Pa. teachers union warns of prolonged budget impasse

July 2, 2026

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Good afternoon everyone,

It’s a scorching hot Thursday, July 2, and welcome back to another edition of the Keystone Labor Report. You can find Tuesday’s edition here.

I hope everyone is able to safely enjoy their holiday and extended weekend.

I am still in the midst of unpacking and setting up my new apartment, but I will celebrate America’s 250th by enjoying Harrisburg’s food truck festival and fireworks in the evening.

Sean Kitchen

Political Correspondent, The Keystone

(Matt Rourke / AP Photo)

After Pennsylvania Senate Republicans left Harrisburg on Tuesday without passing a budget, Aaron Chapin, president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association, warned that school districts across the commonwealth could not afford another prolonged budget impasse.

This year is the fifth year in a row lawmakers failed to pass an on-time budget, and last year, school districts had to borrow money, cut programs, and place a freeze on hiring teachers after missing months of payments during a budget stalemate that ended in November.

“Delayed state budgets and long impasses only serve to prevent school officials from thoughtfully planning how to use new resources to close opportunity gaps for students,” Chapin said in a statement on Tuesday.

He added, “Pennsylvania’s communities cannot afford another budget impasse that could cause unnecessary hardship and diminish resources for public schools at the local level.”

US Rep. Scott Perry recently co-sponsored a resolution to overturn the 17th Amendment, which gives voters the right to choose their senators, per PennLive.
Electricians, linemen and other workers at the PECO Energy Company are preparing to strike for the first time ever as Philadelphia is getting ready to celebrate the 4th of July, per the Philadelphia Inquirer.
A recent vote by Pennsylvania lawmakers to lower electric bills by giving residents a $1.7 billion tax cut may have budget implications, per Spotlight PA.

(Sean Kitchen / The Keystone)

A group of working-class Democrats are banding together and forming the “Blue Collar Brigade” to help boost fundraising efforts, according to Politico.

Longtime Bethlehem firefighter and union leader, Bob Brooks is teaming up with four other Democratic candidates to overcome the challenges working-class Americans face when trying to run for Congress.

Brooks, who has the backing of Gov. Josh Shapiro and US Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), is running against US Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-Pa.) in the Lehigh Valley this fall and has built a coalition that includes more than a dozen labor unions and progressive organizations.

“When you’re a Democratic challenger and you’re someone who comes from the labor movement … you don’t have the same Rolodex as someone who can self-fund millions for their campaign,” US Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.) told Politico.