PathWays PA Policy Blog

We're heading into another budget season - time to break out the spreadsheets and charts! Governor Wolf presented his budget today with a focus on education and jobs, with what both sides described as a bipartisan outlook  or at the very least places where both parties could find agreement . Overall, the budget increases spending by 4.2% (or $1.4 billion) compared to last year. Nearly $300 million would go towards increased education spending for K-12, special education, and state universities. Governor Wolf also proposed a higher minimum wage, raising the current rate of $7.25/hour to $12/hour by July and then increasing the wage over time until it reaches $15 in 2025. The last time the minimum wage increased in Pennsylvania was when the federal government increased the wage in 2009. Here are some of the articles we've been reading on the budget: Schools, farms and voting machines in Gov. Tom Wolf's budget sights Gov. Wolf unveils budget: more money for public ...

Click here to enlarge 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/Ne...

The Health of State Democracies , a Center for American Progress Action Fund report ranking all 50 states and our nation's capitol across 22 factors categorized in 'accessibility of the ballot', 'representation in state government', and 'influence in the political system', was released today. According to the report, Pennsylvania is 43rd out of 51 . Said another way, Pennsylvania ranks among the bottom 10 states. The report determined that access to voting in Pennsylvania was an F (44th place). Among other notable findings, Pennsylvania does not allow online voter registration, nor can 16-17 year olds preregister to vote and be automatically added to the voting rolls when they reach voting age - an implementation measure that was shown to increase young voter turnout by 8-13 percent ages. Pennsylvania was given a C for representation in state government. In addition to districts that have been drawn to favor political parties, the report found t...

The House and Senate Leadership elections were held last week. Most of the positions remained the same, however, Ron Waters was named Minority Caucus Secretary and Neal Goodman as Minority Caucus Administrator. Here is the list with hyperlinks to each individual. The committee chairman will be announced in January. Officers of the House Speaker Samuel H. Smith Majority Minority Floor Leader Mike Turzai Frank Dermody Whip Stan Saylor Michael K. Hanna Caucus Chair Sandra Major Dan Frankel Caucus Secretary Mike Vereb Ron Waters Appropriations Committee Chair William F. Adolph Jr. Joseph F. Markosek Caucus Administrator Richard R. Stevenson Neal Goodman Policy Committee Chair Dave Reed P. Michael Sturla Officers of the Senate President Pro Tempore Joseph B. Scarnati III Majority Minority Floor Leader Dominic Pileggi Jay Costa Whip Patrick M. Browne Anthony H. Williams ...

Last week the state Supreme Court overturned the Legislature`s new maps for 2012 House and Senate races, leaving current districts in place until a five-member commission that designed the plan fixes the court`s concerns. The 4-3 decision gave a glimmer of hope to lawmakers opposed to the changes in the Legislative Reapportionment Commission`s plan. Sen. Jay Costa, D-Allegheny, one of those who appealed the commission`s maps, said the court decision would present an opportunity to argue for keeping the Brewster seat. Stephen Miskin, spokesman for House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, R -Allegheny, said Turzai believes the plan that was submitted “met the standards, and conditions set forth in the Constitution” and in legal precedent. “Until we get an opinion, we can`t know what needs to be fixed but will respond accordingly,” Miskin said. Click here to read a Pittsburgh Tribune Review article for further details .

The legislature remained in recess last week, but it was revealed that Governor Tom Corbett will unveil his much-awaited plan for dealing with the state’s transportation funding shortfall during his Feb. 5 budget message or sooner. According to an article in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, a top appointee from the Administration the proposal is likely to fall short of the recommendations of the governor’s Transportation Funding Advisory Commission, which presented a plan in August to raise up to $2.5 billion in new annual revenue for roads, bridges and public transit. Testifying at a hearing of the House Democratic Policy Committee at Point Park University, state Transportation Secretary Barry Schoch said Mr. Corbett “recognizes the need to make investment in transportation” but also said “the economy’s very fragile now.” Click here to read the Pittsburgh Post Gazette article.

The House returned to session one week after the Senate and the legislature is taking up many issues this fall. With that in mind, the House and Senate Transportation Committees held their second public hearing on the Governor’s Transportation Funding Advisory Commission’s report. Lawmakers heard testimony from the PA State Association of Township Supervisors, the Keystone State Railroad Association, the PA Public Transportation Association, and the Commonwealth Foundation regarding the report’s recommendations. For more information, please click here .