Penn State, other students lobby Wolf to pass budget

University students are issuing a reprimand to Harrisburg.

In March 2015, Tom Wolf took one of his biggest steps as Pennsylvania’s new governor.

He gave the speech announcing his budget plans. Penn State, he said, would pick up an extra $49 million in funding.

It sounded great in Happy Valley. But that was then.

Everyone knew that the Republican-led legislature would counter the Democrat’s proposal. A showdown was possible. It’s happened before, under both Republican Tom Corbett and Democrat Ed Rendell.

But more than seven months have passed since money stopped rolling to Pennsylvania’s state-related schools and the students want something done about it.

On Thursday, representatives from Penn State, Pitt and Temple sent letters to Wolf with a resolution from their newly formed joint venture, the Pennsylvania Association of State-Related Students. Pennsylvania has four state-related schools, including Lincoln University.

“Upon electing you as governor, we were optimistic about the prospects for an increase in our appropriation. Instead, your inability to lead the state budget negotiations has created an even more detrimental fiscal situation for our university as we have now been without an appropriation for over seven months,” wrote Emily McDonald, president of the University Park Undergraduate Association.

Pitt’s student government President Nasreen Harun was pointed about one of the problems.

“The governor’s office also requested that state-related universities minimize tuition increases to reflect an increase in funding,” she wrote.

In 2015, Penn State responded to those requests with the first freeze on in-state tuition in decades. Pitt had its lowest increase in 40 years.

“We cannot over-stress the importance of passing a budget that fully funds higher education in Pennsylvania,” wrote Ryan Rinaldi, Temple’s student government president. “Between students receiving in-state tuition and those reliant on PHEAA grants, state funding is integral to putting college within the reach of everyone; continued delay in passing a budget threatens the very students who are most vulnerable.”

The resolution said the PASS committed to “collectively advocate for the passing of a budget with fair appropriations for the betterment of our state-related institutions and our constituents.”

Wolf’s 2016 budget address this week included a new appeal for an additional 5 percent increase for the schools. But that money is as theoretical as the 2015 appropriation that still has not come to pass.

“If this trend continues, students will face destabilizing financial burdens which could lead to an increase in the percentage of college drop-outs,” McDonald wrote.

The PASS resolution comes after last month’s blog from Penn State President Eric Barron, who lamented the lack of action.

“It is a tragedy to use a tuition dollar to pay interest on borrowing that we shouldn’t have to pay or to sell off investments that earn dollars that support worthwhile programs just to cover the lack of a state appropriation,” Barron said then.

In January, Wolf took action to release some funds for education, but that did not extend to the universities.

The governor’s office received the letters and did respond, although it did not accept all of the blame directed at Wolf.

“We agree with (the students) and share their frustration — there should be a real budget and we hope Republican leaders get back to work and pass the bipartisan compromise budget that they agreed to with the governor. That budget made historic increases in education at all levels including a 5 percent increase to higher education,” said spokesman Jeff Sheridan.

“Unfortunately, Republican leaders have failed the people of Pennsylvania. They sent the governor a budget that was $500 million out of balance, would have grown the deficit and made cuts to education,” he said. “Republican leaders need to get serious about passing a balanced budget that fixes the deficit and funds education.”

This story was originally published February 11, 2016 at 6:22 PM with the headline "Penn State, other students lobby Wolf to pass budget."