The Update: What’s Happening in Harrisburg and DC – May 17, 2022

MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR

We are urging legislators at the state and local levels to invest in all of us and not to give tax breaks to those who profited during the pandemic. Take a look below at our featured columns in the Scranton and Harrisburg newspapers.

Thank you for supporting our work,

Stephen Herzenberg
Executive Director

TAKE ACTION

Tell your state legislators: “Say NO to tax cuts for the ultra-rich in PA!”

For a year, the General Assembly has refused to use billions in federal relief funding—plus the state surplus—to help those who are struggling to afford groceries, gasoline, housing, health care, and other essentials. They have refused to provide support to small, locally owned businesses that are working hard just to stay afloat.

Instead of helping us and our communities, they rushed to give a tax cut to corporations.

This legislation now moves on to the Senate, and we need legislators across party lines to hear loud and clear: the people of Pennsylvania say NO to HB 1960 and YES to using the ARP funds to help us!

Click here to email your legislators.

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IN THE NEWS

Assure prosperity in state broadband expansion

Stephen Herzenberg, Guest Columnist

“Many Pennsylvanians lack access to reliable and affordable high-speed internet. That should change thanks to $65 billion in funding to boost internet access and connectivity in the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which President Biden signed into law last summer. To capitalize on this once-in-a-generation opportunity, Pennsylvania needs to use federal resources to make high-quality, affordable internet permanently available in every corner of our commonwealth. This would also create good union jobs for our communities.”

With costs rising, Pa. residents still need help from Washington and Harrisburg

Jeff Garis and Nick Pressley, Guest Contributors

“We came together during COVID-19 to take care of each other, and while the pandemic brought immense suffering, that spirit of solidarity helped us avoid even worse outcomes. Now we need political leaders in Washington, D.C., and Harrisburg to come together again to maintain the ground we’ve recovered and build for the future. The decisions they make in the next few weeks will tell us if they are on our side.”