2018-2019 Governor's Budget is Announced

By MB -
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This afternoon, Governor Wolf announced the 2018-2019 budget, along with some of his policy initiatives for the year. In his budget speech, he proposed an additional $125 million for K-12 education and a new program, called Community Health Choices, designed to help seniors receive care in their communities instead of in facilities. The budget summary also calls for an increase in the minimum wage, modernization of the Equal Pay law, and the passage of a statewide paid sick days bill.

The chart pictured here shows selected line items from the Governor's budget. Basic Education, Pre-K Counts, and the Children's Health Insurance Program are among the programs set to get an increase, while Adult and Family Literacy and County Assistance Offices see a slight decrease in funding. A number of programs, including Mobile Science and Math Education, Job Training and Special Education, Regional Cancer Institutes, ALS Support Services, and the New Choices/New Options program have been zeroed out.

You can see the full budget online. You can find a list of budget "winners and losers" here, or check out the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center's complete coverage of the budget.

Action Steps - Call your legislators to share your thoughts on the budget. Find their numbers here. Here's a sample script: "My name is ___, and I live in ___'s district. I'm calling to show my support/disapproval of the Governor's budget." Then share one or two sentences about the programs you care about and if you agree with the proposed funding.

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