Opinion: PA Republicans failed Centre County, state with use of American Rescue Plan billions

Voters sent President Joe Biden and Congress to Washington to pass real relief for everyday people and our communities so all of us could recover stronger from the pandemic. And they delivered directly for Pennsylvania with relief checks, child tax credits and resources for schools, vaccines and small businesses.

After years of falling behind, families are starting to find it a little easier to get by, and wages and hiring are both trending up. Voters demanded recovery that helped everyone, especially Black, brown and low-income communities and workers most severely impacted by the pandemic, and their leaders finally delivered.

Across Centre County and Pennsylvania, people are seeing the impact but there are still far too many who are struggling. The American Rescue Plan also sent more than $7 billion to our state legislature to further help solve the problems facing everyday people revealed by the pandemic.

Unfortunately, the Republican majority gaveled out for the summer without sending a dime of this stimulus funding to provide direct relief to working families and small businesses. Despite so much need from our local businesses and workers in Centre County, they set more than $6 billion aside for their own use later and gave millions in new corporate tax breaks, while our communities and neighbors got nothing.

As usual, Legislative leaders like our own Sen. Jake Corman and Rep. Kerry Benninghoff had only bad excuses for blocking the American Rescue funding from helping our small businesses, workers and communities. And we’re still waiting for an answer as to why they haven’t provided paid sick leave to every worker, raised the minimum wage, addressed the student debt crisis, and done so much more to help those struggling.

We need to hold them accountable for failing Pennsylvania with this political maneuver.

Neighboring states are using the Rescue Plan funding for small business assistance, fixing school buildings, making health care more affordable, and giving direct relief to people most struggling. Pennsylvania had an historic opportunity to solve problems facing people, but the legislature is, once again, holding Pennsylvania back from being more equitable and prosperous for everyone who calls it home.

The legislature says they are saving the money for a rainy day but people in their districts — including right here in Centre County — were already drowning before the pandemic. They left billions in our tax dollars in their accounts and won’t be back to work in the Capitol until September. So Pennsylvanians are left to wonder when the legislature will use the American Rescue Plan funding to help us, or their own political agenda.