February 9, 2016
For Immediate Release
Statement by AFT Pennsylvania President Ted Kirsch
on Governor Wolf's 2016-2017 Budget Address
“Governor Wolf today offered a clear path for improving Pennsylvania’s future – fund our schools and colleges, provide the services on which Pennsylvanians depend and develop sustainable, recurring revenues to close the gaping deficit he inherited.
“The question now – for lawmakers and ultimately for voters – is whether we will join him on this path or continue the destructive partisan division that has stunted economic growth, damaged the state’s reputation and credit rating and hurt every Pennsylvanian – children, seniors, veterans and middle-class families.
“Lawmakers have to look beyond their approaching district elections and choose the path that benefits the majority of Pennsylvanians. That means providing adequate and fair state funding for our schools and lifting some of the burden off the shoulders of local property owners. Legislators must reverse the deep cuts to higher education that make Pennsylvania’s public universities among the most expensive and leave young adults saddled with crippling debt. Lawmakers must reconcile the state’s books honestly – not with one-time revenues and accounting gimmicks. They must tax natural gas drilling – just as every other state does – and update the tax system so that big corporations pay their fair share and the responsibility for funding government does not fall disproportionately on middle-class and poor families.
“The price of inaction is driving schools and communities deeper into debt and leaving middle- and working-class families wanting for basic services. It’s time to bring down the curtain on Harrisburg’s long-running political theater and pass a budget that sets Pennsylvania on a clear path forward.”
AFT Pennsylvania represents 32,000 public, private and charter school teachers and school support employees; community college and university faculty and staff; and state employees across the commonwealth. AFT Pennsylvania is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers and AFL-CIO.