Dear Neighbor, I hope you are well! I wanted to take this opportunity to update you on several happenings in the district as well as Harrisburg. 

As always, I hope you find this informative and useful.

Pennsylvania’s 23/24 Budget Update

As you may have heard by now, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed the 2023-24 Budget, House Bill 611, on Wednesday, July 5th. However, its implementation is delayed. The following explains how Pennsylvania got to this point, what it means, and where we can go from here. 

Governor Shapiro gave his first budget address in March and outlined his priorities for the legislature’s consideration. HB 611 reflected the governor’s requests—with additional dollars directed to specific programs geared toward helping working Pennsylvanians. Once the bill was in the Senate, the controversial Lifeline Scholarship program, now known as the PASS program, was amended into the bill, which would have directed $100 million in public funds to a private school voucher program. Governor Shapiro vowed to veto the PASS program’s line item from the budget when it arrived at his desk. When HB 611 left the Senate chamber and returned to the House for concurrence, it passed with the promise of that line-item veto. I voted for HB 611, knowing that Governor Shapiro would honor that promise. 

In my statement about H.B. 611, I called this budget a compromise. As Democrats, we stood firm against private school vouchers to prioritize the future of our public education system. However, it was disappointing to see valuable programs and line items sacrificed in order to eliminate vouchers and pass this budget without further delay. And while this budget doesn’t finish the job in addressing decades of underfunded public education, we’ve now come closer than ever in closing the gap. 

Methacton School District will receive $11,297,268 in state funding, a 7.9% increase from last year. 

Norristown Area School District will receive $31,953,809 in state funding, a 18.5% increase from last year. 

Perkiomen Valley School District will receive $11,148,153 in state funding, a 7.1% increase from last year. 

Spring-Ford Area School District will receive $16,800,385 in state funding, a 10.4 % increase from last year. 

At this stage in the process, the budget must be signed by Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis in the presence of the convened PA Senate so that it can be forwarded to Governor Shapiro to be signed into law. The PA Senate’s calendar is set by President Pro Tempore Senator Kim Ward and the majority party. As of this email, they have publicly said that they will not return to session until September 18th. 

This Senate delay is a delay in critical services and programs Pennsylvanians rely on every single day. It’s political gamesmanship that risks loss of crucial funding of PA programs for the next few months. I encourage you use your voice to contact your state senator’s office and tell them to return to session so the Pennsylvania budget can become law. 

H.B. 1422

Last week, the House passed H.B. 1422, Modernizing our Cyber Charter School Law, 122-81. Cyber charter schools have lower operational costs than either traditional public schools or brick-and-mortar charter schools yet by law, school districts must pay cyber charters the same amount as brick-and-mortar charter schools. This bill would reform the law and sets a single statewide tuition rate for non-special education students at cyber charter schools based on actual costs of cyber education.

If enacted, school districts across the commonwealth would see an estimated $456 million in overpayments returned to our public schools. The estimated total cyber charter tuition savings for 2024/25 for school districts in the 150th Legislative District are:

$657,653 for Methacton School District.

$1,577,630 for Norristown Area School District.

$707,924 for Perkiomen Valley School District.

$1,240,729 for Spring-Ford Area School District.

However, in order for our schools to see these dollars, the Senate must take up and pass H.B. 1422 when they decide to return to session.

Shred Event this Weekend

This Saturday is the annual Shred Event with Rep. Matt Bradford’s office at the Norristown Area High School. We will be there from 9am to noon, or until the trucks fill, to safely dispose of your personal documents.

Limit two boxes per household, only paper. No electronics or trash. All paper will be recycled. Cardboard boxes and plastic bags will be returned after materials are shred. Paper bags can be shredded with paper.

See you there!

Summer Collection Drive

ICYMI: My 2023 Summer Collection Drive is now live!

My office is collecting crucial items to donate to Daily Bread Community Food Pantry and St. James Outreach House like laundry detergent, personal care items, paper products, school supplies, canned meals, juice pouches, and school snacks.

Please drop off items to my district office at 35 Evansburg Road, Collegeville, PA.

Hazardous Weather Prep and Safety

Summer is fun time! Beach time! Road trip time! Time for hiking in the cool mountains or basking on a sunny beach by the sea. So many wonderful memories are created each summer as we vacation and decompress.

But summer is also hurricane and thunderstorm season. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), average temperatures in Pennsylvania have risen 2° since the beginning of the 20th century and are expected to continue increasing in the future. We just experienced several days that were registered as having the highest global average temperature ever recorded. Average rainfall has also increased with the incidents of extreme storms increasing as well. As many at 17 named storms, including as many as four major hurricanes are predicted for 2023. 

Bigger storms interspersed with longer dry spells are fast becoming the norm. Preparing for these changes and being ready for an emergency can help relieve the anxiety and stress when the weather gets hazardous. Included below are some ideas to help you be prepared when the next big storm comes our way.

Be Aware! Check the weather regularly to know when hazardous weather may be headed our way. 

Understand your risks. Do you live near a creek or river? Does access to your home require a creek crossing? Do you have large trees close to your home?

Getting Prepared!

1.    If you live in an area where evacuation due to high water may be necessary, know where to go if evacuations are ordered, know the safest route to get there (and a secondary one!), and DO NOT WAIT! During Hurricane Ida, Montgomery County initiated 467 water rescues and three deaths occurred due to flooding. Do not be a statistic – evacuate when ordered. Make sure someone not in your evacuation group who is also not in the storm’s path knows your plan.

2.    Prepare a hurricane emergency kit including water (1 gal/person/day), non-perishable food, battery or hand crank radio, flashlight, first aid kit, extra batteries (or small solar changer for phone, etc.), whistle for signaling for help, manual can opener, soap or hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes.  Also consider prescription and non-prescription medications, contact lens supplies, baby needs, cash or traveler’s check, blankets, matches in a waterproof container.

3.    Create an emergency plan with your family and practice it so everyone knows what to do and where to meet in an emergency.

4.    Plan for special needs: Many municipalities maintain a voluntary registry for those with disabilities in order to receive targeted assistance during an emergency – register if it is available, wear medical alert tags or bracelets, understand how to keep electronic medical equipment running in a power outage, inform your support network where you keep important supplies, and organize and protect medications.  

5.    Plan for pets: emergency shelters may not accept pets so include food and water for them, and any pet meds that are needed.

For more complete information about preparing for hazardous weather, visit www.weather.gov/safety for the National Weather Service safety tips on many weather-related issues. 

Please continue to stay safe, healthy and well-informed.

And, if you have questions about any state-related issue, please contact my office at 484-200-8263 or email [email protected].

Sincerely,

Rep. Joe Webster
State Representative
150th Legislative District

PA House of Representatives Democratic Caucus
PO Box 202250 Harrisburg, PA 17120-2250

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