Pennsylvania governor vetoes part of budget, OKs school cash

Wolf said he would release some desperately needed emergency funding to keep schools open and fund nonprofits that have struggled without state aid during the prolonged budget impasse.

Wolf could veto it, let it become law without his signature after 10 days or eliminate individual spending items in it. The plan includes a small tax increase to cover the 4.5% spending increase and substantially less public education funding, Marc Levy of the Associated Press reports.

The Republicans’ latest proposal for a state budget “is another display of fiscal irresponsibility that will lead to a $95 million cut to local schools”, maintains an aide to Gov. Tom Wolf.

He called these new changes made to that compromised bill in the most recent proposal a “ridiculous exercise in budget futility”.

“That compromise budget was in balance”.

Pennsylvania’s been without a state budget since the current year began July 1. “I get it that everybody was exhausted of the stalemate, but we were nearly there”, he said, referring to negotiations that occurred during Christmas week. The legislature left for vacation without passing appropriations bills for state-related universities, Penn State, University of Pittsburgh, Lincoln University, Temple University, and the Penn School of Veterinary Science, and other “non-preferred” institutions.

Budget Secretary Randy Albright said that with $23.3 billion in total funding, schools will get 6-months of funding in this bill as “emergency funding”.

School districts, social service programs, county and municipal governments have been forced to furlough workers, curtail programs and borrow hundreds of millions of dollars to make ends meet during the budget standoff. I’m calling on our legislators to get back to Harrisburg – back to the work they left unfinished last week.

HARRISBURG – Lawmakers waited Monday for Gov. Tom Wolf to take action on the budget bill on his desk and saw no clear way to resolve their differences as Pennsylvania’s record-long impasse approached its seventh month. That budget contains an additional $377 million in education funding.

Unable to get a negotiated budget deal approved in the House, the state Senate last week sent Wolf a budget much leaner than he wants.

“The Governor just announced he will veto part of the budget passed by the House and Senate last week”.