PA’s budget as felt by the poor

Hour 1

Governor Tom Corbett signed into law Pennsylvania’s first on-time budget last week in nine years. The $27.15 billion budget fulfilled Corbett’s campaign promise of not raising taxes, and was characterized by Harrisburg Republicans as the beginning of the commonwealth “living within its means.” But the budget also threatens to compound the challenges facing those Pennsylvania residents already struggling to live within their own means, as spending was cut by almost $1 billion, including many cuts to programs that address poverty in Pennsylvania. On today’s Radio Times, three advocates for the poor join guest host TRACEY MATISAK in studio to discuss how people already reeling from the recession will fare under Pennsylvania’s just enacted budget. ELIZABETH HERSH is executive director of the Housing Alliance for Pennsylvania, a nonprofit group that works to ensure that all Pennsylvanians, especially those with low incomes, have access to safe, decent and affordable homes. JOHN DODDS is director of the Philadelphia Unemployment Project, a nonprofit agency that deals with issues important to poor and unemployed workers and their families. And CAREY MORGAN is executive director of the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger, a non-profit that fights hunger in Southeastern Pennsylvania through education, outreach, and advocacy.

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[audio: 070611_100630.mp3]