The recent completion of the state budget is good news for Pennsylvania, especially because it means our public will be able to stay open in the new year. In addition to releasing funding for our schools, the budget also delivers an increase in that funding to keep up with inflation and help control local school taxes. The budget restores most or all of the funding that was cut earlier in the year for vital services, including significant amounts of funding for hospitals that treat low-income patients, mental health and mental retardation services, and public libraries. In Clinton and Centre counties, the passage of the budget will release funding for our schools, libraries and two of our area’s largest employers, the Pennsylvania State University and Lock Haven University. If Pennsylvania wants to move up from being 47th out of 50 states in job creation, it must make certain sacrifices to properly fund education, which is the basic building block for economic development.