Category: Press release

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Pennsylvanians From Across The CommonwealthJoined We The People – PA Campaign & Partners to Call for Fair Budget for All Pennsylvanians

  By PA Budget and Policy Center, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Budget, Press release

By Kirstin Snow and Marc Stier  Harrisburg, PA – For the first time in years, the Commonwealth will have a surplus of more than $15 billion from state budget surpluses and unspent federal pandemic relief funding at the end of this fiscal year. If this is not the moment to enact a budget that works to help hard-working Pennsylvanians and their communities, when will that time come? Earlier today, the We The People – PA campaign and its partners gathered alongside legislative leaders on the capitol steps to demand a just budget for all Pennsylvanians. During this rally, activists called on legislators to stop hoarding and to spend Pennsylvania’s accumulated surplus the way it’s intended to be spent—meeting the state’s responsibilities to our families and communities and to our democracy. The state has the money to do big things this year, and even a bold, inclusive spending bill would leave a… Continue reading

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Increased Income from a Minimum Wage Increase is Greater, and in most cases, Far Greater Than the Loss in Benefits and New Taxes Paid

  By PA Budget and Policy Center, Press release

Originally published by KRC-PBPC here. By Marc Stier and Diana Polson HARRISBURG—As Pennsylvania seriously considers raising the minimum wage for the first time in over a decade (and as the U.S. House prepares to vote on a bill to increase the minimum wage federally), concerns have been raised that workers receiving a higher wage also will face a “benefits cliff.” A benefits cliff occurs when individuals get a wage increase but the social benefits they lose and the taxes they pay increase more than their additional earnings, resulting in an overall reduction in a family’s standard of living. The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center today released two policy briefs examining the effects of a minimum wage increase to $15/hr in Pennsylvania. One brief examines a wage increase when compared to any cuts in benefits from programs/tax breaks like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), the Child Tax Credit (CTC), the… Continue reading

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On Gov. Wolf’s Bond Issue to Assist Counties In Purchasing New Voting Systems

  By PA Budget and Policy Center, Press release, Voting

Originally published by KRC-PBPC here. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center director Marc Stier made the following statement on Governor Wolf’s move to issue a bond to help fund new voting systems in counties across the commonwealth: “Protecting our voting system is of the utmost importance. After the governor correctly vetoed SB48, it remained the case that the state needed to find a way to offset the costs to counties of putting into place secure voting systems that provide a critical paper trail for our elections. We applaud Governor Wolf for circumventing partisan gridlock to do whatever is necessary to make sure county governments aren’t hamstrung by costs in their quest for secure elections. We can all agree that we must have systems in place so that citizens can have confidence in election outcomes. Using this method to reimburse costs will allow county governments to make necessary changes to election… Continue reading

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Diverse Coalition of Organizations Launch “PA’s Choice” Budget Campaign

  By John Neurohr, PA Budget and Policy Center, Political Organizing, Press release

A diverse coalition of groups from across the state, including education advocates, community service organizations, faith-based groups, environmental groups and labor organizations launched the “Pennsylvania’s Choice” campaign today to bring attention to the devastating consequences of budget cuts across the commonwealth and to advocate for a Pennsylvania budget that best serves the people. If Pennsylvania continues to enact unbalanced state budgets, the commonwealth will run a deficit that grows every year. Without new tax revenues, Pennsylvania will not be able to maintain the needed funding for education, human services, the environment, or community and economic development. “Pennsylvania’s Choice” partners will be organizing in areas across the state, bringing together community members to make clear to elected officials that, if the state cannot secure new revenues, these communities will face devastating cutbacks to programs in these and other areas that are critical to Pennsylvanians every single day. Utilizing earned media events,… Continue reading