Pennsylvania budget stalemate could force some Philadelphia preschools to shut down, owners say
Pennsylvania remains the only state in the nation without a finalized budget — and the delay is hitting early childhood education programs hard.
Preschools that serve low-income families through the state-funded Pre-K Counts program are now at risk of closing because the months-long budget impasse has halted funding.
Lisa Smith, owner and operator of Amazing Kidz Academy, said she hasn't been paid for several months. Instead, she's had to take out lines of credit and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars of her own money just to keep classrooms open.
"I feel very sad. I feel very disappointed, and I feel betrayed — not just for me, but for the voting parents and for the children who depend on us," Smith said.
Smith is one of dozens of providers in Philadelphia offering free pre-kindergarten through Pre-K Counts. But with no state budget in place, those payments from the state have stopped. Although providers will eventually be reimbursed once a deal is reached in Harrisburg, there is still no clear end in sight. Smith said she's on the verge of laying off staff and shutting down classrooms.
"It's a real possibility," she said. "I don't know how much further we can go without any funding, and it's unfair for us to have to try to figure it out."
Mercedes Fleet, the owner and director of Bright Little Scholars in Philadelphia, said she recently informed parents that her Pre-K Counts classroom will close by the end of the month if funding doesn't resume.
"If the budget isn't passed by the end of October, Oct. 31, our Pre-K Counts classroom will be closed," Fleet said.
She added that she can no longer afford to pay her staff out of pocket.
"I can't expect them to show up to work and have to tell them I can't afford to pay them because the budget hasn't passed," she said. "I can't go to my landlord and tell my landlord, hey, I can't afford the rent this month. … We still have expenses."
In an effort to help, the Pennsylvania Treasury Department is offering short-term bridge loans to pre-K providers. But by law, those loans come with 4.5% interest and must be repaid within 10 business days of receipt of state funds — terms many providers say are simply too steep.
"We deserve to get paid like everybody else is getting paid," Fleet said. "They're telling us weeks and weeks and weeks, and they don't really have a definite answer. … They're still getting paid. We deserve to get paid too."
Without swift action from lawmakers in Harrisburg, early education for thousands of children — and the jobs of those who teach them — hang in the balance.