NEWS
Taxpayer watchdogs or special interest lapdogs?
More than two months after passing a spending plan for the 2017-2018 budget, state lawmakers still have not approved a revenue package to fund the budget. In less than a week, the budget standoff in Harrisburg will turn into a budget crisis for Pennsylvanians. On...
Finally, good news for PA public school students
After more than a year of taking extensive input from public education stakeholders at 30 sessions throughout the state, the Pennsylvania Department of Education released PA’s plan to comply with the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the new federal education law...
Our statement on the PA Budget Impasse
For Immediate Release August 21, 2017 Education Voters of PA Media contacts: Susan Spicka Susan Spicka, Executive Director of Education Voters of PA, made the following statement at a joint press conference with the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center: For...
PA Senate Budget: EITC increase out, severance tax in
Speaker Mike Turzai called the PA House to Harrisburg on Saturday, July 23 in the hopes of securing enough votes in his party to pass a revenue package to fund the 2017-2018 budget without new recurring revenues. He failed. After members of his own party rejected...
Extremists ready to throw PA off fiscal cliff
More than three weeks into a state budget impasse, PA House Speaker Mike Turzai and his extremist followers have surfaced as the holdouts who are preventing the legislature from passing a responsible revenue package to fund the 2017-2018 state budget. This week Turzai...
HB 97 on hold, more taxpayer $ for private schools on deck, and lawmakers have left the building
Here is a rundown of what is happening in Harrisburg and DC that may impact public school students in PA. HB 97, the charter expansion bill It appears the PA House has decided to put HB 97 on hold until the fall. Great, great work making calls and sending emails to...
PA Senate passes charter school expansion bill, disregards needs of students and taxpayers
Susan Spicka, Executive Director of Education Voters of PA made the following statement about the PA Senate’s passage of HB 97: It is very disappointing that 26 members of the PA Senate voted to disregard the very real needs of the students and taxpayers they were...
UPDATE: PA Budget and HB 97, the charter expansion bill
It’s going to be a busy weekend in Harrisburg. On Friday, June 30th, the PA legislature passed the spending half of the 2017-2018 state budget agreement and sent it to Governor Wolf. Lawmakers have until Monday, July 10th, to get the revenue half of the agreement to...
PA Senate approves guns in classrooms, HB 97 on tap
By a vote of 28 to 22, the PA Senate approved SB 383, a bill that allows teachers and other school employees to carry concealed, loaded firearms in public schools. Click HERE to see how your senator voted. Each school board will decide if it will allow teachers and...
Can you spare 5 minutes on Monday?
Legislative leaders have begun holding closed-door meetings to hash out a 2017-2018 state budget. On Monday, June 19th, state lawmakers will return to Harrisburg, where they will have less than two weeks to pass a balanced budget by the June 30th deadline. The...
The next 26 days
Decisions PA legislators make in the upcoming weeks will have a lasting impact on PA's public school students. From now until June 30th, when the state budget is due, lawmakers will be passing legislation and cutting deals as they determine how much state funding our...
The State of Education Funding in PA
Fixing PA’s Charter School Law
School District Spending on Charter School Tuition
Charters Should Not Profit Off Students with Disabilities
What if PA Legislature provided $55M in new Basic Education Funding?
Mythbusting PA’s EITC/OSTC Programs
http://educationvoterspa.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/2018-2019-Myth-busting-PAs-EITC2FOSTC-Programs.pdf
PA lawmakers to consider Betsy DeVos Vouchers on Steroids
On Wednesday, May 24 at 9:00 am, the PA House and Senate Education Committees will be holding a joint public hearing about "education savings accounts" or ESAs. Education Savings Accounts are Betsy DeVos vouchers on steroids. They are an underhanded attempt to...
Trumpcare savages funding for students with disabilities
Yesterday 217 Republicans in the US House of Representatives voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act and the protections it offers to millions of Americans. In order to pay for tax cuts for households earning over $250,000/year, these Congressmen (including 9 from...
Did your rep. support the charter school lobby’s wish list?
On Tuesday, April 25th, the PA House passed HB 97 by a vote of 108-84. Click HERE to learn if your state representative supported or opposed HB 97. Ten Republicans and 74 Democrats voted against the bill. If your lawmaker opposed HB 97, please take a minute to make a...