March 4, 2014
HARRISBURG, March 4, 2014 — Pennsylvanians who have served in the armed forces can now apply for a driver license designation identifying them as veterans, state Sen. Judy Schwank announced today.
“Fortunately, veterans are eligible for numerous discounts, benefits and services because of their service,” Schwank said. “This special driver’s license should serve as all the identification they need to prove their eligibility.”
Under legislation passed in 2012 by the General Assembly, Pennsylvania’s Department of Transportation worked with the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to come up with procedures and requirements to issue special “V” designation licenses.
Qualified applicants for a Veterans Designation on their driver’s license or identification card include those who have received a Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty/DD214 or equivalent for service in the United States armed forces, including a reserve component or the National Guard, who were discharged or released from such service under conditions other than dishonorable.
Once the Veterans Designation has been added to a license or ID, it will automatically appear each time the license or ID is renewed.
The licenses are now available at all the PennDOT service centers and online at http://www.dmv.state.pa.us (click the American flag logo that says “Veterans Designation” at the bottom of the page).
For veterans who are renewing their license, the “V” designation is free with the cost of renewal. Veterans who want to change their valid license to a Veterans Designation license before renewal will be required to pay the duplicate license fee.
February 19, 2014
HARRISBURG, February 19, 2014 – Nearly 700 additional acres of Berks County farmland will be preserved through the purchase of agricultural easements, state Sen. Judy Schwank announced today.
“Adding more land to the acreage protected from development does more than keep the county green,” Schwank said. “It also helps protect the environment and the agricultural economy that is critical to our prosperity.”
The 682 acres of easements are valued at over $1.6 million dollars and were approved today by the Pennsylvania Agricultural Land Preservation Board, of which Schwank is a member.
William & Laura Lesher Upper Tulpehocken Twsp. 75.2
Wayne Schrack Upper Tulpehocken Twsp. 42.7
Bruce & Cathy Light Bethel Twsp. 113.7
Larry & Billie Jean Stoudt Upper Bern Twsp. 68.2
Scott Troutman & Families Marion Twsp. 189.2
Durkin, DiNunzio&Rick Families Lower Heidelberg Twsp. 182.2
Since its inception in 1988, the commonwealth has protected 4,558 farms totaling 486,628 acres have been preserved since the program’s inception. In Berks County 674 farms consisting of 67,666 acres have been preserved. Berks County has preserved more acreage of farmland than any other county in the state program.
The long-term goal of the state’s program is to permanently preserve farmland. The holders of the easements have the right to prevent development or improvements of the land for purposes other than agricultural production.
Local, county or state government – or any combination of the three – may buy easements.
Counties that decide to have an easement purchase program must create an agricultural land preservation board.
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September 25, 2013
READING, Sept. 25, 2013 — State Sen. Judy Schwank will hold a town hall meeting at 7 p.m., Sept. 26, in Morgantown for new residents of the 11th Senate District.
“Legislative district boundaries changed for many state lawmakers following the 2010 Census, and I am looking forward to meeting with the residents of Caernarvon Township and neighboring communities in the southern end of my district,” Schwank (D-Berks) said.
The meeting is part of an ongoing series of town halls the senator hosts in various communities throughout the 11th Senate District.
For more information, call 610-929-2151.
WHAT: Sen. Judy Schwank to hold Town Hall Meeting
WHEN: 7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
WHERE: Caernarvon Township Social Hall, 3307 Main St., Morgantown
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Follow Sen. Judy Schwank on her website, Facebook, and Twitter.
July 24, 2013
Harrisburg, July 23, 2013 – Sen. Judy Schwank (D-Berks) today said the Reading Regional Airport will receive state funding to make safety improvements and increase the quality of air travel in Pennsylvania.
“Thanks to PennDOT’s aviation development program, the Reading Regional/Carl A. Spaatz Field will get $37,500 to remove runway obstructions and make general improvements,” Schwank said. “This extra support will help Reading Regional compete with larger airports in surrounding areas and bring business to Berks County.”
Located on Route 183, Reading Regional Airport is a full-service transportation center serving a growing part of southeastern Pennsylvania. Reading Regional opened as a civil airport in 1938 and is served by three charter airlines.
Nineteen airports in 17 counties across Pennsylvania will receive a portion of the $2.1 million state investment. The grants are funded by Pennsylvania’s jet fuel tax and were approved by the State Transportation Commission.
“This grant will allow Reading Regional to continue safely serving the people of Berks County,” Schwank said.
For more details about the state’s 2013 transportation program, click here.
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More information about Sen. Schwank is available on her website, Facebook and Twitter.
May 13, 2013
No Legislative Oversight, Lack of Financial Backing Panned by Senate Democrats
Harrisburg, May 13, 2013 – A new unfunded education mandate now being quietly pursued by the Corbett administration will soon saddle school districts with a $300 million expense and threaten graduation for thousands of students across Pennsylvania, Senate Democrats said today at a Capitol news conference.
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Sen. Andrew Dinniman (D-Chester) Democratic chair of the Senate Education Committee, Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny), Sens. Judy Schwank, John Blake and Jim Brewster all expressed their displeasure and concerns about the proposed changes.
“We are not opposed to the implementation of Common Core standards for Pennsylvania’s students,” Dinniman said. “But we are opposed to Common Core standards without adequate state financial resources for our schools so that all of our students have the opportunity to succeed under those standards, including those in financially distressed school districts.
“For the Commonwealth to increase standards without the adequate fiscal resources is a charade. It is a sham that will only lead to false hope,” Dinniman said.
Common Core standards are being sought by the state Department of Education as a way to determine proficiency and graduation eligibility.
According to Dinniman, the implementation of Common Core standards will result in an unfunded mandate of at least $300 million for local schools. There is no specified funding or plan to provide for the remedial instruction, the redesign of curriculum, or the project-based assessments for those who repeatedly fail the tests.
“The implementation of these new standards should be reviewed thoroughly by the General Assembly,” Costa said. “This whole new testing structure will cost taxpayers dearly and it is being implemented without a full understanding of the benefits for students, teachers, administrators and taxpayers.
“A complete explanation of what is being sought by the department is necessary before Pennsylvania schools put these new standards into play.”
Schwank, who represents the economically and academically struggling Reading School District, said the new testing will be particularly devastating to fiscally challenged schools.
“School districts like Reading, as well as many others around the state, are drowning in red ink now,” Schwank said. “These new mandates, without proper fiscal support, will make their financial plight even worse.
“There is certainly nothing wrong with increasing proficiency standards but students, teachers and schools must have resources to invest to address deficiencies.”
To implement new standards and testing procedures without adding dollars makes no sense, Blake (D-Lackawanna) noted. Especially, he said, after the Corbett administration has slashed basic education support by $900 million.
“To add new core testing procedures and a mandate at a cost exceeding $300 million after cutting education support is irresponsible,” Blake said. “The local property taxpayer is going to get squeezed and economically strapped schools and taxpayers will bear an even greater burden.”
Brewster said instead of implementing more tests and costs, educators and the Corbett administration need to step back and decide whether the current testing structure is constructive. He has proposed Senate Bill 823 to create a bi-partisan commission to recommend changes or a total scrapping of the current student testing procedures.
“My belief is we need to look at what we are doing with student testing and come up with a new, better approach that accurately reflects student, school, teacher and community performance,” Brewster said. “Today’s tests are flawed and the whole system is need of restructuring.”
Senate Democrats also lamented that the new Common Core tests involve 10 days of testing, which takes even more time away from traditional instruction.
They added that districts could receive a deeper financial bludgeoning if students fail to pass the tests.
The new Common Core standards will exacerbate the problem of teaching to the test, Senate Democrats said.
April 17, 2013
Harrisburg, April 17, 2013 – Senate Democrats’ 2013-14 budget priorities are heavily weighted toward job creation, education investments, strengthening the social-services safety net, modernizing liquor sales and refocusing Pennsylvania’s business tax menu to help small businesses, they announced today at a Capitol news conference.
Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) said that Senate Democrats will go into this year’s budget negotiations with a clear purpose and “are resolved that the state’s economy must be jump-started. New jobs must be created and we have to reverse the negative course that the Corbett administration has plotted for Pennsylvania on education and protecting our most vulnerable.”
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“We have an opportunity and a responsibility to seek new investments and use resources that are available to change policy direction during this year’s budget negotiations.”
Costa said Senate Democrats believe that more than 120,000 jobs can be created quickly by enacting a responsible transportation plan, expanding Medicaid and using economic development policies outlined in their PA Works plan.
Costa was joined by a host of Senate Democrats in making today’s announcement.
Sen. Vincent Hughes, who serves as the Democratic chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said that by taking action now on key economic initiatives then restoring job creation and community programs to their past luster — before Corbett budgets sliced them to the core — is an excellent starting point.
“We need to start creating jobs right now and we can do that by working on transportation and Medicaid expansion,” Hughes (D-Philadelphia/Montgomery) said. “These initiatives coupled with rebuilding water and sewer systems, investing in schools and new technologies will create economic growth immediately.
“In addition, by investing in programs such as Main Street, Elm Street and international business we can help small business here while they market their products abroad.,”
Democratic Whip Sen. Tony Williams (D-Philadelphia/Delaware) said that the caucus was turning up the heat on the Corbett administration on jobs, health care, education and social safety net issues because the governor has failed to lead.
“We’ve outlined reasonable strategic policy alternatives that will reverse direction and provide a new path and we’ve identified revenues that will pay for the proposed expenditures,” Williams said. “Pennsylvania is rudderless on job creation and our economic numbers and business indicators under this administration illustrate the problem.
“Our most vulnerable can also not withstand another senseless round of Corbett cuts and we have to restore programs that promote help for those in need.”
Williams said that Pennsylvania is now 43rd in job creation, falling from eighth place among all states under Gov. Ed Rendell’s leadership. Plus, he said, last month’s unemployment claims fell nationally to below 350,000 but, because of Corbett policy short-sightedness, Pennsylvania led the country in new unemployment claims.
Senate Democrats said that they have laid out specific plans to achieve results in the 2013-14 budget in five areas. These include: strategic investments to create jobs; improving education; repositioning business taxes while closing business tax loopholes; modernizing the wine and spirits stores; and repairing and protecting social safety net programs.
The caucus leaders said that they’ve noted at least $750 million in annual savings, plus another $150 million in one-time revenues. They also said that we need to find resources to pay for specific new expenditures including $225 million for basic education, $50 million to aid distressed cities and communities, $40 million for transitional housing and homeownership among other items, and funds for new tax credits for a variety of areas including film production.
Democrats said that priority details include a three-year phase in of new monies to restore education dollars and key student-performance based initiatives that were cut by the Corbett administration in the last two budgets.
They also said that they would emphasize rebuilding struggling communities through their Growth, Progress and Sustainability (GPS) plan; seek new funds for transitional housing and new homeownership opportunities; and push for modernizing the wine and spirits stores rather than the opt for the risky privatization scheme that has been sought by the Corbett administration.
The Democrats indicated that they expected the negotiations to become more focused once the Senate returns to session in late April.
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March 28, 2013
READING, March 28, 2013 — State Sen. Judy Schwank will hold a town hall meeting at 7 p.m., April 4, for residents of Exeter Township and surrounding communities in the Community Room of the Exeter Community Library, 4569 Prestwick Drive, Exeter.
“This is an opportunity for us to have a conversation about the issues impacting our communities,” said Schwank (D-Berks).
The meeting is part of an ongoing series of town halls the senator hosts in various communities throughout the 11th Senatorial District.
For more information, call 610-929-2151.
WHO: State Sen. Judy Schwank
WHAT: Town Hall Meeting
WHEN: 7 p.m. – 9 p.m., Thursday, April 4
WHERE: Community Room, Exeter Community Library, 4569 Prestwick Drive, Exeter.
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December 18, 2012
Harrisburg, December 18, 2012 – Acknowledging the escalating problems in economically-challenged communities across the state, Pennsylvania Senate Democrats today discussed their plans to address a wide range of problems impacting aging and distressed cities.
The “Growth, Progress & Sustainability” or GPS plan focuses on developing new policies that foster cooperation while addressing and strengthening the core of distressed communities.
“The reality is instead of planning for growth and economic development, many cities are contemplating bankruptcy,” Senator Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) said. “We could no longer stand back and watch while the rich heritage of Pennsylvania erodes amid shrinking tax revenues and tax bases.”
Costa said the intention of the plan is to help transform communities and bring some much needed light to the end of the tunnel.
“Pennsylvania needs a new road map to help our cities and our towns,” said Senator John Wozniak (D-Cambria). “Communities are struggling – from Scranton to Harrisburg and Reading to Johnstown and all places in between. Today we’re presenting the GPS plan to serve as a foundation to address the issues and transform our cities and communities.”
Senate Democrats are committed to working with local leaders to further develop the GPS plan which highlights broad areas of legislative interest. The areas the Senate Democrats outlined are including:
- Economic development
- Rebuilding the local tax base
- Urban blight
- Crime/Public Safety Initiatives
- Education & workforce development
- Modernizing and streamlining local government to reduce costs
- Act 47 and Local government Unit Debt Act
According to Senate Democrats, many of the identified communities continue to face huge obstacles as each attempts to provide government services at a time when tax revenues and tax bases are shrinking. They said that they recognize no solution can be effective or lasting without addressing each of the interconnected parts outlined in the plan and understanding how they affect residents.
“Revitalizing our urban areas and strengthening surrounding communities requires we assess and understand their struggles,” said Senator Judy Schwank (D-Berks). “Our focus needs to be squarely on quality of life for the families living in these areas. We owe it to them to ensure these issues are addressed and their needs met, as we move forward.”
Working with local governments, Senate Democrats acknowledged the need for vision, focus and commitment. This includes providing the tools communities need to help themselves before their circumstances become untenable, they said.
“We want public policy that is proactive, cooperative and supportive, not reactive, punitive and vindictive,” said Senator John Blake (D-Lackawanna). “We want to develop long-term, sustainable solutions that will enable these communities to rebuild and thrive.”
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May 8, 2012
May 8, 2012 – At a rally today in Harrisburg, people with disabilities, advocates, families, service organizations and supporters called on the state legislature to oppose the proposed 20 percent in state budget cuts to programs that support individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Sen. Shirley Kitchen (D-Phila.) said individuals with intellectual disabilities thrive when they receive ongoing support, and community-based services are crucial and needed more than ever.
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“You would think that we’d want to secure more funding for the programs that help this population of individuals. Instead, it has become one of the governor’s targets for budget,” Kitchen said. “I am outraged that this administration has yet again put its sights on the Department of Public Welfare to make debilitating cuts.”
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November 9, 2011
READING, Nov. 9, 2011—State Sen. Judy Schwank is seeking the public’s input on the recent storm that brought winter weather to Berks County and left hundreds of thousands of residents without power.
“While we couldn’t anticipate the scope of this pre-winter snowfall, it left many residents in the cold and dark for days. I believe the lagging response from our local utilities must be examined,” said Schwank, who also lost power for several days. “I am asking for constituents to share their stories with me so that I can take the right steps to ensure that we receive a better response from our local utilities in the future.”
The senator recently sent a letter urging the Public Utility Commission to review the response of the area’s utility companies to the Oct. 29 storm and she plans to follow up with PUC and the utilities to discuss this issue further.
“It would be helpful if residents who were affected could provide me with specific information about their utility’s response to any problems they experienced with their service during and after the storm,” Schwank said. “Their story will be used for the sole purpose of gaining an understanding of the storm’s impact on consumers.”
A submission form is available on the senator’s website at www.senatorschwank.com/outage. Residents may also submit their account in writing to State Sen. Judy Schwank, RE: Power Outage, Rockland Professional Center, 1940 N. 13th St., Suite 232, Reading, PA 19604.
Editor’s Note: Attached is a copy of the letter Sen. Schwank sent to the Public Utility Commission.
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June 23, 2011
Harrisburg, June 23, 2011 – A number of Berks County municipalities have received state grants totaling $62,772 for local recycling programs, according to state Senator Judy Schwank (D-Berks).
“Recycling is a vital part of keeping our local communities clean and our environment safe,” Schwank said. “These funds will go a long way to help communities boost their recycling efforts, improve the quality of life in our neighborhoods and keep our air and our drinking and recreational water systems clean and healthy.”
The state’s Recycling Performance Grant Program provides incentive to help Pennsylvania communities increase recycling collection and promote economic growth through job creation and market expansion.
Grant funds were awarded to the following municipalities, based on the amount of materials recycled in 2009 and the municipality’s population:
- Berks County – $25,594 (2,789.5 tons recycled)
- West Reading Borough, Berks County – $19,497 (1,251.5 tons recycled)
- Kutztown Borough, Berks County – $5,071(428.5 tons recycled)
- Bally Borough, Berks County – $4,828 (182.4 tons recycled)
- Longswamp Township, Berks County – $3,460 (305.6 tons recycled)
- Bernville Borough, Berks County – $3,131 (130.9 tons recycled)
- Leesport Borough, Berks County – $1,191 (99.9 tons recycled)
The grants were awarded as a part of the Department of Environmental Protection’s Recycling Performance Grant Program.
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June 13, 2011
Harrisburg, June 13, 2011– State Senator Judy Schwank (D-Berks) has introduced legislation requiring the state to more efficiently pay for the costs of county children’s services agencies.
“The state has really been riding on counties’ shoulders to pay for the services to protect abused and dependent children,” Senator Schwank said. “It’s a method that is inefficient and unfair, and also unnecessary since we already have a better model for how to do it.
Schwank, who previously served two terms as Berks County Commissioner, said the need for her proposal, SB 1137, is reflected in the fact that it has an equal number of co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle representing counties in every section of the state.
Senator Schwank added that the state reimburses counties for the service costs now, but counties must first pay for the services and then often must wait months for the state reimbursements.
“The state is basically forcing counties to float a loan to it. It really is an unfunded mandate,” Senator Schwank said. “Unfortunately, it also makes the services more expensive because they typically are such a large portion of county budgets that counties themselves commonly have to take out tax anticipation loans to pay for them until they get the state reimbursements.”
Schwank said her legislation would substitute a process that is now used to pay for mental health services provided by counties. That requires that counties be paid at the start of each fiscal quarter for the services anticipated during it, with a final squaring up at the end of the fiscal year.
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