Local government leaders from across Central Pennsylvania appeared before the state Senate Democratic Policy Committee last weekto give a first-hand account of the challenges facing the commonwealth’s small cities.
“When a local problem replicates itself across the state under different leadership and in different regions, then it’s not a local problem anymore,” said state Sen. Lisa Boscola, the Lehigh Valley lawmaker who leads the committee. “Local officials are expressing common problems and they need a common solution.”
While Harrisburg, the state’s capital, is drawing national attention for economic woes that have driven a state takeover, local government leaders say many other municipalities are struggling with the same shifting demographics and out-dated tax policy.
State Sen. Judy Schwank, whose Berks County district covers Reading, said the legislature has failed to keep up legislatively with changes in demographics across the state.
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