Newsroom
Costa, Hughes Support Budget Becoming Law; New Funds for Education, Opioid Treatment
Harrisburg, July 10, 2016 - Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) and Senate Democratic Appropriations Chair Vincent J. Hughes (D-Philadelphia/Montgomery) released the following comments in support of Gov. Tom Wolf's announcement that he was allowing the...
Senator Hughes Statement on Passage of State Budget
Harrisburg, June 29th, 2016 – State Senator Vincent Hughes today voted with the majority of the Pennsylvania Senate to pass a $31.53 billion General Fund budget. The bill offers an on-time budget that contains a modest increase funding for public education and makes other investments. The bill, which passed the Senate 47 to 3, will now be sent back to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for concurrence.
Senate Democrats Call for More Funding for Human Relations Commission
June 22, 2016 − State Senate Democratic Whip Anthony H. Williams (D-Philadelphia/Delaware) today said that the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC) has been devastated by recurring state budget cuts and that the state spending plan now under consideration...
State Senate Roundtable in Philadelphia Focuses on the Dangers of Lead Exposure
Philadelphia – May 19, 2016 – At the request of state Sen. Vincent Hughes (D-Philadelphia), the Senate Democratic Policy Committee held a roundtable discussion today on the health impact of lead exposure. “The effects of lead exposure are indelible, dangerous and...
Senate Democrats Outline Legislation to Combat Opioid and Heroin Crisis
Harrisburg, May 18, 2016 – With drug overdose deaths reaching epidemic levels, Senate Democrats unveiled legislation today to address the opioid addiction crisis from prevention through recovery. “Addiction is a disease that does not discriminate and there is no easy...
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...