Gov. Shapiro discusses budget, Central Pa. rep. argues it overspends

PENNSYLVANIA (WTAJ) — After 11 days of waiting, Pennsylvania officially has a state budget.

Governor Josh Shapiro signed the $47.6 billion spending plan into law late last on Thursday, July 11. In an interview, Shapiro spoke with WTAJ about what is included in the budget. A local Republican is also speaking out about the newly signed budget.

The budget passed with large bipartisan support, as Shapiro is the only governor in the country working with a divided legislature. The main bill of the budget passed the Democrat-controlled House 122-80 and the Republican-controlled Senate 44-5.

“The good news for the people of Pennsylvania, the good news for folks in Johnstown and in the area surrounding is that y’all are the big winners in us coming together and getting this done,” Shapiro said.

This budget represents a 6% increase from last year, but Shapiro was seeking a 7% increase. The biggest talking point coming out of this budget, however, is that a big chunk of the new money is going to public schools.

For public schools, the legislation delivers about $900 million more for instruction and special education, about a 9% increase, plus hundreds of millions more in new subsidies for school construction and tuition to private and cyber charter schools.

“What we also did was change the formula for how those dollars are driven out so that the school districts that have been chronically underfunded will finally get more help. The Johnstown school district is an example,” Shapiro said.

What the fiscal plan doesn’t include is any mention of a school voucher program.

“I left room in the budget for the House and Senate to try and find some common ground on that area,” Shapiro added.

Outside of education it also includes $80 million to fix rural roads and bridges, and over half a billion in site development to try and attract new companies to the Commonwealth.

“Take piles of dirt and turn it into a pad where we’re going to be able to attract a new company to come and set up shop and create jobs,” Shapiro said.

Another $80 million will be used for mass transit that will benefit older Pennsylvanians, according to Shapiro.

“We’re both cutting taxes for seniors and investing in initiatives that are going to help them,” Shapiro said.

While there was a large bipartisan support, not all Republicans, including State Rep. Lou Schmitt, are on board.

“We are spending, in fiscal year 24-25, $3.5 billion more under this budget than we are taking in,” Schmitt said.

Schmitt says that he did support the public school funding in the plan, but says other spending will result in higher taxes in 3 to 5 years.

“I think it spends too much. I think it causes us to borrow too much. I think it spends down our strategic financial reserves, our fiscal reserves. It’s going to cause us to invade the rainy day fund in order to sustain that spending,” Schmitt said.

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However, Shapiro argues that the state has enough in surplus.

“We will still have about a thirteen, fourteen billion dollar budget surplus when all is said and done. I get that there is some folks that just want to be against anything that I’m for, but let’s examine the facts here. This was a budget that does right by the people of central Pennsylvania,” Shapiro said.

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