On June 23, more than 150 Pennsylvanians – members of Pennsylvania Stands Up (PASU) other members of the All Eyes on Yass! Coalition – took to the state Capitol in Harrisburg to protest deep cuts proposed to transit, housing, healthcare and education.
“Senate Republicans are threatening to cut the very programs that my mother relied on to survive domestic abuse.” said Angel Ramon, a Scranton resident and member of NEPA Stands Up. “We won’t abandon women, children, or anyone in need just so billionaires can pay less in taxes.”
Just like the more than $1 trillion in cuts to essential services mandated by President Trump in his 2026 federal budget, which will go to fund tax breaks for billionaires, many of these cuts are supported by Pennsylvania’s wealthiest man – Jeffrey Yass – who uses his $59 billion in personal wealth to influence lawmakers. One out of every three state legislators in Pennsylvania has received funding from Yass’s PAC over the last eight years, according to the coalition.
Instead of giveaways to the ultra-rich, who pay the smallest percentage of their income in taxes of all Pennsylvanians, the coalition proposes a tax on excess wealth to create a reliable local stream of funding for essential services, to partially offset the deep cuts at the federal level.