Tom Wolf in 2017 Governor's State of the State speeches

On Budget & Economy: Grow paltry rainy day fund from $245,000 to $500M by 2022

I'm offering a budget proposal that represents a responsible solution to our deficit challenge--and a different approach from the way things have been done in Harrisburg for almost a generation. Let's start here: In my proposed budget, there are no broad-based tax increases. At the same time, my budget protects the investments we've made in education, in senior services, in fighting the scourge of opioids, and in growing Pennsylvania's economy. And it sets our Commonwealth on a sustainable fiscal course that will grow our paltry rainy day fund from $245,000 today to almost $500 million by 2022.

How? By reforming our state government--and by making Harrisburg work smarter. One of my first acts as Governor--two years ago--was to identify $150 million we could save by making our state government more efficient--everything from negotiating for lower prices from vendors to putting voter registration online to streamlining the process for outgoing mail.

Source: 2017 State of the State address to Pennsylvania Legislature Feb 7, 2016

On Drugs: Opioid epidemic has stolen the futures of far too many

There's no better illustration of the different approach than the steps we've taken together to address the public health crisis of heroin and opioid abuse. This epidemic has stolen the futures of far too many of our fellow Pennsylvanians. The numbers are simply staggering.

We armed law enforcement with the tools they need to crack down on those who profit from this crisis by preying on our most vulnerable citizens. And we equipped police and first responders with naloxone, a life-saving opioid overdose antidote, allowing them to reverse more than 2,300 opioid overdoses so far. We destroyed more than 100,000 pounds of unused and unwanted prescription drugs before they could fall into the wrong hands, and we redesigned the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program so that medical professionals can monitor patients and identify those who may be at risk. We've taken our campaign against opioids to devoting more than $20 million to expanding treatment options.

Source: 2017 State of the State address to Pennsylvania Legislature Feb 7, 2016

On Families & Children: Improve home-based & community-based senior care services

Just as Pennsylvanians make their children a top priority, so, too, are aging parents, aunts and uncles a top priority for all of us. I listened to seniors all across our Commonwealth. They told me that they very much appreciated how often politicians came to see them, but that they'd prefer real action on improving senior services.

That's why one of the first initiatives I announced as Governor was to improve home-based and community-based care services, so that more seniors could have more options for getting the care they needed without having to move out of their homes. And it's why, when health insurers threatened to kick 180,000 seniors off their health plans, we stepped in and took those insurance companies to court to make sure that their coverage stayed in place.

Just this past year, we distributed more than $2 million in lottery proceeds to 43 senior community centers. And we made it easier for struggling seniors to get assistance purchasing nutritious food.

Source: 2017 State of the State address to Pennsylvania Legislature Feb 7, 2016

The above quotations are from 2017 Governor's State of the State speeches. Click here for other excerpts from 2017 Governor's State of the State speeches. Click here for other excerpts by Tom Wolf. Click here for other excerpts by other Governors.
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Page last updated: Dec 10, 2018