The months-long impasse over public education funding is expected to continue Wednesday after state House lawmakers removed GOP-backed school choice funding from a spending bill.
The state Senate on Wednesday passed legislation authorizing hundreds of millions of dollars in novel funding for K-12 schools, community colleges, educational support units and public libraries by a 45-5 vote.
House of Representatives Bill No. 301 including $150 million in funding for the Educational Improvement Tax Credit program, which provides private school scholarships for children from low- and moderate-income families. Businesses that contribute to the scholarships can receive tax credits of up to $750,000.
Supporters of the program say it provides an educational alternative for students from low-performing schools.
House Democrats voted Wednesday afternoon to defund the tax break, a move Republicans said ensured the GOP-controlled Senate would not send the bill to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s desk.
“This turns this bill into a ping-pong ball,” said House Minority Leader Bryan Cutler (R-Lancaster).
Republicans urged Democratic leaders to restore funding and called for a vote to revert to the earlier version of the bill. The motion was defeated, and a vote on final passage was scheduled after 10 p.m. Wednesday to allow for the required six hours to pass after the bill was amended.
The House passed the bill at 10:01 p.m., with amendments from the Senate and House of Representatives, by a party-line vote of 102 to 101.
“There are no winners in this budget discussion. There are only losers. And the biggest losers are the students who were left out by this amendment,” Cutler said.
Democrats said the Senate has been considering a school code bill for months that includes both money for the scholarship program and $100 million to match funding for the state’s 100 poorest school districts.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jordan Harris (D-Philadelphia) said this would assist ensure more money would go to students who really need it.
“I’ve heard time and time again how much we care about these poor, disadvantaged students in all these schools. But when you look at the numbers and where we’re sending the money, it’s not going to these poor, disadvantaged students,” Harris said.
School choice has been a major sticking point in this year’s protracted budget process.
The state Senate adjourned for more than a month without passing most of a $45.5 billion budget after House Democrats rejected a bill that would have created a $100 million scholarship program — a measure backed by Shapiro and Senate Republicans.
House Democrats have staunchly opposed voucher programs that would utilize state taxpayers to pay for private and religious schools, saying they would divert money away from already struggling public schools.
The EITC program provides up to $263 million in tax relief this year. To qualify, a student’s family must have income of less than $105,183 plus an $18,514 allowance for each child, according to the nonprofit organization Ed Choice.
Although the House Rules Committee voted along party lines to end funding for the EITC, the bill passed the Senate with mighty bipartisan support.
Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) praised the bill for focusing on addressing the state’s teacher shortage, fixing toxic schools and providing updates on school safety.
“This is a big deal to get critical dollars back to our beloved public schools to support our teachers, students, staff and families,” Costa said in a statement. “Together, we are providing a top-notch education to every Pennsylvanian.”
Sen. Lisa Boscola (D-Northampton) voted to support the bill, citing its emphasis on school safety, flexibility with substitute teachers and imperative funding for colleges, but she criticized the bill as a whole during a speech on the Senate floor.
Before the vote, she argued that the bill “does nothing to address the most important issue” facing her constituency: property taxes.
Earlier on Wednesday, the House adopted Senate Bill No. 843which was substantially similar to the House bill but did not include funding for the tax credit.
(This article was updated at 9:23 a.m. on Thursday, November 16, 2023 to reflect the House vote on HB 301.)
