Local Issue Experts Explained the Impact of the Federal Tax Law in PA

August 4, 2025

PENNSYLVANIA - Last Thursday, community leaders, advocates, and concerned citizens came together to discuss the impact of the new Tax Law, which includes tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations and historic cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, and other vital programs. More than 3 million, or 1 in 4, Pennsylvanians rely on Medicaid, which has provided critical healthcare to working people for over 60 years.

Speakers included Joyce M. Davis, President of the World Affairs Council of Harrisburg; Chris Lilienthal, Assistant Director Of Communications for the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA); Steve Catanese, President of SEIU Local 668; Gary Blumenthal, Mechanicsburg resident and former federal disability official and Kansas state legislator; and Sheryl Meck, Director of Civil Rights Outreach for the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission. These local issue experts explained the impact of the legislation on Pennsylvanians’ healthcare, education, civil rights, and the economy.

“A hungry student cannot learn. A child who has not gotten the proper nutrition because they had their SNAP benefits cut is going to struggle in the classroom. They’re going to struggle to do their homework, study for the SATs, apply to college - all of that will be impacted,” said Chris Lilienthal of PSEA. “This legislation makes the largest cuts to SNAP in history and will have a dire impact on food assistance across the Commonwealth.”

"I endured years of abuse and assault from my husband. Eventually I escaped, but I had nothing to support myself or my children - no career, no degree, no health insurance. Medicaid saved my life. It allowed me to bring my children to the pediatrician, to access treatment for my chronic illness, and to receive therapy for the trauma I endured," shared PA-10 constituent Autumn Gravier. "Medicaid is a lifeline for so many people facing so many different circumstances - some in situations like mine. This bill guts Medicaid, taking away that lifeline for millions. I worry for those who won't have access to it in their time of need like I did because of these cuts."

“This tax law will hurt Pennsylvanians across the Commonwealth by ripping away healthcare from working people, shuttering rural hospitals, and threatening the very fate of food assistance in the state. We had hoped that Pennsylvania electeds, especially those who had voted in favor of the bill like Rep. Scott Perry, would have come to educate their constituents about their positions,” said Rachele Fortier, executive director of Affordable Pennsylvania. “Pennsylvanians deserve to know what this bill will bring and this event serves to educate and prepare them for the impact of this legislation.”

Last month, elected leaders representing PA-10, Senator David McCormick and Rep. Scott Perry, voted to pass the landmark budget legislation that constitutes the largest transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich in U.S. history and threatens the basic needs of millions of Pennsylvanians. The legislation will benefit those at the very top at the expense of working families, children, people with disabilities, rural communities, and seniors.

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