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Senator Hughes Responds to the Auditor General’s Audit of the Philadelphia School System
HARRISBURG, May 11, 2016 − Senator Vincent Hughes released the following statement on the Auditor General’s audit of the School District of Philadelphia: “I commend the auditor general and his team for their thorough review of the School District of Philadelphia’s...
Democratic Senators, Community Leaders Call for State Tax Reform
HARRISBURG, May 11, 2016 – At a news conference held at the state capitol today, State Senator Art Haywood joined Senate Democratic colleagues and community leaders calling for tax reform to protect middle and low-income Pennsylvanians. At the event, Haywood...
Sen. Hughes to Propose Council on Jazz to Promote, Preserve Jazz in PA
PHILADELPHIA, April 28, 2016 – After meeting with jazz educators, musicians and experts today at the iconic Philadelphia Clef Club of Jazz and Performing Arts about steps to take to better promote and preserve jazz’s legacy in the commonwealth, Sen. Vince Hughes said...
To Promote Jazz in PA, Sen. Hughes to Meet with Music Genre’s Experts
PHILADELPHIA, April 27, 2016 – State Sen. Vincent Hughes will meet with jazz educators, musicians and experts tomorrow, April 28, in Philadelphia to talk about crafting a plan to promote, preserve and teach people about the music genre. Hughes will then talk to...
Sen. Hughes Welcomes AG’s Audit of Philly School District; Promises Legislation to Reform Cyber Charters, Give School Boards Greater Oversight
HARRISBURG, April 12, 2016 – Saying the state auditor general’s new investigation of charter schools in the School District of Philadelphia underscores his belief that Pennsylvania’s charter school financing system is “broken,” Sen. Vincent Hughes today promised...
Sen. Hughes, Democratic Senators Call for Statewide Task Force, More Testing to Determine Extent of PA’s Lead Problem
HARRISBURG, March 23, 2016 – With 18 Pennsylvania cities testing higher than Flint, Mich., for elevated blood lead levels, and a growing chorus of evidence indicating a worsening statewide lead problem, Sen. Democratic Appropriations Committee Chairman Vince Hughes, several of his Senate Democratic colleagues, and state health officials today offered a focused course of action to better protect children and their families.
Sen. Hughes, Other Democratic Senators to Urge Examination of PA’s Lead Problems
Propose measures to improve safety for young children in school, day care HARRISBURG, March 22, 2016 – As headlines spread about the emergence of lead in water supplies and in generations-old buildings, Senate Democratic Appropriations Committee Chairman Vince Hughes...
Please Touch Museum’s Emergence From Chapter 11 ‘Great News,’ Sen. Hughes Says
HARRISBURG, March 16, 2016 – State Sen. Vincent Hughes today congratulated the Please Touch Museum for its excellent work to raise millions in new support and emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, as scheduled. “The wonder has been restored to Please Touch...
Sen. Hughes’ Budget Olive Branch Ignored Just Before Gov. Wolf Promises to Veto
HARRISBURG, March 16, 2016 – As another partisan budget proposal was rushed through the Senate today to the governor, state Sen. Vincent Hughes asked Republican leaders to return to the bargaining table instead of working another political gimmick. But Sen. Hughes’...
Senate Approves Veterans Preference Hiring Measure
HARRISBURG, March 15, 2016 – The Senate today approved Senate Bill 1013, a bill introduced by Senators Vincent Hughes and Randy Vulakovich, that would let Pennsylvania employers adopt and use a veterans’ preference employment policy. “We owe a debt of gratitude to...
Sen. Hughes: Senate Appropriations Committee to Hold Subcommittee Hearings
HARRISBURG, March 14, 2016 -- Given the size and scale of the commonwealth’s fiscal operations and recognizing a need for a more thorough review of department and agency spending, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Pat Browne and Democratic Appropriations...
Sen. Hughes Offers Words of Encouragement to Gov. Wolf
HARRISBURG, Feb. 24, 2016 – After learning today that Gov. Tom Wolf has developed prostate cancer, state Sen. Vincent Hughes said he wished the governor a speedy recovery from what has become the most common cancer for men. “It’s never easy to deal with all of life’s...
Sen. Hughes Welcomes City’s Entry in Legal Fight for Better School Funding
HARRISBURG, Feb. 17, 2016 – As he magnifies the chasm of problems caused by years of inadequate state funding of basic education, state Sen. Vincent Hughes today said he welcomed the City of Philadelphia’s decision to join the lawsuit filed in late 2014 against the...
Sens. Hughes, Haywood Hear School Officials Confirm: Infrastructure is Crumbling, Need Better Help from Harrisburg
PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 11, 2016 – In the auditorium of a Philadelphia elementary school that was forced to send students home because of a boiler explosion that critically injured an employee, Democratic Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Vince Hughes and Sen. Art...
Sen. Hughes Presents Harambee Institute Charter with 21st Century Grant
PHILADELPHIA, Feb.11, 2016 – Students attending a West Philadelphia charter school will benefit from a $346,000 grant that Sen. Vincent Hughes publicly presented this morning to administration officials. Harambee Institute of Science and Technology Charter School was...
Sens. Hughes, Haywood, Democratic Appropriations Committee to Hold Hearing Thursday on PA’s Crumbling School Infrastructure
HARRISBURG, Feb.9, 2016 – With exploding boilers and broken heaters threatening the safety and learning ability of many of Pennsylvania’s school children, state Sens. Vincent Hughes, Art Haywood and the Democratic members of the Senate Appropriations Committee will...
Hughes, Senate Democrats Say Wolf’s Budget Focused on Education, Deficit Reduction
Harrisburg – Feb. 9, 2016 – Facing an unfinished 2015-16 budget with the need to reconcile a 2016-17 spending plan that has a looming $2 billion deficit, Gov. Tom Wolf was forced to focus his second state budget proposal on education and deficit reduction, according...
Sen. Hughes Calls for State Investigation Into Crumbling School Infrastructure
PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 29, 2016 – After touring an elementary school that had been forced this month to send students home due to failed heaters, Sen. Vincent Hughes, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, ordered state-level hearings to better understand the breadth of the crumbling school infrastructure problem in Pennsylvania.
Gorgas Park to Receive $188K State Investment for Upgrades
Harrisburg, Jan. 28, 2016 - A renovated ball field, smoother walkways and new landscaping are headed to Roxborough's Gorgas Park with the awarding of a $188,000 state grant, Sen. Vincent Hughes announced today. The investment is from the Department of Conservation and...
Sen. Hughes: Philly School’s Boiler Explosion Represents Why We’re Fighting for $350M in Ed Funding, Why We Can’t Comprise
Harrisburg, Jan. 21, 2016 – A boiler explosion in a Philadelphia elementary school coupled with previously unheard of examples of a crumbling infrastructure in the district have Sen. Vincent Hughes, the Democratic chairman of the Pennsylvania Senate Appropriations...