Amanda Ross

Editor-In-Chief

This post was originally published on October 8.

As the state legislature fails to pass a budget, counties are now considering extended lines of credit along with the layoff of state workers to deal with lack of funding.

Since June, Pennsylvania has run without a state budget, as concerns about increasing funding without also increasing revenue have caused an impasse between republican and democratic lawmakers. However, until a budget bill is passed, things that require yearly state funding are being forced to find their own way to cover expenses. 

Counties such as Armstrong and Westmoreland have either begun or are soon to begin the process of furloughing employees as they are unable to pay them until the state funding is passed. For Armstrong, this means the closure of all but two senior centers, causing losses to vital meal centers and the firing of eight employees. Westmoreland is considering furloughing around 125 employees if there is no budget by mid Oct. Northampton, a county located near Penn State Leigh Valley, plans to layoff 70 percent of their staff members. 

Other counties and services, such as the Philadelphia City School District, have taken out loans to cover the cost of these unpaid expenses. However, the more that is borrowed, the more counties and services will have to find ways to pay back. With interest, eventual received funding may not be enough to cover these loans. State Treasurer Stacy Garrity has offered to extend credits to counties through the state reserves. Though she is forced to charge interest on these loans through state bylaws, Republican legislators have already promised to bring about legislation to negate the interest, with counties only being required to pay back the principle. 

Many counties however are upset that the situation has grown this dire in the first place. Amy Milsten, the president of the Central York School Board, was quoted by Fox 43 saying, “They’re playing with the lives of their constituencies…”.