by Christin Brown | March 15, 2012 | News Releases
The barricades and the extra police at the end of a Capitol hallway tell you everything you need to know about the administration of Gov. Tom Corbett.
From Day One, the governor, who campaigned bravely about ordinary citizens reclaiming their government, has shown curious fear of those same citizens.
Feeling safer with a small audience of unquestioning supporters, the once-courageous reformer has recently taken to using his massive security apparatus to turn away the unwashed masses.
When a group of citizens in wheelchairs visited the Capitol in February, the former criminal prosecutor who spent a dozen years as a National Guard infantryman, took no chances.
Capitol Police were deployed and barricades were erected to keep the dangerous wheelchair people at bay. This wasnt too difficult. The security detail explained that they were told to not to let people in wheelchairs on the elevators. Blocking the elevators was all it took to keep them on the ground floor, a safe distance from the governors lair.
Meanwhile, lobbyists, pages, pizza drivers and politicians continued to enjoy access as usual.
It was a breathtaking metaphor for the Corbett administration, a policy-as-performance-art moment that wrapped the Corbett fear and loathing in a tidy package.
It might be illegal.
Does that matter?
It should at least matter to the tough, law-and-order prosecutor who boldly took on the entrenched Harrisburg powerbrokers before running off to his Capitol office and blocking the elevators.
And it should matter to the millions of Pennsylvanians that dont have lobbyist credentials and Capitol security badges.
As the new security policy was explained by underlings in the administration, you can not only be banned from the building for causing a ruckus, but you can be banned if the administration thinks you might cause a ruckus. Or if somebody who looks like you has caused a ruckus.
Its scary where this leads. Any justification that can be mustered for a people-in-wheelchairs policy can be rolled out again for race, religion, shoe-size, hair-do or lack of proper manicure.
But there is no justification for the administrations unilateral security actions. No legal justification anyway.
If the governor thinks that the wheelchair people will quietly roll away in deference to his show of force, he doesnt know what the view of the world looks like from this seat.
On the occasions that I have been asked about how my accident changed my life, I often say: It took my legs, but it opened my eyes.
There are more than a million Pennsylvanians who use wheelchairs for one reason or another and Ive met a lot of them. The weakest and most vulnerable among them have shown me more courage than this governor.
Sure, theres a tendency when youre faced with adversity to lock yourself in a dark room, surround yourself with friends and block out the world.
But one day you realize that whatever the adversity, it must be faced directly. Boldly. Courageously.
When the governor sent his security team to stop the wheelchairs, it wasnt just a cowardly overreach of executive authority.
It was also a missed a chance to overcome his own disability: a blindness to the plight of ordinary people.
###
by Christin Brown | March 7, 2012 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, March 7, 2012 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today said Senate approval of a bill requiring photo identification from voters, which comes one week after the Corbett administration barred disabled visitors from public areas of the Capitol, represents a “disturbing trend” for people already struggling under state budget cuts.
“Creating barriers to prevent the disabled from voicing their grievances with their government, either inside the Capitol or inside the polling place, has become a priority with the legislature’s Republican majority and the current administration,” Tartaglione said.
The Senate today passed House Bill 934 along largely party lines, after rejecting a Tartaglione amendment to exempt those with disabilities.
“More than 20 years after implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Pennsylvania is still struggling to make all polling places accessible,” Tartaglione said. “Creating bureaucratic barriers on top of that sends a clear message to more than a million Pennsylvanians that this administration has no interest in hearing from them.”
Last week, Tartaglione wrote a letter to Corbett protesting the closure of Capitol hallways and elevators on February 29, when advocates for the disabled planned a rally.
Signed by the entire Senate Democratic Caucus, the letter cited the action’s “disturbing overtones of discrimination.”
“Such a policy represents an unconstitutional overreach of executive power, and it fosters distrust and alienation between the government and the people it is elected to represent,” the letter said.
The bill, which now heads to Corbett’s desk, is expected to cost as much as $11 million in the first year. Tartaglione said that money would be better used to improve a program that provides loans to disabled Pennsylvanians for purchase of technology that would allow them to return to the workforce.
“Nearly 200,000 Americans were disabled fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Tartaglione said. “Creating barriers to their participation in the government for which they sacrificed is repugnant and shameful.”
Listen to the Senator’s remarks following the floor vote on the Voter ID legislation:[audio:https://www.senatortartaglione.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/voter-id-reaction-sen.tartaglione-03-07-10.mp3|titles=voter-id-reaction-sen.tartaglione-03-07-10]
###
by Christin Brown | March 6, 2012 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, March 5, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today released the following statement regarding Appropriations Committee action on House Bill 934:
“Tonight’s action in the Appropriations Committee revealed a stark lack of consideration for the thousands of Pennsylvanians who will be disenfranchised by photo identification requirements for voters.
Rejecting attempts to soften the impact through voter education and ensure participation through protections for voting rights, the Republican majority ignored the concerns of seniors, minorities, the disabled, the poor and the poorly educated.
The bill that came out of the committee tonight is another attempt to marginalize Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable citizens and silence their voice.
It’s appalling that the same lawmakers who can’t find a penny to spare for insolvent school districts, or road repairs are willing to waste millions on this appalling attempt to keep people from the polls.”
###
by Christin Brown | February 29, 2012 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Feb. 29, 2012 – Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione released the following statement today regarding yesterday’s budget hearing for the Department of Public Welfare:
“The blind and shortsighted slashing done by this budget creates many small cycles that, when completed, will create budget challenges for future administrations and future generations.
Few are more illogical than reductions in funding for efforts that help people with disabilities gain more independence and find suitable employment. Pennsylvania’s previous efforts in assistive technology have not just made thousands of people more independent and secure, but they’ve also made workers out of people who were not able to find employment because of some physical barrier.
In short, cutting assistive technology efforts reduces the workforce and promotes lives of dependency and welfare.
Today, we heard about the administration’s plans to cut welfare and it makes me wonder where these people have been to form the mindset that produced these decisions.
###
by Christin Brown | February 21, 2012 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Feb. 21, 2011 – Sen. Christine Tartaglione today questioned Pennsylvania’s revenue secretary over why corporate tax loopholes aren’t drawing the same attention as consumers who make purchases on line.
“The governor’s going after getting the Internet loophole closed, which affects individual taxpayers, yet he’s not willing to go after a corporate loophole which affects big business and that’s very sad,” Tartaglione told Revenue Secretary Dan Meuser.
In testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee today, Meuser outlined his department’s plans to force Pennsylvania taxpayers to report Internet purchases from all of 2011 and remit unpaid sales or use tax before the April tax deadline. Under the plan, taxpayers will be required to remember Internet purchases from 2011 and remit the six percent use tax.
But nearly eight years after Pennsylvania’s Business Tax Reform Commission recommended closing the Delaware loophole for corporate income taxes, and nine months after Tartaglione wrote to Meuser about the growing number of Pennsylvana gas drillers with Delaware subsidiaries, the secretary could not detail action taken to enforce tax laws on businesses.
Despite testifying that “companies go way out of their way to avoid paying our tax level,” Meuser said “solutions are being evaluated.”
“Why don’t we just close the Delaware loophole?” Tartaglione asked.
“That discussion certainly has been going on for a while,” the secretary replied. “We’re very focused on it. We’ll see what comes along.”
Tartaglione said the imbalance in tax enforcement is troubling.
“It’s difficult to imagine what is being evaluated,” Tartaglione said. “We have an extensive tax commission report nearly eight years old, and 23 states have already adopted combined reporting to close the Delaware loophole. If the administration would apply the same level of enforcement to corporations as it is to consumers, we could restore hundreds of millions of dollars in budget cuts.”
Tartaglione is the prime sponsor of Senate Bill 679, which would require “combined reporting” for businesses in Pennsylvania to close the “Delaware Loophole.”
###
by Christin Brown | February 9, 2012 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, February 9, 2011 – Nearly a year after she introduced the idea in the Senate, state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today praised the Corbett administration for embracing her job training plan, but cautioned state labor officials to include provisions from her bill that will prevent violations of federal labor law.
In a letter to state Labor Secretary Julia K. Hearthway, Tartaglione urged the administration to adopt protections contained in Senate Bill 678 that provide for oversight of the “Train to Work PA” program by an advisory panel of business and labor experts.
“Experience in other states has produced a mixed record of success as well as a troubling definition of ‘training’ applied by some participating employers,” Tartaglione wrote. “The oversight of an advisory committee would not only protect workers from possible exploitation, but it would also ensure compliance with federal labor law.”
Senate Bill 678 was introduced in March 2011, as part of Senate Democrats’ “PA Works Now” initiative. The bill was modeled after similar programs in other states where experience has shown that strict oversight is necessary to ensure that workers are being trained and not simply used as free labor.
“Train to Work PA” would allow unemployment beneficiaries to continue receiving benefits while undergoing on-the-job training for a limited period of time, and would use federal dislocated worker funds to reimburse employers for training other unemployed workers.
The state Department of Labor yesterday broadly outlined an initiative called “Keystone Works,” containing the core of Tartaglione’s legislation.
Train-to-work programs have drawn scrutiny from workers’ rights groups and prompted the issuance of guidelines by the U.S. Department of Labor after accusations that some employers were providing little or no actual training.
Tartaglione’s bill sets standards for oversight, prohibits replacement of current staff by trainees and requires a plan for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
“Properly supervised and legally implemented, my Train to Work PA program will partner good-faith employers and unemployed workers in adapting to the rapidly changing technology of the workplace,” Tartaglione said. “A program undertaken without such guidance could lead to the exploitation of workers, the marginalization of the disabled and regrettable waste of taxpayer dollars.”
###
by Christin Brown | February 7, 2012 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, February 7, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today released the following statement regarding the governor’s budget address:
“The budget outlined by the governor today is the result of his long-held and unsupportable distrust of struggling families and an equally inexplicable and unsustainable trust of large corporations.
This shortsighted plan, and many other actions during the first year of this administration, put the blame for economic stagnation on low and middle income workers and give them a disproportionate share of the burden of fixing it.
While Pennsylvania families are being scrutinized for their on-line purchases, their savings and their desire to find work, corporations are being blindly trusted about their income taxes, their commitment to job creation and their concern about the environment.
It’s unlikely that the budget proposed will be the budget passed. But starting the conversation with dramatic cuts to education as Pennsylvania school districts face insolvency and the cost of college rises above the grasp of middle-income families, means that the administration has lost faith in the next generation.
As we go forward, I urge the governor to understand that he represents all of the people in Pennsylvania, from the neighborhoods of North Philadelphia to the rural hilltops dotted with gas wells. The people from my district will have plenty to say about this budget. I urge the administration to listen.
Over the next few months, the families raising that generation will have to prove that they deserve our confidence and our investment in their children and in their communities. This administration does not trust them.
Today’s high school students will have to prove that they deserve the same support for higher education that their elder siblings and their parents received. This administration does not trust them.
School districts will have to prove that early childhood education is a better investment than prisons.
If the governor has his way, Pennsylvania small businesses will continue to bear the burden of high corporate income taxes and will continue in their struggle to compete with big box retailers who enjoy the benefits of one of the world’s most notorious tax loopholes.
It is this fundamental mixture trust and distrust, expressed first by candidate Corbett 18 months ago when he said the unemployed “would rather just sit there” than work, that marks this administration’s vision of Pennsylvania.
Those of us with a different vision will have to prove ourselves. We will show the governor that we will not just sit there. We are ready to work.”
###
by Christin Brown | February 1, 2012 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, February 1, 2011 – Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione is happy to announce the approval of a $1.5 million state loan to aid plans to redevelop the site of the former Edison High School on Lehigh Avenue.
The loan will be awarded through the Department of Community and Economic Development’s Business in Our Sites program.
“This is good news for the neighborhood and for the entire city. Reclaiming abandoned properties and returning them to community use is a vital part of our economic development effort,” Tartaglione said. “I’m proud of the partnership between government and private industry that led to this announcement. Edison has been a part of the neighborhood’s history and hopefully the site will be a part of its future.”
The main building, known in the area as “The Castle,” has been abandoned since 2002 and was gutted by fire in August. In June it was sold by the School District of Philadelphia to 701 W. Lehigh Partners. The developer plans to remove what remains of the main building and turn the site into a 36,000-square-foot shopping center. Leases have already been signed with Save-A-Lot, Family Dollar and Burger King.
“The redevelopment of the Edison site will provide new shopping opportunity for neighborhood residents, and it will also create badly needed jobs,” Tartaglione said.
The project is expected to cost $11 million, funded mostly through private financing.
State funds will be used for site preparation, water and sewer improvements, utilities, demolition of foundations, excavation and grading. The loan will be paid back over 20 years at two percent interest.
###
by Christin Brown | December 14, 2011 | News Releases
Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione tonight issued the following statement on the decision from the chair to suddenly close voting on a taxpayer-friendly amendment to the Marcellus Shale bill despite requests for reconsideration:
“The cynical and arbitrary actions of the majority on the floor of the Senate tonight will only serve to feed the growing public outrage over the influence of corporations on those who are elected to serve people.
The weight of wealthy energy companies on the regulation of Marcellus Shale drilling — from the formation of the governor’s commission to the unprecedented decision from the chair tonight – led to the collapse of Senate protocol by denying members the right to cast votes as they intended.
In the end, democracy broke.
The implications will be long lasting for our environment, our communities, our taxpayers and our faith in a thorough and fair process of government.”
by Christin Brown | December 7, 2011 | News Releases
PHILADELPHIA, DEC. 7, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione announced today that she is again hosting a “Toys for Tots” collection box in each of her two district offices.
“All through the recession years, the community has shown its generosity and good will during the holidays,” Tartaglione said. “I’m confident that this year people will continue to share the spirit and support Toys for Tots.”
The mission of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program is to collect new, unwrapped toys each year, and distribute those toys as Christmas gifts to needy children in the community.
Since program started more than 60 years ago, nearly 400 million toys have been collected and distributed to millions of needy children at Christmas.
“Many of those who donate were once recipients of Toys for Tots,” Tartaglione said. “Giving back has become a tradition.”
Tartaglione is asking the community to bring new, unwrapped toys to the collection boxes at her district offices at 1061 Bridge Street and 127 W. Susquehanna Ave. The offices are open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Coordinators pick up these toys and store them in central warehouses where the toys are sorted by age and gender. At Christmas, coordinators, with the assistance of local social welfare agencies, church groups, and other local community agencies, distribute the toys to the needy children of the community. The toys will be collected until December 16.
For more information, go to www.toysfortots.org.
###
by Christin Brown | November 30, 2011 | News Releases
School is a Successful Model of Education Reform
PHILADELPHIA, November 30, 2011 -State Sens. Vincent J. Hughes (D-Philadelphia/Montgomery) and Christine Tartaglione toured Stetson Middle School today to get a first-hand look at the school’s remarkable turnaround.
“It is an honor to be here today to meet with the faculty, students, and parents of this promising school. Stetson Middle School is a successful model of education reform,” Hughes said. “After years of underachievement, Stetson is now a school with a promising academic future for all students.”
Stetson Middle School, which has a largely Hispanic student body, was one of Philadelphia’s lowest performing schools, until it was taken over by Aspira of Pennsylvania, a Hispanic advocacy group. Since the takeover, the school has produced academic gains, while reducing violence and disruptive behavior.
“In a changing world economy, education becomes more valuable every day,” Tartaglione said. “The success at Stetson proves that with parents, teachers, and administrators working together to help students the future can be bright for any student who wants to achieve.”
Hughes was instrumental, along with Success Schools COO Robert Lysek, in securing 50 iPads for Stetson students and 10 for teachers and administrators. The students use the iPads for remedial math and writing support. Teachers use them to support and facilitate the lessons.
During the tour, Hughes and Tartaglione were updated by student leaders on how Stetson was turned around through targeted education reforms. Many once-disruptive students are now classroom leaders, excelling both academically and socially. The school has seen gains in PSSA scores as well.
The Parent and President School Advisory Council also spoke with the senators about what a great learning environment the school has become.
# # #
by Christin Brown | October 26, 2011 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Oct. 26, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today voted in opposition to a school voucher plan that will spend millions to benefit a narrow group of students while draining resources from already struggling public schools.
“Instead of students choosing schools, schools will choose students. The unchosen will be children with disabilities, children with learning disorders, children with language barriers and children trapped in unstable families,” she said. “In a school system marred by inequality, the Senate today created more.
On a mostly party-line vote, the Senate passed Senate Bill 1, which creates a $200 million voucher program that makes only five percent of Pennsylvania students eligible and gives charter school officials the ability to accept taxpayer money, but deny admission for any or no reason.
“I understand what the supporters of this bill are trying to accomplish because I have seen what innovation can do in our public schools,” Tartaglione said. “But I represent thousands – perhaps tens of thousands – of young people who will be left behind in struggling schools with fewer resources.”
Senate Bill 1 will spend $73 million from the state General Fund in the first year to allow students to leave failing schools to attend charter schools, taking their state subsidy share with them. But the bill contains no provision for transparency in how the money is spent by charter schools or information on how they will choose students.
“The people in my district have struggled too long for civil rights just to waive them for some pretense of education reform,” she said. “It’s unconstitutional and unconscionable.”
###
by Christin Brown | October 21, 2011 | News Releases
In response to the unemployment figures released by the state Department of Labor and Industry, Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione released the following statement. Tartaglione, D-Philadelphia, is the Democratic Chair of the Senate Labor and Industry Committee.
“Nearly four months after Republicans pushed through a short-sighted state budget that slashed key funds for job creation and economic development, today’s news of a rising unemployment rate is a clear sign that Pennsylvania needs bold leadership in a new direction.
“The number of unemployed Pennsylvanians has jumped by more than 50,000 since the day Gov. Corbett signed the budget and the legislative majority’s focus on fringe issues and right-wing ideology offers little hope for the coming months.
“The Corbett budget cut more than $1 billion from education programs, reducing local school district employment by more than 14,000 jobs, with more than 2,000 lost jobs in the Philadelphia School District alone. These deep cuts were made while ignoring a state revenue surplus that grew to nearly $800 million by the close of our last fiscal year.
“The result is a stunning downturn after years of weathering the recession better than most states. When that budget was making its way through the General Assembly, Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was 1.7 percentage points below the national average, the best comparison to the national average in more than ten years. Today, that gap has been cut in half, and it’s narrowing.
“Pennsylvania ranked 12th for new job creation in 2010. Today’s announcement means we are moving backward.
“The downturn of our state economy should come as no surprise. Last February, I joined my Senate Democratic colleagues to introduce a sensible job creation plan call PA Works, most of which is still sitting in committee.
“Last week, I voiced support for PA Works Now, our plan to put more Pennsylvanians back to work. We repeated our earlier calls for new investment in infrastructure, job training, and business investments that have clear records of success. The plan outlined a new set of tax credits to encourage small-business owners to make child and elder care available to their employees and to provide new training and internship opportunities for young people.
“My legislation in the package calls for Marcellus Shale drillers to directly invest in training to hire more Pennsylvania workers and create a call center for emergency services that could provide employment for the nearly 15 percent of workers with disabilities who cannot find a job.
“Lawmakers who are distracted by personal priorities and politically-motivated policies that are part of the national Republican political agenda should set aside these hobbies and focus on jobs. Lawmakers intent on eliminating thousands of jobs in our state liquor system should be sobered by today’s announcement and understand that every family sustaining job should have our support and protection.
It is long past time to implement a responsible tax on Marcellus Shale drilling. Also, a reasonable funding plan for transportation investment should be acted without delay. Finally, our priorities must be redirected from risky tax giveaways that reward campaign friends and shifted back to supporting our children, our environment, our schools and our neighbors. ”
# # #
by Christin Brown | October 19, 2011 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Oct. 18, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione said today she will continue to push for an update to Pennsylvania’s minimum wage law, after a Senate committee voted to avoid a decision yesterday.
The Senate Labor and Industry committee tabled a Tartaglione amendment by that would have tied Pennsylvania’s minimum wage to the consumer price index, ensuring that thousands of working families would forever get off a see-saw of poverty.
“There is no issue that more clearly defines the line between the 99 percent and the one percent,” Tartaglione said. “Vast majorities of the public have supported inflation protections in the minimum wage despite heavy lobbying and spending by big business. It’s profit vs. poverty. It’s that simple.”
Tartaglione is the prime sponsor of Senate Bill 235, which would apply an annual cost-of-living adjustment to the minimum wage, calculated by annually applying the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for the Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland area for the most recent twelve month-period. The bill is stuck in the Labor and Industry Committee as majority Republicans hope to avoid a vote.
Ten states have applied COLAs to their minimum wages, with half of them doing it through overwhelming support in ballot initiatives.
“The typical gloom-and-doom predictions about the minimum wage have all been debunked and voters are tired of hearing the business lobby say they can’t pay living wages,” Tartaglione said. “A properly adjusted minimum wage will keep working families from falling into poverty and dependence on government support. This is a move toward economic justice and smaller government.”
With the bill stalled in committee, Tartaglione attempted to implement its language through an amendment to another bill poised to move from the committee. The amendment was “tabled,” meaning it did not receive an up or down vote.
“I think this is not the time to tell working families that you’re siding with the CEOs” Tartaglione said. “I think they felt a changing wind and they ducked.”
Pennsylvania last adjusted its minimum wage in steps through 2006 and 2007. Since then, even moderate inflation has pushed a single worker with a child, lifted above the federal poverty line by the 2007 increase, back below the poverty line in 2011.
Tartaglione said she will continue to push for the bill or the amendment after the number of Pennsylvanians earning the minimum wage has jumped by 50 percent in the past year and the state’s poverty rate has hit a 20-year high.
“Working families are starting to understand what they’re up against,” Tartaglione said. “And they’re starting to fight back.”
###
by Christin Brown | October 18, 2011 | News Releases
Day Care, Adult Care, Job Training, School-to-Work Transition, and Green Jobs are Targeted
HARRISBURG, October 18, 2011 – – Today members of the Senate Democratic caucus unveiled legislation to be introduced this week to supplement the “PA Works Now” job creation plan, which has become the centerpiece of their agenda for the fall session. Senate Democrats will continue to offer solutions to the problems that prevent Pennsylvanians from finding and maintaining jobs in hopes the dialogue in the Capitol will begin to center on this pressing issue.
[hdvideo id=3 ]
“We can’t drag our feet when it comes to this. Families are struggling, and with each day that goes by they lose hope in our ability to help them,” said Sen. Lisa Boscola (D-Lehigh/Monroe/Northampton), Senate Democratic Policy chair. “We visited a number of communities across the state and gathered valuable – and in many cases very moving – feedback. This is the number one issue on people’s minds. We need to keep talking until we make it the number one priority on the minds of those serving in Harrisburg.”
The plan focuses on 6 key areas:
Tax credit incentives to encourage employer supported day care alternatives
This measure would provide tax incentives to small businesses that help employees cover the costs of child care and adult day care. Working families should not be constrained because they can’t find day care services. It’s not good for their quality of life. And it’s not helpful to our economy.
Sen. Judy Schwank is the prime sponsor of this legislation. “Many of us know all too well that day care is expensive, and many families have to weigh the cost of day care verses their weekly paycheck,” said Schwank (D-Berks). “For others, there is no choice. They have to work, and the only way they can work is if they have child care or adult day care and know their loved ones are safe while they earn a day’s pay.”
Improve School-to-Work Transition
Successful careers in today’s knowledge based economy require most students to pursue some post secondary training. However, many of these experiences do not require a four-year baccalaureate degree. Community colleges, technical colleges, apprenticeship programs, direct employer sponsored programs, and the military services all have important roles in providing these education and training experiences. Unfortunately, many students fail to receive the necessary career advice and training in the final years of their high school education to properly transition into these training and education opportunities following their high school graduation.
Boscola is the prime sponsor of legislation that would require every local school district to develop an individual education plan to ensure that every student’s high school experience envisions and prepares them for a career path. “We need to do everything in our power to get kids on the right track early. Many don’t know all of the options available to them until they have already pursued another path,” said Boscola. “In this economy there isn’t time for do-overs. This legislation would give them the tools and information they need to make these decisions which may ultimately impact their entire lives.”
Youth Summer Job Program
Summer employment programs can provide a valuable public service while giving youth valuable training and career experience. This measure would focus exclusively on youth summer employment opportunities at state parks and municipal recreational facilities throughout the commonwealth. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) would directly administer jobs created at state parks, while local governments could apply to DCNR to receive grants, not to exceed $2,500 per job, for work experiences at local recreational facilities. An estimated 10,000 jobs could be supported annually through a $25 million transfer from the Oil and Gas Fund.
Sen. Shirley Kitchen is introducing the legislation this week. “This is a win-win situation,” said Kitchen (D-Philadelphia). “Not only will youth learn valuable job skills and gain work experience, but our state parks and other recreational areas, which were hit particularly hard by last spring’s budget battle and the harsh cuts that resulted, will benefit too.”
PA Training Program for Marcellus Shale Drilling Operations
Marcellus Shale drilling has been a major economic boost for many areas throughout our state. Unfortunately, significant numbers of currently employed workers at these job sites continue to be people from outside of Pennsylvania. When we enact a drilling fee on Marcellus Shale operators later this fall, an annual set-aside of $5 million should fund specialized training programs, administered through local organized labor groups, to give Pennsylvanians the necessary skill sets to fill these jobs. A portion of these funds should be earmarked specifically to develop and staff a call center, with preference for the disabled to fill these jobs. The unemployment rate among the disabled is nearly 50 percent higher than for the rest of the workforce.
Sen. Christine Tartaglione is the prime sponsor of this measure. “My bill would set aside a portion of the revenue from a Marcellus Shale extraction tax to develop specialized training programs for jobs in the gas industry. The recent cuts to higher education have made college less likely for thousands of people. With a dedicated training program geared toward the various parts of the extraction, storage and transport of natural gas, we can put Pennsylvanians back to work,” said Tartaglione (D-Philadelphia). “While we push for specialized training for jobs in the gas industry, we will also push to make sure that this effort involves every Pennsylvanian who wants to work. My bill calls for development and staffing of a call center to connect willing workers with the right training program and for that call center to be staffed by people with disabilities.”
Incentives to Grow Women & Minority Owned Businesses
We are making a renewed push to encourage the growth of women, minority, or veteran-owned, or other disadvantaged small businesses by providing an array of incentives. Sen. LeAnna Washington’s Senate Bill 696, which was introduced as part of our original PA Works package, calls for a statewide bonding guarantee program, mentor-protégée support, a 10 percent reserve program for state contracts and other targets and incentives to increase employment opportunities for these businesses.
“Women, minority, and veteran-owned businesses all have bring something different to the table that you might not see every day in every business,” said Washington (D-Philadelphia/Montgomery). “Women have firsthand knowledge of some of the barriers to pursuing a career and the pull of other responsibilities. Minority and veteran business owners may be a bit more sensitive to the difficulties in finding work because of the hurdles and high unemployment statistics they face.”
Green Jobs Employment & Training Program
Sen. Kitchen’s Senate Bill 687, which was also introduced as part of our original PA Works package, creates the Green Work Force Training Program. The program would provide $5 million annually for each of the next three fiscal years to the Department of Labor and Industry to provide grants to vocational technical schools, community colleges, public or private higher education institutions, labor organizations, or privately licensed schools. The grants would be used to develop training programs for careers in emerging renewable energy or energy efficiency.
“If we are going to get out of this economic slump and compete in a national and global economy, a well-trained workforce is essential,” said Kitchen. “One of the areas that has great potential for our economic outlook is the green jobs sector. It’s an emerging industry that we must invest in if we want to move Pennsylvania forward.”
Dr. Thomas Rushton, the director of the Monroe Career & Technical Institute, also shared his firsthand experiences with school-to-work transition and gave input on how a program like the one introduced by Sen. Boscola would benefit the students he deals with in Monroe County.
PennEnvironment Director David Masur participated and shared information about the potential impact of Senate Bill 687 and the Green Workforce Training Program.
For more information on the PA Works Now program go to http://www.pasenate.com.
###
by Christin Brown | October 6, 2011 | News Releases
Philadelphia, Oct. 6, 2011— The Senate Democratic Policy Committee today heard from various stakeholders in the effort to modernize Pennsylvania’s liquor sales system in a way that will keep up consumer demand while continuing prevention of abuse and underage drinking.
“Pennsylvania has a unique system that returns money to state taxpayers and curbs the profit incentive for sales,” said Sen. Lisa Boscola, who chairs the policy committee. “The committee wanted to know how we can keep the controls in place while accommodating changing consumer preferences.”
The committee convened at Congeso de Latinos Unidos, in North Philadelphia, where representatives of liquor store employees, the state Liquor Control Board, and local clergy discussed various proposals for updating the system.
The Liquor Control Board operates more than 600 retail stores in Pennsylvania, staffed by employees whose primary concerns are preventing underage drinking and alcohol abuse. The LCB also oversees thousands of licensees, like bars, restaurants and vineyards.
“The system we have in Pennsylvania has numerous benefits to taxpayers and consumers,” Tartaglione said. “Employees of the stores make good wages, which bolsters the local economy, and they are not motivated to sell more to make that wage. That’s an important part of our goal to promote responsible, legal consumption.”
[divider]
Senator Tartaglione says modernization of state store system, not privatization, will make it more customer-friendly.
[audio:https://www.senatortartaglione.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/LCBHearing_Oct7_2011.mp3|titles=LCBHearing_Oct7_2011]
[divider]
Liquor Control Board CEO Joe Conti explained proposals for modernizing the liquor system that include giving the LCB more flexibility in purchasing and pricing that would help create more choice for consumers and return for taxpayers.
“We have a long list of ideas that could make the system more consumer friendly, efficient and profitable,” Conti said. “We need the legislature to give us the flexibility to implement them.”
Tartaglione said it was important to also hear from local religious leaders to address their concerns about the possibility that more convenience could lead to more abuse.
Rev. Bonnie Camarda, President of the Latino Clergy of Philadelphia, said religious leaders are opposed to Sunday sales, but have been able to accept it as something customers want. But expanding Sunday hours, or turning the liquor system over to private enterprise is a major concern.
“My biggest fear is that on every corner of North Philadelphia there’s going to be a liquor store,”Camarda said. “I don’t know what would happen in this community.”
Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa, of Allegheny County said the main reason he traveled to Philadelphia for the hearing was getting local perspective.
“With the proposals being put forth this session, it’s very important that we gather as much information as possible. We must very carefully assess the impact privatization will have on all communities,” Sen. Jay Costa. “We’re in North Philadelphia today because the concerns here are probably not the same as they are in the suburbs or in rural counties. We want to make sure we hear as many perspectives as possible.”
Tartaglione, who hosted the hearing in her Senate district, said she invited Camarda because she knows that treating drug and alcohol addiction are a primary concern of many community groups.
“We’re all aware of the effect alcohol consumption has on our neighborhoods,” Tartaglione said. “That’s probably the most important reason to keep tight controls on sales, even if we relax rules about hours and pricing.”
Many of the liquor restrictions that consumers find inconvenient are not produced by the LCB, but are enshrined in decades-old state law, officials said.
LCB officials asked for relaxation of the liquor code to allow for more of its stores to be open on Sunday and the ability to adopt modern Consumer Relations Marketing that could be tailored toward regular customers.
The push toward privatizing the liquor system, rather than modernizing it, would cost Pennsylvania jobs at a time when unemployment is on the rise would affect thousands of workers and all taxpayers, said Wendell Young IV, President of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.
“Privatization will result in 5,000 Pennsylvanians being fired so that a few well-connected entrepreneurs can profit,” Young said. “This makes no sense considering that the PLCB is profitable, provides good jobs and all the money stays here in Pennsylvania.”
Boscola said the hearing produced valuable information about the future direction of the state’s liquor system.
“Making the liquor stores more customer friendly will mean keeping thousands of family-sustaining jobs in local communities as the economy slowly recovers,” she said.
###
by Christin Brown | September 27, 2011 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Sept. 27, 2011 — Pennsylvania Senate Democrats representing urban communities today called the Republican plan to change the Electoral College voting process a “blatant attempt to gerrymander votes during presidential election cycles.
“We continuously tell people ‘Your vote counts,’ but the Republican leadership in the House and Senate are making a blatant attempt to discourage voting in typically Democratic urban areas,” said state Sen. Shirley Kitchen (D-Phila.), chair of the Senate Philadelphia Delegation, at a Capitol news conference. “What they are saying to my constituents and people living in cities is that their vote should not count equally.”
Pennsylvania presidential electors cast all votes for the candidate who wins the state’s popular vote, but under Senate Republican Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi’s (R-Chester) plan, presidential candidates would receive one vote for each Congressional district he or she wins.
“From the voter ID legislation to the Electoral College proposal, they are bent on putting obstacles in the way of participation,” Kitchen said. “Under this Electoral College plan, the voice of the people of Pennsylvania is not a collective one; it’s divided into blocks of communities. If the Republicans believe the system is broken, why rush to change the process? I think we know the answer. They are concerned about the outcome of the 2012 election and accommodating national Republicans who have been unable to win Pennsylvania one election after another. It’s pure politics.”
Sen. Mike Stack (D-Phila.) said the Republican plan would have a major impact on Pennsylvania’s economy.
During the 2008 campaign, President Barack Obama raised $8.55 million and Sen. John McCain raised $3.26 million in the Philadelphia area alone.
“Every visit by a candidate brings a crowd, from the candidate’s staff and family to the media to the general public. These individuals need to eat. They need a place to stay. They need to gas up their vehicles,” Stack said. “Presidential elections are an economic boom for Pennsylvania, especially in our urban areas where candidates often focus their attention. For every campaign stop, people are put to work. Money is spent.
“Most important of all, the candidates pay attention to us because they know Pennsylvania’s electoral votes matter,” Stack said. “Yet the Republicans want us to change to an Electoral College process that only two other states — Nebraska and Maine — utilize. They’re not battleground states. They barely make the Radar during presidential election cycles.”
Pennsylvania is the sixth most populous state, whereas Nebraska is 39th and Maine is 42nd.
During the 2004 presidential elections, the Bush and Kerry campaigns and their affiliated interest groups spent a total of $36 million on advertising here. Pennsylvania was among the top five states that both presidential candidates visited, and we received the third highest percentage of television ad time that year.
Contrarily, Maine was targeted 13th in television ad time and received exactly one visit from Sen. John Kerry. Nebraska wasn’t even a factor in television advertising, nor did the candidates stop there.
“The current system gives our economy a nice little kick and brings national attention to the Keystone State at a time when we really could use it,” Stack said. “I oppose Senator Pileggi’s legislation and strongly urge the General Assembly to consider the implications of the measure. We need to focus our priorities on what’s best for Pennsylvania, not what’s best for a political affiliation.”
Sen. Tina Tartaglione said the legislation is essentially an acknowledgement that Republicans can’t win without changing the rules.
“They are telling their own candidates for president that Pennsylvania is lost and the best they can do is attempt a risky, pre-emptive attack on a 200-year-old system,” said Tartaglione (D-Phila.). “Newspapers and good-government groups across the state have expressed outrage. Republicans and Democrats alike have warned of the consequences of arrogance. Controlling the redistricting and then altering the election count along the lines of the districts is a broad overreach and it will ultimately backfire.”
Sen. Larry Farnese said the Republicans should focus on the real issues impacting Pennsylvania, including high unemployment numbers, rather than politics.
“This proposal once again shows that under Republican leadership we have a priority problem in Harrisburg,” said Farnese (D-Phila.). “Instead of focusing on getting people back to work, we’re trying to fix elections by changing how votes are counted instead of how people vote.”
Sen. Vincent Hughes said the measure has been tainted by partisan politics.
“This is a political power grab,” said Hughes (D-Phila./Montgomery). “It’s an attempt to disenfranchise all Pennsylvania people and advance only a certain sector.”
The Senate State Government Committee will hold a public hearing to address this legislation on Tuesday, Oct. 4 at 11 a.m. in Hearing Room 1 of the North Office Building in the Capitol in Harrisburg.
Sen. Anthony H. Williams, Democratic chairman of the committee, encouraged the public to submit written testimony or attend the public hearing.
###
by Christin Brown | September 26, 2011 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Sept. 26, 2011 – Hundreds of local seniors packed the gymnasium at Camelot’s Excel Academy for state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione’s annual Senior Expo.
Sen. Tartaglione greets visitors to her Senior Expo at Camelot's Excel Academy. Click on photo to view gallery.
“This is always the best event of the year,” Tartaglione said. “It brings together seniors from my district with students who put in a lot of effort to host them at the school. Everybody has fun and everybody learns something.”
The Senior Expo featured dozens of exhibitors with products and services that can help seniors navigate the sometimes complicated system of services available to them.
“Getting face-to-face answers to questions makes some important decisions easier,” Tartaglione said. “The Senior Expo gives them a chance to keep up with a rapidly changing world.”
Students from Camelot’s Excel Academy helped transform their gymnasium into a crowded marketplace that included free help from state, federal and city agencies, as well as vendors ranging from home security systems to therapeutic footwear.
“We keep coming back here because the students and staff at Excel Academy do such a great job welcoming everyone,” Tartaglione said. “The community gets a chance to see what locals students can do with the right mentorship and guidance.”
###
by Christin Brown | July 15, 2011 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, July 15, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today praised the city’s Latino leaders for coming to agreement on the handling of this year’s “Puerto Rican Festival.”
“For many years, leaders in the Latino community have worked to create an environment of harmony and understanding in Philadelphia’s neighborhoods,” Tartaglione said. “Putting an end to the controversy surrounding the annual Puerto Rican Festival shows that they can apply the same values to the relationship among the various advocacy groups.”
The Committee to Rescue Our Puerto Rican Heritage and Council of Spanish Speaking Organizations (Concilio) have both announced that the city’s annual Puerto Rican Festival will retain that name for this year’s activities. The festival is a celebration and exposition of Puerto Rican and other Latino cultures in Philadelphia over the coming months, peaking with the Puerto Rican Day Parade on Sept. 25 along Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
by Christin Brown | June 30, 2011 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, June 30, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione tonight offered an amendment to a key budget bill that would have prevented labor unrest at the Graterford Prison project.
“The Graterford project is an important project and its timely completion is critical to addressing the Commonwealth’s prison capacity needs,” Tartaglione told the Senate Rules Committee when offering her amendment to Senate Bill 907. “A project labor agreement is essential to guaranteeing that occurs.”
In 2008, the Department of General Services entered into a project labor agreement with labor organizations in southeastern Pennsylvania to ensure “labor peace and harmony through a no-strike, no lock out commitment by all involved personnel in order to meet the construction deadline.”
The agreement was later upheld by the state Supreme Court but, three months ago, Gov. Tom Corbett re-bid the project and nullified the PLA.
Despite the strong support of Democratic Leader Jay Costa of Allegheny County and Democratic Appropriations Chairman Vincent Hughes, of Philadelphia, the measure was defeated by a party-line vote.
“I’m grateful for the support of Senators Costa and Hughes who agreed that keeping everyone involved in the project working and resolving their differences without delays is the best way to ensure meeting the construction deadline,” Tartaglione said.
by Christin Brown | June 28, 2011 | News Releases
State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today released the following statement on the budget:
“Trying to spare wealthy corporations from any sacrifice during a difficult budget year, the governor and the majority have gutted programs that have been proven to be successful and cost effective. That kind of budgeting is shortsighted and lends itself more to glib sound bites than effective governing.
A key example is the absurd treatment of the Homeowners’ Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program (HEMAP), a model enterprise that has the strong support of the banking industry and been given a glowing review in Moody’s Weekly Credit Outlook.
The program has distributed more than $480 million in assistance on only $244 million in state appropriations while $260 million has been paid back to the program.
That simple math says the program is keeping families together, preserving communities, preventing blight and stabilizing the banking industry at no cost to taxpayers.
So, of course, this administration cut 80 percent of its funding.
It makes no sense.”
by Christin Brown | June 27, 2011 | News Releases
State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione released the following statement about today’s budget vote in the Appropriations Committee:
“It’s been said many times that the state budget process is about choices. Sometimes, those choices are tough.
But the budget plan pushed through the Appropriations Committee today after unilateral negotiations is more about ignoring choices than making tough ones.
Teachers will be laid off and local property taxes will be going up across the state because the governor puts his promise to a lobbyist ahead of his obligation to education.
This budget is being promoted to protect large corporations that are intent on avoiding their obligations to other taxpayers.
More than half of the states that levy corporate income taxes have now adopted a ‘combined reporting’ requirement, making sure that corporations can’t form out-of-state shell companies to lower their state tax bills.
The Department of Revenue has estimated that combined reporting could recoup more than $500 million in lost tax revenue, enough to keep our teachers in their classrooms, protect hospitals and lower our highest-in-the-nation corporate net income tax.
Before the explosion of gas drilling in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale, energy companies created hundreds of Delaware subsidiaries. Last year, 87 percent of drilling-related companies paid no corporate net income tax in Pennsylvania.
At the same time, laid off workers, struggling to recover from the recession, have gone back to work over the past 12 months and have contributed from their paychecks to a budget surplus that will hit $700 million by the middle of next week.
It is an insult to working families that the legislature and the governor will sit on that surplus and continue to let corporations play games with their tax bills and then claim we can’t afford to keep teachers in classrooms.
The same lawmakers who hyperventilate about $400 million in nebulous and unidentified welfare fraud have gone mute over $500 million in unpaid corporate income taxes.
That’s not making tough choices. That’s making a clear choice to ease the tax burden of multi-national corporations and dump it on the poor, the struggling and the sick.
If this budget is adopted, thousands of families across Pennsylvania will see property taxes go up as their children go back to school in more-crowded classrooms, while the state stashes their tax dollars and protects the profits wealthy corporations.
With tax policy that puts the burden on families, schools and hospitals, while giving a pass to energy and retail giants, it’s no wonder that Wall St. has recovered from the recession while working families continue to struggle.
Pennsylvania families should demand that their hard-earned dollars be used to educate their children, improve their communities and lower their local taxes.
This budget doesn’t do it.”
by Christin Brown | June 20, 2011 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, June 20, 2011 – Democratic lawmakers today introduced legislation that would blunt the Philadelphia School Reform Commission’s (SRC) attempt to violate seniority provisions in the existing teacher labor contract and then potentially cancel other labor agreements on June 30.
Senate Democratic Appropriations chair Sen. Vincent J. Hughes, Sen. Christine Tartaglione, Democratic chair of the Senate Labor and Industry Committee, House Democratic Education chair Rep. James R. Roebuck, Jr., and House Democratic Children and Youth chair Louise Bishop, all from Philadelphia, are sponsoring legislation, Senate Bill 1168 and House Bill 1699, aimed at preempting the SRC from overriding collective bargaining agreements relating to employee layoffs. The measures would also prevent the cancelling of labor agreements before the contract expires.
In dismissing teachers without regard to seniority and threatening to cancel valid contracts, the lawmakers argue that the SRC is exceeding its authority.
“Philadelphia teachers have been an active partner in trying to deal reasonably with the tough economic situation the school district faces,” Hughes said. “The teachers have made concessions and have worked within the collective bargaining framework.
“The teacher’s union has not been blind to the enormous fiscal challenges that the school district faces, but the SRC’s actions go way too far.”
The distressed schools law contains provisions that enable school districts to by-pass provisions in the state school code in certain situations. However, Hughes said that he does not believe that those provisions override a valid labor agreement negotiated in good faith.
Tartaglione, a leader on labor issues in the Senate, said that “contract provisions should not be subject to alteration after a labor agreement is reached, unless both sides agree to changes,” Tartaglione said. “The SRC agreed to the seniority provisions and they should honor their word and abide by the contract with the teachers union.”
Both Hughes and Tartaglione maintained that the law that allows the SRC to void contract provisions was not intended to be open-ended; and that the district and its teachers have had multiple collective bargaining agreements since 2001.
Roebuck said “the SRC should follow the process it negotiated and agreed to not only when it comes to laying off teachers but for all other provisions. There is a great need for the teachers and the district to work together in both solving the fiscal crisis and providing quality education to Philadelphia’s school students.
“There is no legislative mandate or desire to restructure negotiated labor agreements.”
Philadelphia Federation of Teachers President Jerry Jordan echoed the lawmakers’ call for legislation clarifying the powers of the SRC.
“We are in dire need of legislative clarity that defines the powers of the SRC relative to voiding contract provisions that were bargained for and agreed-to in good faith,” Jordan said. “The teachers in Philadelphia shouldn’t be held to different standards based on murky provisions in law.”
The lawmakers said that their legislation would reassert the intent of the original law and emphasize that the SRC’s power to alter labor contracts is limited. The measures have the strong support of Philadelphia delegations in both the Senate and House.
The Philadelphia School District is dealing with a funding shortfall of $629 million as a result of the loss of federal funds and state budget cuts proposed by Gov. Tom Corbett.
-30-
by Christin Brown | June 17, 2011 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, June 17, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today praised Senate passage of a compromise bill that extends unemployment benefits and makes changes that will help shore up the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund.
“I am grateful that my colleagues have seen the wisdom of preserving and extending benefits during the worst days of the economic decline,” Tartaglione said as Senate Bill 1030 headed for Senate passage today. “I believe we all realize that unemployment compensation is not just a lifeline for laid-off workers and their families. Unemployment compensation has also been critical in shoring up the economy, preserving small businesses and the communities they serve.
During the recession, more than $15 billion in benefits were spent on food, mortgages, utilities and doctor bills,” Tartaglione said.
“Without that economic impact, we would have seen higher unemployment, more foreclosures and a deeper hole for families to climb out of,” she said.
The Senate Labor and Industry Committee took language from Tartaglione’s Senate Bill 994, and amended it to Senate Bill 1030 to allow Pennsylvania to adopt a “three-year lookback,” and qualify for federal help that will extend benefits for as many as 130,000 workers.
Federally subsidized extended benefits are triggered by a state’s unemployment rate over a defined period of time, called a “look-back” period. Using a two-year look-back, Pennsylvania did not qualify on May 21, and 45,000 Pennsylvanians could have lost their benefits as of June 11. An estimated 90,000 more would have lost regular benefits and not qualify for extended benefits through the end of the year.
The provisions of Tartaglione’s bill were amended into Senate Bill 1030, as part of a comprehensive unemployment reform that will save money for the beleaguered Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund and require anyone collecting unemployment to actively look for work
The bill also includes a Tartaglione proposal authorizing “shared-work” programs, through which employers would be able to reduce work hours of employees as an alternative to layoffs and allow affected employees to receive prorated unemployment compensation for lost wages.
House and Senate negotiators agreed to a compromise bill that freezes the maximum benefit amount and makes other changes intended to shore up the trust fund.
The Senate unanimously passed the compromise bill today. It now heads to the governor’s desk.
###
by sdcsapps | June 17, 2011 | News Releases
Philadelphia, June 17, 2011 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione joined local bank executives, homeowners and consumer advocates in support of restored funding for Pennsylvania’s emergency mortgage assistance program.
At a news conference at City Hall, Tartaglione said preventing foreclosures is a key component of economic recovery.
“Over the next two weeks, I will be urging my colleagues to remember that keeping a family in their home is more than just good will. It’s good policy,” she said.
“It holds families together, which holds neighborhoods together, which holds communities together.”
Funding for Pennsylvania’s Homeowner Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program was eliminated in Gov. Tom Corbett’s budget proposal, announced in March.
Tartgaglione said a projected state budget surplus should prevent cuts that would put homes and neighborhoods at risk.
“Restoring our commitment to HEMAP is an investment in people, neighborhoods, small businesses and big banks. It floats all boats,” she said. “Taking away the help when it is needed the most is bad public policy that will create more budget problems than it solves.”
Local banking officials agreed and joined Tartaglione to urge lawmakers to restore the funding in the final budget.
“We unequivocally support funding for HEMAP,” said Bill Smith, vice president for community banking at Citizen’s Bank. “HEMAP has been there to save the day.”
Supporter also heard from Sharon Greene, a Philadelphia homeowner who is working with the Philadelphia Unemployment Project to acquire HEMAP funding to prevent the foreclosure of her home.
“It’s not like you just stop working and stop paying the bills,” she said. “Things happen. And keeping your home means keeping families together.”
HEMAP was created by the legislature in 1983, and has distributed $211 and recouped $238 million in re-payments. More than 20,000 loans have been repaid with HEMAP support.
###
