The Pennsylvania budget stalemate and its effect on the state’s schools
Listen 00:48:44Guests: John Hanger, Scott Petri, Joseph Gorham
Wednesday’s rejection of Tom Wolf’s latest budget proposal by the State House continues the three month-long impasse in Harrisburg, leaving the state without a spending plan. The stalemate between the Democratic governor and the Republican-led legislature has had impacts on Pennsylvania’s public institutions. Public schools, in particular, have been hard hit by the lack of a budget, with some districts borrowing money in order to keep afloat. We’ll hear from Governor Wolf’s secretary of policy JOHN HANGER about what the governor’s office is doing to ease tensions. Then, we’ll talk with Republican State Representative SCOTT PETRI, who has not approved any of the governor’s proposed spending plans, about why the impasse has gone on as long as it has. Lastly, we’ll talk with Superintendent of Carbondale area schools, JOSEPH GORHAM, about the lengths he’s had to go to in order to keep his schools funded.
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