Jun. 21, 2018
HARRISBURG – State Rep. Tom Mehaffie (R-Dauphin) Wednesday voted to advance to the Senate the 2018-19 state budget, which invests a record amount of funding into education at every level.
The budget’s historic $12.3 billion pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade education funding package includes a $100 million increase for the main regular education subsidy to the state’s 500 public school systems, to $6.1 billion. It also contains $20 million more for pre-K programs and an additional $15 million for special education costs.
“This budget truly supports educational opportunities at all levels, from pre-K to higher education, and fosters safer learning environments for our students,” Mehaffie said. “We have excellent schools in the 106th District, and ensuring they receive adequate funding has always been a priority for me.”
Additionally, a new $60 million block grant program will allow schools across the Commonwealth to have equal and flexible access for funding school safety initiatives. This funding will be made available for such priorities as school resource officers, metal detectors, school safety assessments and preplanning, and other facility upgrades to ensure a safe learning environment.
“Investments in academics mean nothing if our students and teachers aren’t safe,” Mehaffie said. “These new block grants will help protect students and ensure taxpayer dollars can be prioritized in the classroom.”
The budget will also dedicate $30 million for career and technical education so the Commonwealth has a trained workforce that can respond to the needs of today’s economy.
“The future of our local, state and national economies depend on having highly qualified, job-ready workers, so I’m glad we were able to get an increase for career and technical education in this year’s budget,” Mehaffie added.
The 2018-19 budget awaits consideration by the Senate and governor.
Representative Thomas Mehaffie
106th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Abbey Haslam
717.260.6222
ahaslam@pahousegop.com
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