car rental tax in 2003.

"The city hasn't made efficient use of its resources and shouldn't shift taxes to the shoulders of nonresidents," Habay said.