Tom Wolf (Incumbent)
Office Sought: Governor of Pennsylvania
Political Party: Democrat
Age: 69
Career: Family furniture business
Campaign Website: https://www.wolfforpa.com/
No. of Tweets: 3,172
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No. of Facebook followers: 111,372
Biography: Wolf, the scion of one of the oldest and most successful families in York County, won a first term in 2014 by making Republican Gov. Tom Corbett the first incumbent to go down in defeat since Pennsylvania in the 1970s began allowing governors to serve a second term.
ON THE ISSUES:
Education
"Governor Wolf has fully restored the $1 billion cut to education made under the Corbett administration that led to teacher layoffs, larger class sizes, and cuts to important programs. He enacted a fair funding formula that removes politics from school funding. Since he’s taken office, Governor Wolf has increased the number of children able to attend pre-kindergarten by 64% and increased the number of students enrolled in full-day kindergarten to 93,800. He’s launched Pennsylvania to third in the nation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education and increased the number of credentials earned by students in career and technical education programs by 32%. Under Governor Wolf, high school graduation rates have increased to 86%, making Pennsylvania a national leader. And he created a task force to bring together officials, educators, parents and students to talk about ways to improve school safety and security."
Environment
"In September, Governor Wolf and the governors of Delaware and New York, comprising a majority of the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), announced that they voted in favor of a resolution put forward by the commission to issue draft regulations to permanently ban hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas in the Delaware River Basin. With one of his first actions in office, Governor Wolf enacted a gas drilling moratorium on Pennsylvania’s state parks. Governor Wolf stood up to Trump’s proposed cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency, cuts if enacted would harm businesses seeking permits, impact safe drinking water inspections, sewage and industrial wastewater inspections, and eliminate funding for radon protection, a problem that plagues Pennsylvania homes. He fought the Trump Administration’s efforts to delay new ozone pollution regulations, protecting children who suffer from asthma and respiratory illnesses. Finally, the governor stopped the Republican plan to gut environmental regulations in favor of big oil and gas. He passed new safeguards that work to make sure that the benefits of increased renewable jobs, a cleaner environment, and a growing renewable economy will be felt throughout the commonwealth."
Healthcare
"One of Governor Wolf’s first actions as Governor was to expand Medicaid giving an additional 720,000 Pennsylvanians the health care they need, including over 125,000 Pennsylvanians with substance abuse disorder. Governor Wolf has reduced Pennsylvania’s uninsured rate to 5.6%, the lowest rate on record. He is standing up to Donald Trump’s extreme agenda by fighting against Trumpcare and proposed federal budget cuts that would eliminate Meals on Wheels, heating assistance for low-income people, and educational resources for students with disabilities. He signed a bill that legalized medical marijuana, providing long overdue medical relief to patients with serious medical conditions such as cancer & multiple sclerosis. Lastly, he has increased enrollment in the Children’s Health Insurance Program by 20%. The program now serves more than 180,000 Pennsylvania children."
Jobs
"Governor Wolf has approved nearly $1 million in funding through the new Manufacturing PA initiative for seven new training programs across Pennsylvania to give 250 job-seekers the skills they need to secure a stable, high-paying job in manufacturing and passed a manufacturing tax credit. Governor Wolf has supported the training of more than 120,000 workers at more than 2,200 companies across the commonwealth to help workers thrive in their jobs and develop more marketable skills. He has fought for and continues to fight for a statewide minimum wage increase to $12 an hour, tied to inflation. He has worked to expand companies like Amazon to make Pennsylvania a technology hub and passed a manufacturing tax credit. He has eliminated burdensome taxes on businesses like the Capital Stock and Franchise Tax. 1,300 roads, 600 bridges, and more than 6,000 miles of roadway have been repaired or rebuilt under him, with $6 billion in infrastructure improvements funding jobs across Pennsylvania. He has assisted more than 7,000 entrepreneurs and business owners by cutting through red tape and establishing the new PA Business One-Stop Shop."
Opioid Crisis
"Governor Wolf has announced improved prescribing guidelines for the safe and effective use of opioids. One of his first actions as Governor was to expand Medicaid giving an additional 720,000 Pennsylvanians the health care they need, including over 125,000 Pennsylvanians with substance abuse disorder. He equipped law enforcement, first responders, and schools with the overdose-reversing antidote naloxone, leading to over 6,700 reversals since 2014. He strengthened the use of the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program so that doctors can identify if patients are “doctor shopping” and have been prescribed opioids by other physicians. The system now has 90,000 users who have conducted over one million searches. Governor Wolf increased the number of drug-take back boxes to 700 for unwanted, expired, or unused prescriptions, leading to the destruction of over 150 tons of drugs. He also signed a first-of-its-kind Statewide Disaster Declaration for the heroin and opioid epidemic to enhance state response and increase access to treatment. He worked with medical professionals to create 45 centers that will treat more than 11,000 individuals. Governor Wolf also launched a 24/7 helpline, 1-800-662-HELP, for those who need immediate assistance with drug and alcohol problems."
Progressive Values
"Governor Wolf is fighting against Trumpcare and proposed federal budget cuts that would eliminate Meals on Wheels, heating assistance for low-income people, and educational resources for students with disabilities. He signed Libre’s Law which improves Pennsylvania’s protection for animals. He expanded protections from discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender expression or identity for state employees and is fighting for similar protections at the statewide level. Governor Wolf has pushed for criminal justice reforms to refocus the system on rehabilitation and end mass incarceration. The governor also banned the box on non-civil service applications for jobs under his jurisdiction and he signed into law a bill allowing non-violent ex-offenders to ask the court to seal their criminal records, which will help them to get jobs and not return to prison. Governor Wolf has vetoed the most extreme anti-choice bill in the country, which would criminalize abortions and leave no exceptions for rape, incest, health or tragic fetal anomalies. As a former Planned Parenthood patient escort, Governor Wolf has also opposed Republican efforts to defund the organization. Governor Wolf rejected Republicans’ gerrymandered maps and introduced a voting reform plan that includes same day and automatic voter registration, modernizing absentee voting, and enacting campaign finance reform. Governor Wolf instituted online voter registration in 2015, resulting in over 1 million new or updated Pennsylvanian voter registrations."
Reforming Government
"Governor Wolf refuses to take a state salary or pension. He also requires cabinet secretaries to post their expenses online each month. His first actions as governor were to sign an executive order banning members of his administration from accepting gifts and reforming legal contracting to end the pay-to-play culture in Harrisburg. He signed an executive order to increase diverse and small business participation in state government contracting. Governor Wolf publishes his schedule for the public each day and requires cabinet secretaries to post their expenses online each month. Finally, he signed comprehensive pension reform which reduced risk to taxpayers, continues to pay down our debt, and slashes Wall Street fees while still offering state employees fair benefits."
Seniors
"Governor Wolf created a task force to enhance the quality of care for seniors in long-term living facilities. He fought GOP efforts to institute an age tax and roll back prescription drug and health care coverage for our seniors. He invested millions in senior community centers in order to upgrade technology and facilities to give the centers the resources needed to revitalize and expand the services that enrich the lives or our senior population. He stabilized the Lottery Fund, which supports important senior programs, and has increased opportunities for older Pennsylvanians to remain in their homes. Under Governor Wolf, more than 50,000 additional seniors, a 41% increase, are able to age in their homes. And he saved more than 180,000 seniors from losing their Medicare Advantage health plans."
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