State budget impasse impacting nonprofits in Northeast Pennsylvania

As the state budget impasse in Pennsylvania nears 110 days, local nonprofits face mounting challenges and gut-wrenching decisions.

The Pennsylvania Legislature is required to pass an annual budget by June 30 but has still not done so.

Angela Bassani, president and CEO of United Way of Lackawanna, Wayne and Pike Counties, contacted agencies supported by the organization Friday to gauge their issues and concerns, and wasn’t too surprised by their bleak outlooks and pleas for assistance from the state.

“I knew it was getting bad,” Bassani said. “While many of these agencies rely on diverse funding streams, the ripple effects of frozen state dollars are threatening essential programs, staff stability and the most basic human services — from food and housing to education and disability support. Right now, children, families and vulnerable residents across the region are paying the price for government inaction.”

Peg Ruddy, executive director of the Women’s Resource Center in Scranton, noted the ongoing impasse forced the center to implement a hiring freeze in September, leaving five critical positions unfilled.

“I’ve been at the center 41 years and I’ve never experienced a crisis like this, as it relates to funding and services,” Ruddy said. “We’ve had to cut services in our legal advocate program and we’ve had to cut back on staff development. I would hope, someday, that there would be an opportunity to stop calling us nonprofits and start calling us crucial services.”

The center scaled back other services so the 24/7 emergency hotline can remain staffed at all times, Ruddy added.

“No matter if it’s midnight or noon, we want you to call us if you’re in danger,” she said.

While the organization has enough money to make it through Thanksgiving, Ruddy understands more difficult decisions will be necessary should the impasse persist.

“After that, we’re going to have to reduce the workforce,” she said. “It’s horrifying to me that we’re going to have to cut our services because the state and federal budgets are not passed. I hope they can reach some sort of compromise agreement before we’re in a position where survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault are on the street. I have 51 families in our safe house program right now and if the federal government doesn’t come together, I’d hate to see them evicted from their apartment, and our legal work is going to be decimated if the state doesn’t pass the budget.”

Any further staff losses would have lasting effects, as replacing and training new team members in trauma-informed care takes significant time, leaving survivors with less support during their most vulnerable moments, WRC officials said.

“It’s definitely going to impact our ability to provide services to women, children and men in crisis, and we’re the only game in town,” Ruddy said.

Susie Lyddon, director of Green Trees Early Learning Center in Dingman Twp., near Milford, stressed money — generated by the nonprofit — is quickly running dry for the state-funded Pre-K Counts program, which provides free tuition to income-eligible families.

“It’s a fantastic program, but the loss in funding for us is about $25,000 per month,” she said. “Since July, we’ve used all our fundraising dollars from last year and this year to keep the program open. All I’ve been doing is running around the community asking for money. That has been my full-time job (since July) just to keep our doors open for another month, and then another month. We cut expenses, and I’m paying for supplies because we didn’t have the money for them.”

Lyddon expressed gratitude for the strong support from donors but recognizes it will be challenging to keep the program running without support from state officials.

“Our community is so incredibly generous; they’ve held us up, they’ve given, and there is nowhere else to turn,” she said. “The sad truth is in November our fundraising dollars are going to run out. We’re open to anything — loans, donations, we just want to continue the service for the families. We want these kids in the classroom, we want these families going to work, and we would do anything to make that happen.

“If we have to put the Pre-K Counts program on hold because we don’t have the funds to support the loss in income, we can invite families to join a non-state-funded Pre-K program at the center to pay tuition until the budget is passed, but that will be a difficult ask. The families are in Pre-K Counts because they struggle financially. The other option is to put the Pre-K Counts program on hold until the budget is passed, and that will leave our families without care.”

Lyddon fears for the future of the early learning center — a staple in the community for decades — should the impasse continue much longer.

“Our hope, and prayers, was the state budget would have passed by now, we would have squeaked by, and the whole problem would go away,” she said. “But I’m hearing rumors that it might not pass until February or March … that’s too long for us and too long for our families. We’ve been in the community for 40 years, which is honestly a miracle because so many centers, like ours, are closing down. For us, just on a regular month, we struggle to keep our doors open. About 600 centers like ours have closed in Pennsylvania since 2019. We don’t want to be another name on that list, but the impasse is really dragging us closer to it.”

Several nonprofit leaders voiced concerns to Bassani about potential long-term effects from the sustained pause of funding.

“They’re saying they’ve done all this work, for all these years, and to rebuild after all this is going to take time, effort and money, where they could have just been staying the course,” Bassani said.

Bassani added the impasse also impacts schools, making it vital for an agreement to be reached quickly.

“It needed to be done months ago, and we need it done tomorrow, at this point,” she said. “The Scranton School District is not able to run after-school programs for children, and school districts are living off their reserves. It’s just a matter of time before those run out.”

Bassani implored elected officials to take quick action and reach an agreement on a new budget.

“I’m calling every day and there seems to be no urgency on their part, which is really discouraging,” she said.