Many students at Penn State University won’t see an increase tuition next year, as the school voted Thursday to freeze tuition for in-state residents for the 2019-2020 academic year.

 

The freeze comes as the Penn State University Board of Trustees approved the university’s 2019-2020 operating budget on Thursday, which totals about $6.8 billion in spending.

Surrounded by local government officials, educators and business owners, Gov. Tom Wolf on Thursday called on legislators to rally behind funding to expand broadband access in rural areas as part of his Restore Pennsylvania initiative.

 

The plan — which proposes funding $4.5 billion worth of capital projects through a severance tax on natural gas — would create the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Program, which would provide financial assistance to businesses, nonprofits, local governments and rural electric cooperatives to develop the infrastructure necessary to provide high-speed internet in low-access areas. 

Speaking on the floor of the House last week, House Speaker Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny) urged colleagues to push legislation across the finish line to advance an agreed-upon budget between Republican leadership and Gov. Tom Wolf.

 

The budget passed both chambers on time, but even with an agreed-upon spending plan, Republicans and Democrats still have a wish list of policy goals that they hope to address in September when the General Assembly reconvenes.

A perfect storm of grievances sunk the final remaining piece of the state budget Thursday evening, as the House voted down the School Code bill over what Democrats called broken promises, while Republicans expressed concern over a provision to alter the compulsory school.

By a vote of 77-121, a bipartisan group of lawmakers voted against the bill, which was unveiled in the Senate late last night.

A wide-ranging Fiscal Code bill was sent to Gov. Tom Wolf’s desk Thursday, bringing the 2019-2020 budget one step closer to enactment.

The legislation, which helps outline specifics of the annual spending plan, passed the House and the Senate on Thursday, setting in place procedures that could affect environmental policy, energy costs, and the state’s preparedness for emergencies.