PENNSYLVANIA, USA — Editor's note: The above video is from June 24.
Gov. Tom Wolf has signed a roughly $40 billion budget package, before he spoke Wednesday at a Capitol news conference celebrating new funding for public schools.
The budget legislation won approval Friday in the Republican-controlled Legislature.
The package holds the line on taxes, and puts billions of dollars in federal coronavirus aid into reserve.
Wolf is touting $300 million extra for school district operations, including setting aside $100 million of that for the poorest districts.
In exchange, Republicans got Wolf to repeal a regulation to expand the ranks of lower-wage salaried workers who qualify for overtime pay.
Wolf, though, says more still needs to be done for public schools.
The Pa. Department of Education posted a spreadsheet breaking down the education funding allocations in the state budget for each school district.
According to a press release, the budget investments include:
- $200 million increase in the Fair Funding Formula;
- $100 million to support underfunded school districts through the newly implemented Level Up initiative;
- $50 million in special education funding;
- $30 million for early education;
- $20 million for Ready to Learn;
- $11 million for preschool Early Intervention; and
- $5 million for community colleges