State Representatives Ann Flood, Zach Mako, and Milou Mackenzie have addressed a letter to Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure, disputing statements made about the ongoing Pennsylvania budget impasse. The representatives challenged the assertion that Senate Republicans are responsible for the stalemate. They pointed out that the Senate approved a stopgap budget on August 12 intended to provide funding while negotiations continued, but House Democrats rejected it less than a day later.
In their letter, the lawmakers stated: “We urge you to stop playing politics with people’s lives. Canceling events and sending letters intended to alarm constituents is not good government.”
The legislators also responded to a September 19 communication from the county’s Department of Human Services, highlighting what they described as inaccuracies and noting that it did not mention the proposed stopgap budget. They reassured that funding for 911 centers would not be cut and called on McClure to ask House Democratic leadership and Speaker Joanna McClinton to reconvene the House in order to pass at least a temporary budget measure and restore funding for county programs.
The dispute comes amid continued disagreement between state legislative bodies over how best to resolve Pennsylvania’s ongoing budget challenges.
