HARRISBURG (AP) – PA House Democrats returned to the Capitol as they object to a budget deal between Democrat Gov. Josh Shapiro and Senate Republicans. The holdup today in the politically divided Legislature comes as state government is in its fifth day without full spending authority. The dispute is primarily over education spending, including Shapiro’s support for a new education funding program that Republicans also support. It offers scholarships to students in the state’s lowest-performing schools so they can access better educational opportunities. But the first-ever voucher program is opposed by Democrats, teachers’ unions, and school boards. In response, House Democrats demanded some $750 million more in aid for public schools that Senate Republicans are unwilling to meet. Republicans have described how closely they worked with Shapiro on a $45 billion budget plan and how they met every request he made during budget negotiations, adding hundreds of millions of dollars in spending that Shapiro sought try to sell the deal to House Democrats.
