Northampton County House Republicans Endorse Key Budget Bill
HARRISBURG –
House Bill 218, the general appropriations piece of the state budget process, is headed to Gov. Tom Wolf’s desk following a 173-27 vote in the House today. The bill calls for a minimal increase in spending and a substantial hike in funding for Pennsylvania’s public schools.
State Reps. Marcia Hahn (R-Bushkill Township), Joe Emrick (R-Upper Nazareth) and Zach Mako (R-Northampton) issued the following statement after passage of the bill:
“Today, the General Assembly passed an important piece of the budget package with overwhelming, bipartisan support that hopefully sets a precedent in state government for years to come. This bill represents the smallest spending increase - less than 1 percent - in recent history that is well below the rate of inflation. The legislation is modeled after the plan the House passed in early April and will require no broad-based tax increases to fund it.
“Once again, the House and Senate have combined to send our schools more funding than ever before through a $100 million increase. In addition, agencies are being consolidated in an effort to increase efficiency at the state Capitol and streamline state government.
“Work remains to be done, but this is an important first step that allows local governments to budget accordingly. It is not a perfect bill and there are, of course, things we’d like to change; however, this spending plan supports the core functions of government and spends taxpayer dollars responsibly. It is a good compromise as evidenced by the significant number of votes it drew on both sides of the aisle.”
Representative Joe Emrick
137th District
Representative Marcia Hahn
138th District
Representative Zachary Mako
183rd District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Scott Little
717.260.6137
slittle@pahousegop.com