|
View this email in a browser
In This Update:
- Area Communities to Receive More Than $3.8 Million in State Funding for Local Projects
- Senators Continue to Highlight What a YES Vote Means on May 18
- Senators Call on Governor to Halt Unilateral Action on Carbon Tax
- Hearings Examining Governor’s Budget Proposal Conclude
- Senate Votes to Extend Program Helping Schools Find Substitute Teachers
- Protecting the First Amendment Rights of Teachers
- Comments on 2020 General Election Due by Friday, April 30
Area Communities to Receive More Than $3.8 Million in State Funding for Local Projects
Local communities will receive more than $3.8 million in state funds
that will contribute to the vitality of our area by improving safety and
contributing to an improved quality of life. Our region will benefit
from this much-needed state funding for important public improvements to
better serve area residents and employers. I am pleased to be able to
work in partnership with other local leaders including former Senator
Joe Scarnati to bring this funding home.
Projects in the 25th Senate District receiving funding include:
- Marsh Creek Greenway – $500,000 to construct a
trail bridge over Marsh Creek in Wellsboro Borough and a bus stop and
pull-off at Pinnacle Towers for those wishing to access the greenway’s
Patterson Trailhead facility.
- Polk Township Recreation Park – $100,000 to build
a paved entrance drive, ADA parking area and two public-use pavilions
with picnic tables and other amenities.
- Hamilton Township – $200,000 for improvements along
Gibbs Hill and Bliss Hill roads, which is a heavily traveled roadway
that connects state Route 6 to state Route 321. The project will replace
16 crossover pipes, resurface the roadway and construct a crosswalk on
Bliss Hill Road for hikers.
- Norwich Township – $200,000 to make safety
improvements to West Valley Road. The project will reprofile and
reestablish drainage on the road in order to restore structural
stability.
- Bradford District Flood Control Authority – $97,835
to help complete maintenance and upkeep work in and along the
Tunungwant Creek to prevent potential failure of the flood control
systems.
- Keystone Elk Country Alliance – $100,000 to build
an educational pavilion at the Elk County Visitor Center to enhance
educational opportunities, special events, quality viewing locations and
safety
- Johnsonburg Borough – $93,750 to help the borough
complete an inspection of a culvert connected to a flood control project
that was completed in 1957 and engineering study of an interior
drainage area for adequate capacity.
- Punxsutawney Borough – $118,896 in state grants to complete a study required to determine concerns and issues with the existing levee system.
- Shinglehouse Borough – $1 million in PENNVEST funds to upgrade its water system.
- Falls Creek Borough Municipal Authority – $1.4 million in PENNVEST funds to upgrade the water distribution system.
The Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA) awarded the funds. The
CFA’s Greenways, Trails and Recreation Funding Program, which is funded
by Act 13 of 2012 which established the state’s Marcellus Shale Impact
Fee and the Marcellus Legacy Fund. Some of the projects were funded
through the CFA’s Flood Mitigation fund is designed to help local
entities offset flood prevention costs.
The PENNVEST program provides low-interest loans and grants to
communities for new construction or improvements to water and wastewater
treatment plants. PENNVEST is not supported by the state’s General
Fund budget, which covers the daily operations and services of the
Commonwealth. Financing is provided through the use of federal funding
and prior bond issues by the state as well as proceeds from Act 13 of
2012, the Marcellus Shale Impact Fee.
Senators Continue to Highlight What a YES Vote Means on May 18
A group of senators held a news conference
at the Capitol this week to highlight what a YES vote means when voters
go to the polls to decide proposed Constitutional amendments on May 18.
Lawmakers approved three potential amendments to the Constitution
that will appear on the ballot for voters in the May 18 election,
including one question to prohibit discrimination based on race or
ethnicity and two questions designed to improve the way the state
responds to future emergencies.
The Wolf Administration has been widely criticized for wording the
emergency response questions in a way that is deeply confusing and
prejudicial.
A YES at the ballot box means voters favor:
- Protecting the education of our children;
- Supporting small employers in our local communities;
- Prohibiting discrimination; and
- Providing funding for fire companies.
A new webpage offers a detailed explanation of what the proposed amendments would accomplish.
Senators Call on Governor to Halt Unilateral Action on Carbon Tax
Pennsylvania Senate Republicans sent Governor Tom Wolf a letter
Wednesday informing him that none of his nominations to the Pennsylvania
Utility Commission (PUC) will be considered by the Senate if he
continues to pursue a unilateral carbon tax on Pennsylvania employers
and customers.
The letter
notes that the governor’s effort to force Pennsylvania to join the
multi-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) without the input
of the legislature is a clear violation of the checks and balances
provided by the Pennsylvania Constitution.
Hearings Examining Governor’s Budget Proposal Conclude
The Senate Appropriations Committee completed a series of 21 public
hearings that closely examined the details of Governor Wolf’s state
budget proposal.
The comprehensive review of the Governor’s proposed $40.2 billion
General Fund Budget for Fiscal Year 2021-22, which includes a massive
increase in state spending, a substantial personal income tax rate hike,
imposition of Marcellus Shale extraction tax, and elimination of
funding for broadband expansion and vital agricultural and health
programs.
The complete coverage of the hearings can be found here.
Senate Votes to Extend Program Helping Schools Find Substitute Teachers
Pennsylvania schools could have additional opportunities to find
qualified substitute teachers under a bill approved by the Senate this
week.
Lawmakers created a program in 2016 that allowed individuals training
to be teachers to serve as a substitute teacher, provided the
individual has valid clearances and at least 60 credit hours. However,
the program is set to expire on June 30.
The legislation approved this week would make this temporary program permanent.
As a result, schools, intermediate units and career and technical
schools can ensure qualified substitutes are available to meet the needs
of students.
Protecting the First Amendment Rights of Teachers
The Senate approved a critical bill this week to ensure the First Amendment rights of teachers are better protected.
The legislation would repeal a provision of the School Code which
prohibits teachers from wearing any garb, mark, emblem or insignia that
would indicate they are a member of or adherent to any religious order
or sect while in the performance of their duties as a teacher.
Although federal courts have held that the school’s religious
affiliations policy violates the free exercise of religion and free
speech clauses of the Constitution, these provisions are still in place
and public school directors can be held criminally liable for failing to
enforce this prohibition. Pennsylvania is the last state in the United
States with this provision still in place.
Comments on 2020 General Election Due by Friday, April 30
This is the final week for Pennsylvanians to share their experience from last year’s election with the Senate Special Committee on Election Integrity and Reform. Election surveys for Pennsylvanians who voted by mail or in person will be accepted through Friday, April 30.
The committee is expected to use the survey responses and testimony gathered during its series of public hearings to produce a report with recommendations that will be presented to the General Assembly.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment