Senator Joe Pittman issued the following statement on Senate passage of Senate Bill 255, the $40.8 billion General Fund Budget for Fiscal Year 2021-22 that supports Pennsylvania’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“A year ago, nobody could predict Pennsylvania’s financial outlook. The COVID-19 pandemic was still running rampant across our state. Our shops and businesses were shuttered by the governor’s closure orders. We had no idea when, or even if, conditions would return to anything near normal.
“As such our revenue estimates for the upcoming year were extremely conservative and we held the line on state spending. As a result, and with the benefit of our businesses now reopened and a substantial infusion of federal funding, we are ending the current fiscal year with a $2.5 billion surplus and we were able to pass a budget that increased funding for education without any of the tax increases the governor requested.
“In addition, despite the calls from some to spend the surplus money, we placed 100 percent of that money in the Rainy Day Fund to help us get through tough times ahead. Our economy is not recovered, and we can’t expect to receive any additional federal stimulus fund, so it is prudent to build up our reserves as much as we can.”
Contact: Jeremy Dias jdias@pasen.gov