State Treasurer Stacy Garrity said Wednesday her office will make $500 million in funds available to county governments and Head Start providers to help them pay their bills during the state budget impasse.

“Our most vulnerable Pennsylvanians, especially our children, should not suffer because of ongoing state budget negotiations,” she said. “Taxpayers expect their hard-earned tax dollars to be put to work, not be put on hold. We should not stand by and watch Head Start providers and county-level agencies like those that provide mental and behavioral health support struggle to provide necessary services to families relying on them while they wait for a state budget that is nearly three months late.”

The funding would be made available through short-term loans that the counties or Head Start programs would need to repay once the budget is enacted and they receive their state funding, she said. Those who borrow through the program would be required to pay 4.5% interest.

She said that she is required to charge interest.

“If I didn’t have to charge interest,” Garrity said, “I wouldn’t.”

Garrity, who has picked up the state Republican Party’s endorsement to run for governor in 2026, said the move is not intended to score political points.

“This has nothing to do with the campaign,” she told reporters at a press conference in the Finance Building.

Garrity said that the funding offer may not move the needle with most voters anyway.

“Most people don’t even know we have a budget impasse,” she said. If she was looking to score political points, she could have done nothing and allowed Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro take the heat as counties were forced to borrow funds or cut services.

County governments provide a variety of human services, including drug and alcohol programs, care for those with intellectual and physical disabilities and aging programs.

Head Start programs are early childhood education programs designed to help prepare children for kindergarten. More than 32,000 children are enrolled in Head Start programs around the state.