Pennsylvania − December 22, 2020 − Pennsylvania Senate Democrats seek to correct the record regarding the failure of the General Assembly to address housing insecurity due to COVID 19.
Recent press coverage has outlined that $108 million of $175 million intended for a rental and mortgage assistance program was diverted instead to the Department of Corrections. This was not the choice of Senate Democrats, who instead sought to correct the assistance program and get it to those Pennsylvanians on the cusp of losing their homes.
With Pennsylvania’s allocation of federal CARES funds, programs were funded or created to help residents who had suffered a change in their economic situation because of the pandemic ravaging the nation and world. One of those programs was a housing assistance plan that would provide relief to homeowners and renters.
Unfortunately, there were problems with the execution of this program – but instead of accepting its failure, Senate Democrats immediately convened meetings with stakeholders: advocacy organizations, landlords, renters, homeowners, financial institutions, and the PA Housing and Financing Agency. In September, Senator Katie Muth (D-Chester) chaired a hearing of the Senate Urban Affairs and Housing Committee where testifiers laid out the problems and told heart breaking stories of what would happen without state intervention.
Together with input from all of the relevant parties, Senator Art Haywood (D-Philadelphia) introduced Senate Bill 1290, a piece of legislation that would have corrected the problems with the program and allowed the full $175 million to flow to the people who desperately need it.
A companion bill was introduced in the House of Representatives and they passed it, but Senate Republicans did not consider either bill and let the hope for housing security die in our chamber – despite regular calls from Senate Democrats during session, committee hearings and publicly to address the problem.
Later in the fall, the Republicans refused to convene hearings of the Senate Urban Affairs and Housing Committee to avoid moving the House version of the bill to fix the housing assistance program.
In August, Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa, Jr. and Senator Vincent Hughes (D-Philadelphia) sent a letter to the Republican leadership in the Senate asking them to move Senator Haywood’s legislation or its companion House bill before hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians are made homeless.
In October, Senator Costa held a press conference with Governor Tom Wolf and PHFA calling for the legislature to act immediately to prevent a housing crisis. Still, not only did Republicans fail to move legislation that would have corrected the relief program funded by CARES, they also failed to advance any bill that would have extended a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures.
In April, Senator Hughes introduced Senate Bill 1132 which would extend the moratorium on evictions and foreclosures to 60 days past the COVID emergency declaration. The Senate Republicans referred the bill to the Judiciary Committee, and never looked at it again.
Back in May, Senator Hughes tried again to extend the moratorium by amending the content of his SB 1132 into Senate Bill 976, as amendment A05557. It failed along party lines with every single Senate Republican voting against housing security.
Thousands upon thousands of Pennsylvanians have lost their jobs because of this virus. The virus has not slowed down, nor have the bills arriving in households across the state. We cannot continue to leave residents on their own to fight this; it’s inhumane. It’s the state’s role to help, and so far we have been stymied by the majority party in the General Assembly.
Senate Democrats recognized this looming problem from the very beginning of this crisis, and there was time to act.
There was the will in the Senate Democratic caucus to fix this; we had the money from the federal government to fix it; we had the time and the session days to pass thoughtful legislation, but the Republicans had other priorities. They chose to push veto override votes, to question the results of our secure and decisive election, and push ‘re-open’ bills instead of simply providing the aid that their constituents and small business owners were begging for.
It’s a shameful display of warped priorities from Republicans, but the Senate Democrats will continue to fight for the needs of Pennsylvanians. People over politics.
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Pennsylvania − December 4, 2020 − Aiming to stimulate Pennsylvania’s economy by providing direct aid to workers, families, small businesses and other vulnerable populations, the Pennsylvania Senate Democratic Caucus announced a bold, innovative $4 billion pandemic relief plan Friday morning.
The Pennsylvania Coronavirus Aid, Relief & Economic Security Act of 2021 (PA CARES 21) Plan would fund previously existing aid programs and establish new programs to help struggling Pennsylvanians and struggling areas of the commonwealth’s economy.
“Folks have not seen pandemic-specific relief from the state or federal government since last spring, yet thousands remain unemployed, underemployed and struggle with their housing and utility bills. This cannot go on any longer,” said Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa. “There are immediate needs in communities across this state that must be addressed immediately. We are in the middle of another surge in COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths. We need help to recover, personally and financially; the state must play an active role in that recovery and that is what our plan today does.”
“Thousands of Pennsylvanians have been hurt by this pandemic and have received some assistance to get through this generational crisis — however it is time to do more in that space to get people the help they need,” Sen. Hughes said. “Rather than use federal dollars to help people in their time of need, we used the money to plug budget holes, telling people we had to keep state operations running to prevent further crisis. Having averted that crisis, it is now our job to step up and help our communities. They cannot wait any longer for help and the legislature must act now.”
PA CARES 21 authorizes the commonwealth to issue $4 billion in emergency debt to (1) recapitalize programs previously funded with federal CARES funds pursuant to Acts 2A, 24 and 30 of 2020 and (2) establish new programs that provide targeted assistance to struggling Pennsylvanians and struggling sectors of the Pennsylvania economy.
Where appropriate, this proposal utilizes the programs created under Act 24 of 2020 to drive out the funds. If proposed funding does not fit into an existing program (e.g., utility assistance), a new program will be created. Additionally, the caucus supports fixing programs created by Act 24 (e.g., PHFA’s rental assistance program) as requested by stakeholders to maximize program effectiveness.
The PA Senate Democrats propose allocating the funds to the following priorities (a detailed spreadsheet of the spending proposal is attached):
- $800 million in business assistance
- $1 billion in UC benefits
- $594 million in local government assistance
- $135 million in hazard pay
- $318 million in DHS programs
- $250 million in basic education
- $136 million in higher education
- $100 million to hospitals
- $100 million to utility assistance
- $75 million in child care
- $100 million in housing assistance
- $50 million in food security
- $25 million in pre-k education
- $25 million for PPE and vaccines
- $15 million for mental health funding
- $180 million in transportation funding
“There is no overstating the economic toll COVID has taken and continues to take on families and businesses across the Commonwealth,” said Senator Maria Collett (D-Montgomery). “As a former infection control nurse, I promise you that the sacrifices you’ve made have saved lives and prevented long-term health complications associated with this dangerous virus for so many. But I also know these words offer little comfort when you are struggling to pay the mortgage, or juggle your job and the constant changes to your kids’ schooling, or keep your business afloat. Government is supposed to work for you and that is exactly what our PACARES 21 proposal does. It identifies ways to get money into the hands of those who need it most, including those about to lose their COVID unemployment benefits, frontline workers, child care centers, and our main street businesses, especially local restaurants and bars, in the quickest, most efficient way possible. Your families and your businesses can’t afford to wait any longer for relief. So until our communities are safe and our economy is running at full steam again, it is critical that we extend this lifeline and do so now.”
“As the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Pennsylvania continues to climb, it is the General Assembly’s duty and obligation to provide relief to all those affected – unemployed folks, front-line workers, small businesses, and especially hospitals that serve high-Medicaid populations as well as our institutions of higher education,” said Senator Tina Tartaglione (D-Philadelphia). “These are the pillars of society that serve us in our times of greatest need and will lead our recovery.”
“There’s no denying that cases of the coronavirus are growing every day,” said Senator-elect Carolyn Comitta (D-Chester). “We need to do more than just say, ‘help is on the way.’ We need a bold, innovative plan to deliver it to Pennsylvanians. PA CARES 21 gives us more tools, more resources, and the flexibility to prepare for the future.”
“We are entering a stage of the pandemic that is, by virtually every measure, worse than the first stage, laying bare and exacerbating inequalities in all our health systems, devastating essential workers, and disproportionately harming Black and brown people,” said Senator-elect Nikil Saval (D-Philadelphia). “We need to keep people in their homes, fight hunger and food insecurity, and give our children every tool they need to learn. We need this stimulus because our communities desperately need support and relief.”
More information on the proposal and the caucus’ work in pandemic relief is available online at pasenate.com/pacares.
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Pittsburgh, PA − November 25, 2020 − PA Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa released the following statement on the Senate Republican Policy Hearing featuring Rudy Giuliani and President Trump:
“If Senate Republicans want to entertain conspiracy theories from Rudy Giuliani and rally with defeated presidential candidate Donald Trump, they should do so on their own time and dime – not the taxpayers’,” said Senate Democratic Leader Costa. “By their own admission[1], they are coordinating with Trump’s campaign to steal this election away from the voters who decisively chose Joe Biden.
“Our process was secure and our count is accurate: a count that was certified this week, making today’s hearing even more inappropriate,” Senator Costa continued.
“It is a bold display of hypocrisy, the Senator who is hosting today’s hearing in Gettysburg himself was on the ballot in November. If he has concerns about the legitimacy of our process, I would hope that he would rescind his own claims of victory.
“For this democracy to survive, we must have a peaceful transition of power after a fair election. We’ve had a fair election and now it’s time for the transition. Thankfully, it is only a small group of leaders that refuse to accept the results of our election: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and the Pennsylvania Senate Republicans.
“Joe Biden will be sworn in as our next president despite today’s circus in Gettysburg, but it is a shameful use of taxpayer resources and an insult to centuries of democracy in this country.”
[1] ‘I’ve been told in no uncertain terms by the state party and by our leaders that they are coordinating with the Trump campaign and so far PA has done everything that the Trump campaign has asked them to do.” – PA Senator Mike Regan (R-Cumberland, York) https://twitter.com/pennslinger/status/1325604097316302848
Pittsburgh, PA − November 21, 2020 − Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa, Jr. released the following statement on the news that Republican state legislators will join out-going President Donald Trump at the White House to discuss electoral college “options”:
Two of the most important hallmarks of democracy are fair elections and the peaceful transition of power. These are not partisan principles; they are central to our form of government, regardless of party affiliation. They are what separate us from authoritarian and totalitarian regimes.
Donald Trump supporters have indicated their interest in nullifying the results of our General Election to instead appoint “loyal electors” is an affront to all voters and our democracy as a whole.
It is such an outlandish idea that it has not happened in 150 years – since the election of Rutherford Hayes.
Voters must determine our next president – not a few Trump loyalists hand picked by Republican legislative leaders.
These plans were hatched in conjunction with efforts to undermine faith in mail in ballots, sow the seeds of doubt about non-existent voter fraud.
This election was held legitimately, without political interference or the threat of authoritarian schemes to keep President Trump in office.
I urge our Republican colleagues in the General Assembly to pledge to conduct this process fairly and accept its results peacefully.
Republican state legislators from Michigan have accepted an invitation to the White House to meet with the out-going President and aid him in an attempted coup.
There are reports that Pennsylvanian Republican legislators will be the next to receive such an invitation.
It is my sincere hope that they decline.
Joe Biden won Pennsylvania by 60,000 votes.
There is no confusion. There is a clear result and it’s time that it was respected.
We also must point out the gross hypocrisy of Republicans who partake in this misinformation campaign.
15 Republicans won election to this chamber in November’s election – but they are not questioning those results. They intend to take their seats in January and serve as senators of this body based on the ballots that were cast…. Meanwhile, they are questioning the results that led Biden to victory.
Those votes were cast on the same ballots. In the same counties.
They cannot cry foul for the top of the ticket and celebrate their own wins.
This is a shameful degree of hypocrisy and is at its base, anti-democratic.
It borders on sedition and I hope the members of this body decline to participate in an overthrow of our duly elected federal government.
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Harrisburg, PA − November 20, 2020 − Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa, Jr. released the following statement on the PA Budget:
“This is not the budget we wanted. It’s not a budget that provides enough assistance to those struggling with the economic woes caused by COVID-19. But it is a budget that reflects the crisis that we are in. With limited options for revenue and programs that desperately needed funding, this was the version that had the support needed to pass both chambers, keep state government programs in operation and prevent massive furloughs and layoffs of state workers.
If the Senate Democrats and I had our way, we would have used the $1.3 billion in CARES dollars that we had left to fund direct assistance programs for our small businesses, schools, hospitals, homeowners and renters. Using that money to balance the budget is a missed opportunity that leaves many in need. We also left millions of dollars in transportation projects unfinished in a time where our infrastructure needs work.
It is our hope that Pennsylvanians remain safe and healthy through the holiday season and when the General Assembly reconvenes in January that we are able to get to work in earnest on assistance programs to help us move forward from this difficult year.”
