Pennsylvania received $471 million in funding from Washington for COVID-19 relief to schools. The Wolf administration is calling for roughly $19 million to go Catholic and nonpublic school students, while Washington is calling for $66 million. The Wolf administration is misappropriating some $47 million in federal funds and harming families who have chosen to send their children to Catholic and nonpublic schools.

The 40 schools in the diocese would receive about $2 million less than they would under the federal guidelines.

Gov. Tom Wolf has gone by the federal guidelines for opening up our state because that fit into his own agenda, even though most of our deaths were in nursing homes, which were his responsibility which he chose to ignore. Now he intends to divert CARES act money away from private schools.

Congress wants equal distribution in COVID-19 relief to all schools in the state and across the country. Does the Pennsylvania Department of Education have the right to create its own set of rules to distribute money that blatantly ignores federal guidelines?

Remember that these students’ parents pay taxes for public schools to operate and alleviate the need for new schools to be built if they have to accommodate more students if the private schools shut their doors for lack of funds.

Just so you know, my husband (a Democrat) and I (a Republican) have no children, but we are Catholic and pro-life, and we know the Democratic Party pushed through millions in the last bill to fund abortion through Planned Parenthood. If you agree that the funds should be distributed as intended, please write or call our governor.

Micheline Coleman

Summit Hill