April 10, 2017
House Passes State Budget Bill
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives last week passed a state
budget bill for 2017-18. Sponsored by House Appropriations Committee Chairman Stan Saylor (R-York), the bill spends $815 million less than Governor Wolf proposed and eliminates most of the new taxes he put forward. It does support some of the Governor’s new spending, such as the $100 million in new basic education funding, but it cuts some departments like Corrections and Community and Economic Development far below the Governor’s proposal.
In higher education, the House bill mostly replicates the Governor’s proposed budget. It continues level funding for community colleges, state-related universities (Penn State, Pitt, Temple and Lincoln), PHEAA grants and Ready to Succeed Scholarships (RTSS). It supports the Governor’s request for a 2 percent increase ($8.9 million) for the State System universities. Mobile Science and Math Education would remain at zero in the budget. The House bill also maintains the Governor’s proposed $30 million cut to the University of Pennsylvania’s Veterinary School.
However, the House bill partially restores the Governor’s proposed 50 percent cut to the Institutional Assistance Grants (IAGs) line item that supports private colleges and universities based on the number of PHEAA grant recipients they enroll. The House increased the IAGs over the Governor’s proposal by 25 percent, or $6.437 million, to $19.3 million. While the bill restores half of Governor Wolf’s proposed cut to the IAGs, it still provides $6.437 million less than the current year total of $25.7 million. This proposed cut is AICUP’s primary advocacy focus, and our goal remains restoration of the entire amount.
The budget bill is now in the Senate Appropriations Committee and could be considered in the near future. The Senate is back in session on April 24. In a recent interview, Chairman Stan Saylor expressed his hope to deliver a budget to the governor’s desk for signature in early May.
Did you know? More than 225 students from 30-plus private nonprofit colleges and universities came to Harrisburg for Student Advocacy Day on April 4. Thank you to the participants for sharing their stories about the value of student aid to students, communities and the state. Photos of the day are posted
here. A special thanks to students from Villanova University, University of Scranton, Cabrini University, Allegheny College, Westminster College, Wilkes University, Harcum College, Lackawanna College, Holy Family University and Susquehanna University for participating in the Faces of Student Aid video project either as interviewees or in action in the halls and offices of the Capitol. AICUP also appreciates presidents and others who are participating in the AICUP Advocacy Meetings being held at King’s College (March 27), Villanova University (April 13) and Carlow University (April 21).
