As Pennsylvania lawmakers continue to debate whether to fund parts of the state budget, people who run key programs around the commonwealth are being forced to make tough decisions. A Philadelphia nonprofit that provides wardrobes to low-income people has let go of staff. Preschools and community colleges have taken on debt to pay bills. And a library in the Poconos has cut back on programming including a visit from Santa. Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro signed off on a $45.4 billion budget plan this summer — more than a month after the June 30 deadline — assuaging widespread fears among county and school administrators that they would not receive needed state funding. But the Democratic-controlled state House and GOP-led state Senate still haven’t finalized code bills that authorize and direct certain spending amid a dispute about whether to create a taxpayer-funded school voucher program.
