HARRISBURG, Pa. — The ongoing struggle amid rising costs of food and gas is why Gov. Wolf is pushing for $2,000 in direct payments to Pennsylvanians.
"People are still struggling in all communities of our commonwealth," said Meg Snead, Acting Secretary of the Commonwealth.
This money would come from the $500 million Wolf's Pa. Opportunity Program funded through American Rescue Act dollars.
"This money could be used to cover necessary expenses for essential items and services like housing, transportation, food, utilities, broadband and health care," Snead explained.
According to Senator Carolyn Comitta (D-Chester County), Pennsylvania is sitting on more than $2 billion in ARP funds to help Pennsylvanians.
"For one of the first times ever, Pennsylvania is entering budget negotiations with a multi-billion-dollar budget surplus. I've heard numbers above $9 billion," she said.
However, House Republicans aren't on board with this $2,000 payout plan.
"This is the same bad policy coming from another Democrat to artificially prop up the economy that's led to the same inflation problems that we've seen across the country," said Jason Gottesman, PA House Republican Caucus Spokesperson.
Gottesman says they need more long term policy changes to drive real natural growth across the commonwealth.
"We need to make sure that we are spending in strategic areas and making smarter investments in Pennsylvania," he explained. "We need to make sure that we are saving that money to deal with these future economic uncertainties and we're returning tax payer investment into the commonwealth."