States State of the States

State of the States Coverage: Pennsylvania

By Benjamin Herold — March 17, 2015 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Here is a summary of a recent annual address by a governor.

PENNSYLVANIA

Gov. Tom Wolf (D) • March 3

Gov. Wolf used his first budget address to call for an increase in funding for public education in that state—and to offer a repudiation of the policies of his Republican predecessor, Tom Corbett.

“Over the past four years, Pennsylvania took a step in the wrong direction by trying to balance our state budget on the backs of schools,” said Mr. Wolf, who was elected last fall. “That’s why the very first thing my budget does is restore the $1 billion in cuts to public education that occurred under the previous administration.”

Among the educational priorities the new governor outlined are an increase in the state’s basic and special education subsidies, funding for expanded enrollment in prekindergarten, and a boost for career and technical education. Mr. Wolf also aims to partially restore previous cuts to funding for Pennsylvania’s state colleges and universities, in exchange for an agreement to freeze tuition.

The massive spending plan would be paid for primarily via a 5 percent severance tax on natural gas extraction. Mr. Wolf also aims to significantly increase the state sales and personal-income taxes. Those hikes would be offset by reducing property taxes by up to 50 percent, or about $1,000 annually, for the average Pennsylvania homeowner.

If approved, Mr. Wolf’s Pennsylvania Education Reinvestment Act would yield about $159 million in new revenue for the cash-strapped Philadelphia school district. The 128,000-student district had projected an $80 million funding gap for the 2015-16 school year.

During his speech, Mr. Wolf highlighted Katy Beth Klinger, a teacher in the 17,600-student Reading school district, who the governor said has been substitute teaching at her school even though she has “not been able to return to permanent work” since a mass furlough in 2011. The previous administration “left us with 25,000 educators out of work. It forced 75 percent of school districts to cut academic programs,” Mr. Wolf said.

“My budget puts teachers like Katy back in the classroom,” he said.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the March 18, 2015 edition of Education Week as State of the States

Events

Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Privacy & Security Webinar
Navigating Cybersecurity: Securing District Documents and Data
Learn how K-12 districts are addressing the challenges of maintaining a secure tech environment, managing documents and data, automating critical processes, and doing it all with limited resources.
Content provided by Softdocs

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

States How a Parents' Rights Law Halted a Child Abuse Prevention Program
State laws that have passed as part of the parents' rights movement have caused confusion and uncertainty over what schools can teach.
7 min read
People hold signs during a protest at the state house in Trenton, N.J., Monday, Jan. 13, 2020. New Jersey lawmakers are set to vote Monday on legislation to eliminate most religious exemptions for vaccines for schoolchildren, as opponents crowd the statehouse grounds with flags and banners, including some reading "My Child, My Choice."
People hold signs during a protest at the state house in Trenton, N.J., on Jan. 13, 2020, opposing legislation to eliminate most religious exemptions for vaccines for schoolchildren. In North Carolina, a bill passed to protect parents' rights in schools caused uncertainty that led two districts to pause a child sex abuse prevention program out of fear it would violate the new law.
Seth Wenig/AP
States More States Are Creating a 'Portrait of a Graduate.' Here's Why
A portrait of a graduate is a guiding document outlining a vision of what it means to be a successful student.
8 min read
Image of attributes of a graduate.
Parker Shatkin for Education Week with iStock/Getty
States DeSantis vs. Newsom: How K-12 Schools Fared in the 'Red vs. Blue State Debate'
The Florida and California governors sparred over book bans, school closures, and parental rights during their Fox News debate.
5 min read
Left: California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at a press conference in Beijing on Oct. 25, 2023. Right: Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis speaks at a Town Hall event at Tempesta's in Keene, N.H., on Nov. 21, 2023.
Left: California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at a press conference in Beijing on Oct. 25, 2023. Right: Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis speaks at a Town Hall event at Tempesta's in Keene, N.H., on Nov. 21, 2023.
Left: Ng Han Guan/AP; Right: Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP
States Liberals Win Hotly Contested School Board Races in Backlash to Conservative Control
A Democrat who championed teacher pay raises was also reelected Kentucky's governor and Democrats won legislative majorities in Virginia.
6 min read
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear speaks during an election night rally after he was elected to a second term in Louisville, Ky., on Nov. 7, 2023. At right is his wife Britainy Beshear.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear speaks during an election night rally after he was elected to a second term in Louisville, Ky., on Nov. 7, 2023. At right is his wife Britainy Beshear.
Timothy D. Easley/AP