WILKES-BARRE — With the federal government shutdown entering a second month, Gov. Tom Wolf this week provided an update on how his administration is working to minimize the impact on Pennsylvanians.
“My administration is doing everything that it can to help those impacted by this situation,” Wolf said. “Agencies across state government are working with local officials and organizations that rely on federal funding. We are temporarily using state funds to fill the gaps where we can. We are working to assist affected workers however we can. I urge businesses and creditors to show compassion for federal employees that are not being paid.“
Wolf went on to say that he hopes that President Donald Trump will agree to accept the bipartisan funding bills and “continue his fight over the wall for another day without the pain of this shutdown for workers, their families, and their communities.”
Wolf said, “It is time for this to end before the consequences are even more dire.”
The governor said his Administration is taking the following steps to address the federal government shutdown:
Department of Human Services
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) payments will continue through at least mid-April by using prior-year federal funds. The commonwealth has provided $4.2 million for the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) program that funds 100,500 child care slots for low-income families.
The 1.8 million Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients in Pennsylvania received their February benefits on Jan. 18. These benefits must stretch through February, after which the fate of the program is unknown. The department notified SNAP recipients of the change.
Department of Health
The Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Program has enough federal funding to continue through February. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recovered additional unspent grant from states and will redistribute the funds.
Department of Labor and Industry
The Rapid Response Coordination Services (RRCS) is helping affected federal workers to access resources available to them. Resource fairs were held in Pittsburgh last week and in Philadelphia. The resource fairs are in partnership with local organizations.
Pennsylvania is joining many other U.S. states in waiving the work registration and work search requirements for furloughed federal employees who meet Unemployment Compensation eligibility requirements to help affected workers to maintain their benefits.
Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency
Training and exercises for first responders and emergency management practitioners that involve federal agencies have been canceled. Activities related to the disaster declaration from flooding last summer are continuing.
Department of Transportation
To assist rural and urban public transportation provides, the commonwealth has provided $7.1 million in unreimbursed federal expenses for operating and capital costs.
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Preparation for an elevation mapping project that includes federal funds is on hold. The high-resolution, elevation data will be used for flood management, natural resource management and conservation, land use planning, geologic mapping and hazard reduction, and infrastructure development.
Department of Community and Economic Development
The Pennsylvania Business One-Stop Shop is assisting small businesses waiting for approvals of federal Small Business Administration loans. The department is also exploring options for other business owners.
Department of Environmental Protection
Final approvals on grant funding and permitting functions have begun to be affected by the shutdown, including pass-through funds depended on by local governments. The department is reviewing and processing what they can, but final action is needed at the federal level. Additionally, DEP is still waiting on guidance from the federal government on how to manage PFAS contamination in drinking water, a report on which has been delayed by the shutdown. DEP and the PFAS Action team continue to work to address this issue, calling on leadership at the federal level to take up this critical issue.
Office of Administration
The commonwealth continues to use state funds to cover payroll for federally funded employees at state agencies. The commonwealth will be reimbursed after the shutdown ends.
Strong start for
Safe2Say program
Attorney General Josh Shapiro released information this week on the first-week results for the Safe2Say Something Anonymous Reporting System — a statewide program enabling students, teachers, school administrators and others to detect and report potential threats of violence and other problems before they happen.
In the program’s initial week, the reporting system has received 615 tips and calls from across Pennsylvania. Crisis center analysts have processed every tip and referred more than several hundred to local law enforcement and school officials to follow up and interact with students.
Established and funded by the Pennsylvania legislature and signed into law by Gov. Tom Wolf last year, the Safe2Say Reporting System is based on strict principles of anonymity and confidentiality to encourage reporting of problems, potential threats of violence, self-harm or other incidents.
Safe2Say already includes 3,774 public and private schools across the Commonwealth in its network. Last week, the program’s staff trained 178,283 students in how to use the reporting system. This week, plans are to complete trainings for an additional 166,883 students.
“Pennsylvania students deserve a safe place to learn, free from the threat of violence from classmates or other individuals,” Shapiro said in announcing the program’s first week of activity and results. “I’m proud my office was entrusted by the legislature to run this new program focused on school safety. Working together with local law enforcement and school officials, we can make Pennsylvania safer for families, teachers and, most importantly, our students.”
• Students, school officials and others can go to www.safe2saypa.org to learn more about this new school safety initiative. They can also call 1-844-Saf2Say (844-723-2729) to report information.
The Office of Attorney General Shapiro is working closely with the Sandy Hook Promise on education and outreach on how to use this reporting system. Sandy Hook Promise is a national non-profit organization based in Newtown, Conn., formed after the school shooting in Sandy Hook in December, 2012. Its founders and directors include parents and others whose loved ones were killed in that tragedy.
While Sandy Hook Promise has trained 3.5 million students and teachers in 50 states in best practices to detect and report signs of potential violence, Pennsylvania is the first location where Sandy Hook Promise is working across an entire state – with Attorney General Shapiro’s office.
Officials involved with Pennsylvania schools and school boards said they are pleased with the early results of Safe2Say, and glad to be participating in the new initiative.
“The Safe2Say Something program introduced by the Office of the Attorney General is another tool school districts can use to gather information and respond to the safety considerations of students and the community,” said David Hutchinson, President of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association and a board director of the State College Area School District.
“Key benefits for school districts include the anonymity afforded their students and community members through the reporting system, training for students, and mechanisms for notification of immediate safety threats, as well as issues affecting student behavioral health and wellness,” Hutchinson said.
“There is nothing more important than making our schools as safe as possible for students, staff, and visitors,” said Rich Askey, President of the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) and a Harrisburg teacher. “Safe2Say Something provides our schools and communities with new tools to detect the early warning signs of trouble and act on them. I appreciate the hard work of the Attorney General’s Office to partner with our schools and communities to make Safe2Say a success.”
