Penn State ‘disappointed’ as PA House fails to pass state-related university funding bill
Although the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed the state budget, funding for state-related universities like Penn State remains in limbo.
The House needs a two-thirds majority vote in favor of House Bill 612, which would provide funding for state-related universities for the fiscal year July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024. State-related universities include Penn State, University of Pittsburgh, Temple University and Lincoln University. The bill outlines $259,285,000 in funding to Penn State for “general support” — funds that impact in-state tuition and cover core teaching costs — and $28,634,000 for the Pennsylvania College of Technology.
The vote failed in the House Thursday night by six votes. The house previously rejected a funding bill in June as well.
In a university statement, Penn State expressed disappointment with the outcome of the House vote.
“We are disappointed with the outcome of the House vote, as this funding directly supports Penn State’s discounted in-state tuition rate, which thousands of Pennsylvania students and their families rely on each year. With an enrollment of more than 40,000 Pennsylvania resident students across 20 undergraduate campuses, we look forward to continued conversations with lawmakers about how this funding represents an investment in our young people, our communities, and the commonwealth’s long-term economic prosperity,” the statement reads.
A university spokesperson did not respond to a question about the potential impact of the lack of secured funding on tuition and other university matters.
Centre County’s three state representatives — Scott Conklin, D-Rush Township, Kerry Benninghoff, R-Bellefonte, and Paul Takac, D-College Township, — voted in support of the bill, which bundled funding for all four universities into one.
Takac took to the House floor prior to the vote Thursday in support of the bill. He said that not only does his district include Penn State’s largest campus, University Park, but he also has a student enrolled at University of Pittsburgh.
“Today, like tens of thousands of students and their families across this commonwealth, we remain in financial limbo, unsure if we will have to come up with several thousand dollars more in tuition than we were planning on. The appropriations we are voting for today directly impact what families like mine pay,” Takac said.
He urged his colleagues to “set aside distractions and unrelated issues” and vote yes on the bill to support Pennsylvania students, families, farmers and communities.
As we continue to work toward the 2/3 majority needed to approve funding for our state-related universities — @PittTweet, @PennState, @TempleUniv and @LincolnUofPA — I had the opportunity to speak yesterday in support of students, families, and communities across PA. pic.twitter.com/4gBVWAAGOJ
— Rep. Paul Takac (@RepTakac) July 7, 2023
It’s unclear when another vote on the bill may occur.
In September 2022, the Penn State board of trustees unanimously approved a $469.5 million state appropriation request — a historic increase request in state funding. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s proposed budget included a $17.2 million (7.1%) increase in funding over last year for general support.
The board of trustees usually approves the university’s own budget in July and is scheduled to meet July 20-21 at Penn State Behrend.
