JP Kurish
State's budget passed late Thursday night
On Thursday, the Pennsylvania General Assembly passed SB 1001, the FY 2024-2025 budget bill, which was then signed by Governor Shapiro for enactment.
Senator Maria Collett (D-12 Montgomery, Senate Democratic Caucus Secretary) voted in favor of this year’s general appropriations bill and wishes to share her comments. You can watch her floor remarks on SB 1001 here.
ECONOMY
“With far too many Pennsylvanians struggling to stay afloat, I fought hard for a budget that puts working families first. This budget makes significant strides forward with strategic investments in workforce development, including $2 million for my Nursing Workforce Initiative’s apprenticeship and residency programs to confront dire nursing shortages. It funds programs to keep parents in the workforce with a new employer tax credit for childcare payments. And it recognizes that our Main Street businesses drive our economy, providing critical grant funding to revitalize communities and create new jobs in every corner of our Commonwealth – all without raising taxes.”
MENSTRUAL EQUITY
“Many lower-income Pennsylvanians, including students, struggle to afford or access the menstrual products they need, often forcing them to miss work or class. This year’s budget tackles menstrual equity issues head on by investing $3 million to put period products in Pennsylvania schools – a key component of SB 906, my Menstrual Equity Act, which I’ve been advocating for since taking office.”
SUPPORTING VULNERABLE PENNSYLVANIANS
“Year after year, the Commonwealth has failed to adequately support the Intellectual Disabilities and Autism community. While we have a lot of work left to do to set things right, I am pleased by the more than $260 million included in this year’s budget for the ID/A community so more Pennsylvanians can get the services they need.”
PUBLIC EDUCATION
“Every student in Pennsylvania deserves a quality education that sets them up for success. This budget gets us closer to that reality, with historic levels of public school funding and renewed investments in mental health supports, special education, school safety and violence prevention, and student teacher stipends. But I was disappointed to see tens of millions of taxpayer dollars funneled into private school tuition, when there are still far too many public schools left without adequate equipment, infrastructure, or staffing.”
MISSED OPPORTUNITIES
“As the Democratic Chair of the Senate Aging & Youth Committee, and as a nurse with long-term care experience, I was extremely disappointed that this budget failed to fully fund Aging Our Way, PA, a comprehensive, 10-year roadmap to ensure Pennsylvanians can live and age with dignity. With one of the largest aging populations in the nation, we cannot afford to keep kicking the can down the road. And with the ability to allocate more than $700 million to our rainy day fund, it’s clear we have the resources available to make these investments. We just need to match those resources with the will to support our friends and family all across this Commonwealth.”
“At a time when people are already struggling, senate Republicans stripped away funding for mass transit, including SEPTA, further resulting in a failure to reach agreement on transportation funding that could help dilapidated roads and bridges in every part of our state. I couldn’t support a tax code that failed to invest in the transit systems our neighbors' livelihoods depend on.”
“I am hopeful that when we return in the fall, we will revisit the Aging Our Way, PA plan, invest more into services for aging Pennsylvanians, and have some serious discussions about the necessity of funding transit and transportation, which includes much-needed money for crumbling infrastructure.”
