HARRISBURG – The Senate accredited historic public training investments as a part of the 2022-23 funds, Sen. Scott Martin (R-13) introduced at the moment.

“This historic funding in Pennsylvania’s college students prioritizes their security, resiliency and academic achievement after years of pandemic-induced studying loss,” Martin mentioned. “We’ve enormously heightened faculty security and psychological well being program {dollars} and expanded faculty selection for households, leaving our training panorama with extra alternatives and assist than ever earlier than.”

Home Invoice 1642, the Training Code, features a $525 million improve for Primary Training funding and a $100 million improve for Particular Training funding; funding will increase that can assist faculty districts within the 13th Senatorial District which have long-waited for full implementation of the Truthful Funding System.

The $45.2 billion funds, which additionally contains federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, represents a 2.9% improve over the earlier 12 months’s spending – and $500 million lower than Gov. Tom Wolf’s authentic funds request.

Home Invoice 1642 additionally boosts the Training Enchancment Tax Credit score (EITC) and Alternative Scholarship Tax Credit score (OSTC) applications by a mixed $125 million to make sure extra college students can study within the instructional setting that most closely fits their wants, particularly for the 70,000 households of current years that have been denied alternatives to finest meet their youngsters’s wants due to program caps.

“The EITC and OSTC applications give households a method out of constantly deteriorating faculty districts which have failed their youngsters, or to fulfill their individualized wants ,” Martin mentioned. “Children shouldn’t be trapped in hopeless conditions merely due to the place they stay. Dad and mom ought to have the flexibility to place their youngsters in one of the best instructional setting to fulfill their wants, and this funding into the EITC/OSTC program will supply that option to hundreds extra households than ever earlier than.”

Funding can be devoted on this 12 months’s funds to make sure our college students are protected and safe with a historic dedication of $95 million in funding for College Security and Safety Grants for each faculty district in Pennsylvania.  As well as, one other $95 million in funding is being devoted to Psychological Well being grants for faculties.  The Able to Be taught Block Grant Program additionally acquired a $100 million greenback dedication.

Martin, as Chairman of the Senate Training Committee, mentioned a number of of the proposals he spearheaded additionally handed as a part of the funds, together with rolling again the administration’s constitution faculty regulatory reforms that ought to have been legislated, closing a scoring loophole for the Keystone Exams that restrict commencement choices for college students impacted by COVID-19 shutdowns, and increasing profession coaching for cosmetologists and barbers. 

“I’m very happy with the negotiations that occurred on this faculty code,” Martin mentioned. “This positively meets the wants of scholars and households throughout Pennsylvania and offers desperately wanted alternatives. It presents new commencement pathways, makes an attempt to take care of recruitment to deal with the instructor scarcity and likewise grows our dedication to the protection, safety and psychological well being of our kids throughout the Commonwealth”

CONTACT: Terry Trego, 717-787-6535