Labor Unites to Support A Fair State Budget

An unprecedented coalition of labor organizations representing over 1.1 million Pennsylvanians and their families are united to fight for essential services and critical investments in Pennsylvania’s 2011-2012 state budget and beyond. The CLEAR (Coalition for Labor Engagement and Accountable Revenue) Coalition is committed to a sustainable budget that prevents harmful cuts to essential public services, saves jobs and makes taxes fairer. Members of the CLEAR Coalition include SEIU, the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, AFSCME, PSEA and many others.

It’s Time to End Special Tax Breaks

The CLEAR Coalition is working for a balanced approach to the state budget that includes new revenue to solve our state's budget crisis. Rather than relying solely on spending cuts, a balanced approach will allow Pennsylvania to help working families through hard times and preserve our long-term financial stability.

Elected officials need to close tax loopholes and end special interest tax breaks before making deep service cuts that will hurt Pennsylvania families and the economy.

Deep Budget Cuts Are Not the Answer
Pennsylvania cannot afford a cuts-only approach to the budget. More cuts will slow the economic recovery and cost jobs. More cuts to essential services will hurt vulnerable seniors, children and families. The recession has taken a toll on Pennsylvania and the nation, contributing to an historic decline in tax revenue and growing demand for public health care, food stamps and other services.

The loss of state tax revenue puts Pennsylvania in the position of balancing fiscal realities and increased demand for services due to the sluggish economy.

The worst thing that a state can do in a recession is weaken the public services that a strong economy needs, like education, health care, transportation, and public safety.

To learn more, please visit www.clearforpa.org.