This Week in Pennsylvania
This Week in Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania budget is two weeks late and counting, as the Republican-controlled Senate and the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives remain deadlocked over school vouchers.
House Democratic Leader Matt Bradford told abc27 that the Senate needs to come back to Harrisburg and sign off on the $45.6 billion spending plan that both chambers have passed. Republicans, however, are upset that Bradford and House Democrats forced Governor Josh Shapiro to remove $100 million from school vouchers that
was meant to help kids in the poorest-performing schools.
“They are selling you a story, they’re selling you a bridge, those vouchers aren’t for sufficient amounts for those poor kids to get in them, what we need to do is fix those public schools,” said Bradford. “It’s the idea that we’re gonna take a small percentage of kids and say we can offer you this alternative, but 99% of kids have to fail and stay in that public school. What we need to do is lift every child, every child of God.”
Bradford said House Democrats were clear from the outset that they wouldn’t accept school vouchers and say any suggestion to the contrary is just wrong.
“We have been consistent from day one,” said Bradford. “We have said we will not accept school vouchers, and we will not accept school vouchers.”
The stalemate over school vouchers has left the state government without a budget, and some state agencies are starting to feel the effects. The Department of Transportation, for example, has announced that it will have to delay some road projects due to the lack of funding.
It is unclear how long the stalemate will last, but both sides seem to be dug in their positions. It is possible that the state government will have to operate without a budget for some time, or that the issue will be resolved through a court order.
In the meantime, Pennsylvanians are left wondering when their government will be able to function again.
Other news from this week:
- The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that the state’s system for funding public schools is unconstitutional.
- A new study found that Pennsylvania has the fifth-highest rate of child poverty in the country.
- The governor announced a new initiative to reduce gun violence in the state.
