Help save the Penn State Extension programs
Penn State Agricultural Sciences Research and Extension programs are funded through the state general funds budget through the Land Scrip Fund. When Governor Wolf decided to use his line-item budget veto power on the budget last year, he gutted $50.5 million in funding that was earmarked for extension and research (instead of Penn State Extension receiving funding, this money was zeroed out of the budget).
The result is Extension has not received any funding from the state for eight months and has only continued through funds from the college. In essence, the college has robbed Peter to pay Paul.
There has been a 150-year-old Land Grant partnership between Penn State and federal, state and county governments, and this funding represents the state’s commitment to that partnership.
If the General Assembly and the Governor fail to take action soon to restore funding to Penn State, there is a real possibility that Extension and research services will be eliminated. These and other affected programs are critical to the future of Pennsylvania agriculture, which depends on these services.
The magnitude of not restoring the funding cannot be underestimated. At stake are 4-H and Master Gardener programs throughout the state. Over 90,000 young people currently involved in 4-H programs statewide and Master Gardeners will lose their extension services. Penn State President Eric Barron warned that 1,100 Extension-related jobs are at risk if extension offices are shut down.
In addition, the loss of state funding will jeopardize other federal money leveraged by these state funds. This includes approximately $22 million of USDA capacity funds provided to the college as part of the Land-Grant partnership and approximately $56 million in grant funding competitively awarded to the college (mostly from the USDA).
Realizing that agriculture is Pennsylvania’s number-one industry, the current budget impasse and resulting threat to research and services to the agricultural community and Pennsylvanians in general seems a dangerous political game to play. It is imperative that our legislators work to secure a budget and restore funding to the Department of Agriculture.
You can play a part in helping by contacting your area legislator. We must get a budget soon and one that recognizes the importance the role of agriculture plays in our lives. Let’s not bite the hand that feeds us.
Darrell Becker
Fayette County Farm Bureau