HARRISBURG – Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Senator Scott Martin (R-13) issued the following statement today in response to Governor Shapiro’s plan to divert $153 million of federal highway and bridge capital funds for SEPTA:
“As I mentioned in a press conference two weeks ago, SEPTA must show a commitment to needed reforms and address fares that haven’t been changed since 2014. Instead, the Governor bailed them out by putting a Band-Aid on a wound much bigger, and diverted money away from Pennsylvania’s other critical infrastructure needs – almost all of which are in districts represented by Republicans.
“We’ve been clear that transit isn’t the only part of our transportation network. The solutions we develop should benefit ALL Pennsylvania’s transportation infrastructure needs.
“It’s also important to point out that this is a one-time fix, not a sustainable model. Without critical steps to right-size SEPTA and make it safer, taxpayers will continue to foot the bill for hundreds of millions of dollars in added costs every year. As hardworking Pennsylvanians struggle to make ends meet, the Governor and House Democrats continue to take actions that will worsen the state’s structural deficit and march us towards higher taxes on families. The Shapiro shovel just keeps making the hole deeper.”
CONTACT: Jason Thompson