Pa. Senate Democrats unveil $4B COVID-19 relief plan

Hoping to get the state’s struggling economy moving and help Pennsylvanians facing hardships due to the coronavirus pandemic, state Senate Democrats on Friday unveiled a plan to borrow $4 billion to fund a variety of aid programs to help in the recovery.

The Pennsylvania Coronavirus Aid, Relief & Economic Security Act of 2021, or PA CARES 21, as they are calling it, would authorize the state to issue emergency debt to assist small businesses, hospitals, schools and colleges, as well as provide for direct payments to unemployed workers, frontline workers and those facing food insecurity who need help with utility bills, housing assistance and more.

“This cannot go on any longer,” said Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills. “There are immediate needs in communities across this state that must be addressed immediately. We are in the middle of another surge in COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths. We need help to recover, personally and financially; the state must play an active role in that recovery, and that is what our plan today does.”

While there is talk of another federal stimulus plan that may be forthcoming from Congress, Sen. Vince Hughes, D-Philadelphia, said on a Zoom call with several of his Democratic colleagues and reporters that this plan — which also calls for draining the $200 millionplus in the state’s Rainy Day Fund — would step in while waiting for federal action. While the plan could be modified if additional federal aid comes through, he said there still may be a need for more relief aid beyond what feds provide.

“The level of devastation that exists across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in every section of the state of Pennsylvania, in every county, in every community deserves this action and deserves federal action as well,” Mr. Hughes said. “This is unprecedented help, but we’re in unprecedented times.”

He said with the historic low interest rates available right now, the state should take advantage of this opportunity to borrow money to help people through this health and economic crisis. The debt could be paid back by redirecting money from existing revenue sources and that no tax increase will be required, Mr. Hughes said.

“Let me be real clear on that, we’re not going down that path. None of this will cause a tax increase,” he said.

He and others criticized the House and Senate Republican majorities’ decision to use the unspent $1.3 billion funding from the previous federal stimulus aid package to balance the budget passed last month to keep state government operating through June 30, instead of directing it to help struggling Pennsylvanians.

The rollout of this plan didn’t draw much enthusiasm from the Republican counterparts in the House.

“The Pennsylvania Senate Democrats today did nothing more than try to sell Pennsylvanians a bill of goods,” said House GOP spokesman Jason Gottesman. “Their plan would increase the debt held by the taxpayers of this commonwealth by the billions, drain our Rainy Day Fund for onetime expenses, and includes no long-term solution for how to rebuild and sustain Pennsylvania’s economy.”

He went on: “Instead of making empty promises to the people of Pennsylvania, legislative Democrats should join with Republicans to seek a way to restore our economy and bring more common sense to our COVID-19 response while we collectively work to sensibly protect family and friends from this terrible pandemic.”

Attempts to get a comment from Senate Republicans were unsuccessful Friday.