In the near future, we plan on reintroducing several pieces of legislation that will help guide how the Commonwealth addresses poverty.

The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that 12% of Pennsylvania’s population are in poverty. According to the Center for American Progress, Pennsylvania ranked 29 in the nation for people who fell below the poverty line. In 2023, according to information from the Kaiser Family Foundation, more than 22% of Latinos and 21% of African Americans lived in poverty in Pennsylvania.

Most troubling, Pennsylvania is home to what is considered the poorest major city in the United States. Of the more than 1.5 million people who lived in Philadelphia during 2023, approximately 20.3% lived below the poverty line.

Too often, we in Harrisburg are making decisions without knowing what the effects of those decisions or policies will have on poverty in the Commonwealth. We can continue to fight for policies that will raise wages and create jobs, but without objective information we may not know what progress we are making.

We hope you will join us in sponsoring these initiatives.

Please contact Michael Deery in Senator Hughes' office or Erin Serre in Senator Haywood's office if you have any questions.