Wolf pushes back on Trump’s State of the Union criticism: ‘There was some posturing going on there’

The Commonwealth Foundation, a conservative group and supporter of the tax credits, said at the time that the $25 million increase equaled the largest-ever increase in the tax credit program and would allow thousands more students to receive scholarships.

But Trump’s criticism was about Wolf’s rejection of a larger proposed increase to the program. In June, before the $25 million compromise was struck, Wolf vetoed a bill that would have increased the tax credits by $100 million. The bill also would have created automatic increases in future years if demand was high. And it would have raised the income eligibility limits for families.

At the time, House Speaker Mike Turzai, R-Allegheny, said the tax credit expansion would ultimately save school districts money because they would have to serve fewer students. And he said the measure would be a “statement of our conviction that parents, grandparents and other guardians know best what the right learning environment is for each of their children.”

Wolf said Turzai’s proposal was financially irresponsible — a point he repeated to reporters Wednesday.

“It was basically a raid on the taxpayer for private schools, and I didn’t think that was fair,” Wolf told reporters.

Wolf made the comments following an event at Carlisle High School in Cumberland County, where he was promoting his plan to fund more than $200 million in scholarships for students at state universities.