HARRISBURG – Seeking to provide critical financial relief to school districts and social service agencies impacted by the prolonged budget impasse, Senator Ryan Aument (R-36) today voted for a three-bill “stop gap” budget package. The bill was approved and sent to the House of Representatives for consideration. Click here to view Senator Aument’s comments on the stop gap budget.
Passage of the stop gap spending plan is the latest effort by Senate Republicans to help schools, counties, municipalities, agencies and contractors that saw their state payments end on July 1 after Governor Wolf vetoed a budget passed by the Legislature on June 30 — almost immediately after its passage by the General Assembly.
“Despite the fact that 70 percent of the spending items in the budget we passed in July were the same or greater than what he proposed in his own budget, Gov. Wolf chose to veto the entire bill. His veto, and failure to compromise on a budget plan has cut off funding for schools and human service agencies that rely on state funding,” Aument said. “Passing a stop gap budget is the only option to keeping these funds flowing to agencies that desperately need them to serve our citizens and educate our children. Gov. Wolf has already withheld more than a billion dollars in funding to Pennsylvania schools. We cannot continue to hold them hostage – there is no downside to passing this budget.”
The three-bill package that Aument voted for today provides $11.2 billion in state allocations, restoring funding for critical programs and service. That represents one-third of the state funding as authorized by the budget Wolf vetoed in July. The stop gap budget also allocates the federal money Pennsylvania administers for schools and local governments.
“This stop gap budget provides essential funding for many vital programs and services, including schools, domestic violence survivors, rape crisis centers and students who depend on PHEAA loans,” Aument said. “I urge the governor to do what is right for our citizens and our state by approving this bill and working with us to pass a fiscally responsible budget that does not include massive tax increases that have no support.
CONTACT: Jake Smeltz, (717) 787-4420