Good afternoon everyone, 

Welcome back to the Keystone Labor Report. 

Pennsylvania House Democrats on Wednesday passed another bipartisan budget to mark the 100th day of the ongoing stalemate in Harrisburg. Pennsylvania Senate Republicans say they need more time to view its changes before they consider passing it. (Spoiler alert: they won’t pass it).   

With county workers and school districts starting to feel the pain of the ongoing budget impasse, Pennsylvania Senate Republicans passed legislation that would give Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity—who also happens to be running for governor next year—the power to hand out loans to counties, non-profits, or other organizations that use Head Start or rape crisis funding. 

I’ll have more on this next week, and the bill has no chance of passing the state House, but it’s obvious that Senate Republicans want to use the budget process to influence next year’s election between Gov. Josh Shapiro and Garrity, who is the frontrunner in the Republican primary.

In today’s newsletter, we’re going to debunk the lie three vulnerable Pennsylvania Republicans have latched onto to justify the government shutdown. 

But first here’s a quick word about an upcoming event The Keystone is hosting in the coming weeks! 

Attention Philadelphia area readers: Do you want to grab a pint with some of your favorite reporters from The Keystone? Well, now’s your chance. 

We’re hosting an event in Philly on Thursday, Oct. 23 called Pints & Precedents: A Keystone Happy Hour at Philadelphia Brewing Company. It’s a chance for you to connect with advocacy organizations, local policymakers, and fellow community members to talk about key issues facing Pennsylvania ahead of the upcoming state Supreme Court election on Nov. 4.

This event is FREE and open to the public. RSVP here!

(Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)

What do US House Reps. Rob Bresnahan (R-Luzerne), Ryan Mackenzie (R-Lehigh), and Scott Perry (R-York) have in common? 

Besides being three of the most vulnerable House members in Congress, they’ve all taken to the airwaves or social media to spread baseless lies about Democrats shutting down the government in order to give health care to undocumented immigrants. 

Here’s the deal: Democrats have been advocating for the extension of Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits, which help keep health premiums lower for individuals or families who purchase their health care through Pennie, the commonwealth’s health care marketplace. 

If these credits expire, as they are set to at the end of the year, up to 250,000 Pennie customers could lose their coverage and premiums may rise as much as 82%. 

Rather than extend the subsidies or at least defend their stance on the merits, Bresnahan, Mackenzie, and Perry have chosen to lie and scapegoat undocumented immigrants, who cannot get coverage via Pennie. 

Only US citizens, nationals, and those who are lawfully present are eligible for health and dental plans through Pennie. If the subsidies expire, it’s not undocumented immigrants who’ll be impacted—it’ll be Bresnahan, Mackenzie, and Perry’s own voters.

Premiums are expected to rise by 71% in Bresnahan’s district, 80% in Mackenzie’s district, and a whopping 170% in Perry’s district, according to Pennie.  

(Photo: GETUP UAW)

Over 500 University of Pennsylvania graduate workers, who are represented by the Graduate Employees Together–University of Pennsylvania–UAW (GETUP-UAW), walked an informational picket line in Philadelphia on Wednesday to highlight the fact that it’s been nearly a year since the graduate workers and university started negotiating on a contract. 

Penn administrators have not agreed on a deal that includes fair wages, protections against discrimination, and harassment and rights for international graduate students, the union said. 

This picket was the first step in a process that could eventually lead to the collection of strike pledges from union members and a strike authorization vote. 

“We have gathered here to demand Penn to pay us a fair wage because our stipend is thousands of dollars below standard living wage in the city of Philadelphia,” Guru Shabadi, a grad worker and Ph.D. student in Computer and Information Science, said in a statement.

“In addition, more than a third of our coworkers are international. In these dire times when international and immigrant workers are threatened, our livelihoods and dreams are threatened, we have gathered here to demand Penn to support us and protect our rights.”

In a new ad from Affordable Pennsylvania, Emily Stence, a 33-year-old Dauphin County resident, shares how a tick bite at the age of 12 drastically changed her life and left her immunocompromised and reliant on Medicaid.

The ad calls out US House Rep. Scott Perry (R-York) for voting for President Donald Trump’s $1 trillion cut to Medicaid while giving tax breaks to some of the country’s wealthiest Americans. 

You can click HERE to read more about Stence’s story and see her ad.

As always, feel free to email me at seankitchen@couriernewsroom.com if you have any tips or events that you may have interest in covering.