Detailed Look into Governor’s Budget to Begin Next Week
I will join my fellow members of the House Appropriations Committee as we begin our detailed look into the governor’s $33 billion budget proposal. Hearings begin on Tuesday, Feb. 20.
The opening day of hearings will include testimony from the Independent Fiscal Office and the Department of Revenue, while Wednesday will focus on the themes of job creation and ensuring stability of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.
The remainder of the week will include looks into the proposed budgets of the departments of Transportation and Conservation and Natural Resources.
The full schedule is available here, which will also include video of the archived hearings once available.
More information about the governor’s proposal is available here.
Protecting the Public from Dangerous Sex Offenders
Legislation is on its way to the governor that would strengthen existing laws to protect Pennsylvanians from dangerous sex offenders, namely those who are released back into the community without supervision to monitor their transition.
House Bill 631 would require the court to impose a mandatory three-year probation period consecutive to any term of total confinement for a person convicted of a Tier III sex offense under Pennsylvania’s Adam Walsh Act, commonly known as Megan’s Law.
Under existing law, the court has the flexibility to order supervision by the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole, or county probation. If a person is paroled and adequately adjusts to freedom under parole supervision, current law permits the court to modify or even terminate probation supervision.
Additionally, this bill would ensure sexual offenders remain registered under Megan’s Law. Its language addresses the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s decision in Commonwealth v. Muniz, when the court ruled that Megan’s Law provisions could not be applied to defendants who committed their crimes before the enactment of the Adam Walsh Act in 2012. Without the enactment of this legislation, up to 17,000 sexual offenders could be removed from the state sexual offender registry.
Half-Million PA Veterans Opt for ID Card Designation
 |
More than a half-million Pennsylvania veterans have opted to have a “veterans” designation added to their driver’s license or photo ID card, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. The designation – an American flag with the word “VETERAN” beneath it – began in 2014.
Qualified applicants for a veterans designation must have served in the United States Armed Forces and/or the reserve component, and have been discharged or released from service under conditions other than dishonorable. There is no fee for the veterans designation; however, regular renewal or duplicate fees still apply.
Forms for driver’s license or ID renewals and duplicates have a box for applicants to certify that they are a veteran, and to have the designation added. Once the veterans designation has been added to a driver’s license or identification card, it will automatically appear each time it is renewed. For more information, visit www.dmv.pa.gov and click on the American flag/veterans designation icon.
The veterans designation does not entitle a veteran to any special consideration or discount but rather identifies the bearer as a veteran. Any other recognition, such as a discount, complementary meal or other token of appreciation is completely and solely determined by the organization, business or entity providing a service.
Pennsylvania is home to the fourth-largest veterans’ population in the country.
Several Legislative Reports Coming Soon!
 |
On Monday, we shot a Legislative Report cable program in my Lehighton district office focused on the issue of grandparents raising grandchildren - which has become a very common situation for Pennsylvania families in light of the opioid and heroin epidemic.
Watch for this report in the coming weeks. Included in the discussion are many helpful resources for grandparents faced with this challenge.
Pictured with me above are Howard Grossman, chair of the NEPA Intergenerational Council; Gaetana Thompson, family service coordinator at Pathstone; Carolee Boyer from the Carbon-Pike-Monroe Drug and Alcohol Commission; and Holly Mordaunt, principal at LB Morris Elementary School.
I spoke with Jerry McAward, president of the Lehighton Outdoor Center, and Alice Wanamaker, assistant vice-president at the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. The Lehighton Outdoor Center is set to open this spring and will offer kayak rentals and lessons, bike repairs, café, and more!
 |
I had the opportunity to speak with Diane Prokop, co-owner of the Times House Bed and Breakfast in Jim Thorpe. We discussed my legislation to ensure Pennsylvanians renting their homes through Airbnb pay the appropriate local taxes.
PennDOT’s 2018 Summer Employment Program
PennDOT is sponsoring an extensive Summer Maintenance Program for college students. The program runs April through August to supplement the permanent workforce.
The students assist with completing summer maintenance work and sign upgrade services, provide maintenance and custodial services at roadside rest facilities, and perform laboring and flagging duties in maintenance organizations and highway worksites.
To be eligible for consideration, candidates must be at least 18 years of age, enrolled as a full-time college student for fall 2018 and have a valid Pennsylvania driver’s license. The hourly rate is $13.23.
Candidates may apply online at www.employment.pa.gov in the “Summer Maintenance Program” category under the Open Jobs section of the website by Friday, Feb. 16. Technical support is available at 717-787-5703.
Sign Up to Continue Receiving My Weekly Email Updates
If you would like to continue receiving my legislative updates throughout the 60-day blackout period that limits what I can send you before an election, click here and simply enter your email. This will guarantee that you keep receiving my weekly updates.
|
