Government & Social Policy

ACTION ALERT - ACTION NEEDED!

Action urgently needed for two national bills.

At the present time at the federal level, two critically important bills have been stalled. These are the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. The League is strongly urging every member to reach out to both our Senators, but particularly to Senator Toomey. Pennsylvania is one of the states in which the Legislature is moving legislation forward to limit voting rights. As a Republican not seeking re-election and having affirmed the integrity of the 2020 voting in PA, Toomey provides a critical opportunity for a vote to protect our democracy. You can send him a letter through this link: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/urge-senators-toomey-and-casey-to-vote-yes-on-voting-rights-legislation/

We Need You!

Opportunities to Get Involved

There’s a lot going on right now, and we need help. Please consider volunteering for one of the following:

Twin challenges exist: 1) how to engage more college and high school students as active, educated citizens, and 2) how to communicate the dangers in two political practices that are wonky and hard to understand (gerrymandering and the practice of using rules to give a few elites the power to control the legislative agenda). To address this, the LWVIC, local Fair Districts of PA and IUP are joining forces to create a contest. To be held in the spring, college and high school students will learn about gerrymandering and the legislative rules process, and then be invited to create a short creative message of some kind to educate others about these issues. The messages could be a short video, art, an essay, etc. Susan Welsh, chair of LWVIC’s Children Advocacy Committee and Education(?), Sid Reger of FDPA, and Dr. Aleea Perry, IUP’s Political Science Department are leading this project. Please consider volunteering some time to help out with this fun project. You can contact Susan Welsh at sbwelsh48@gmail.com to get started.
Our state legislature is working hard to put at least 5 constitutional amendments through for popular vote during spring’s primary. These amendments would reshape the balance of power in the state government, restrict voting access, and establish that the state constitution does not guarantee any right related to abortion The League is strongly opposed to all of these five amendments and our local league is organizing a focused letter-writing campaign in the local newspaper about this. We are seeking both letter writers and also people who prefer not to draft their own letter, but are willing to sign and submit a pre-drafted letter. We will provide all the background information and details. Our goal is to have letters to the editor published weekly after the first of the year to keep this issue in the public’s eye. Dr. Deanne Snavely will be heading this project up. Please let her know if you can help at dlsnavely68@gmail.com.
There is much work to be done at the state level for the League. The League has 4 working committees and two of them are in need of additional help right now. These are the Social Policy Committee and the Government Policy Committee. Each committee meets twice a month for about an hour. The work of the committee is to monitor particular policy issues, and identify particular actions that might be needed. Committees sometimes also draft information summaries on issues for the League to take up. If you have interest in learning more about these committees, please contact Susan Boser at sboser12@gmail.com

LWVIC Webinars on Bipartisan Gun Legislation in Pennsylvania

This is the third in a series of webinars on public safety and gun legislation hosted by the League of Women of Indiana County. (See below for the video). This series was developed in response to requests from Indiana County citizens to learn more about public safety and gun legislation.

The September 29th webinar was led by Sarah Miller, Director of Social Policy for the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania and focused on bipartisan proposed gun legislation in Pennsylvania. Legislation related to gun safety has been introduced into the Pennsylvania State House and the Senate over the last year. This legislation was sponsored by both Democrats and Republicans as well as co-sponsored by a Democrat and a Republican. These proposed bipartisan bills include the ban of assault weapons for people under 21, firearm training for first-time purchases, and universal background checks as well as other gun-related safety legislation. However, the forward movement of these proposed bipartisan bills has been thwarted.

The first webinar was led by Trooper First Class Clifford A. Greenfield, Public Information Officer/Community Services Officer, Pennsylvania State Police. Trooper Greenfield’s presentation was titled, “Current Gun Laws in Pennsylvania.” Links to the sources he referenced in his presentation are listed on the homepage of the League website (lwvindianacounty.org). The second webinar was led by Dr. Sue Welsh, chair of our local League’s Child Advocacy Committee and Dr. Susan Boser, member of the LWV of Pennsylvania’s Government Policy Committee. Their presentation focused on efforts of the League of Women Voters to learn more about gun legislation and school safety. One educational initiative of the Child Advocacy Committee was meeting with the administrators of three Indiana County School Districts and learning about Pennsylvania’s youth violence prevention program, the “Safe2Say Something” program.

Watch & Listen to the Latest Webinar

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

Legislative action regarding voting rights. Several bills are currently in the House related to changes to voting processes and rules to ensure fair elections. SB 106 was passed before the winter break, and the House is scheduled to take up their version of this bill, HB 1800 in this session. This is Constitutional Amendment regarding voting processes. The House is taking up HB 1596 this session as well, which reduces access to voting through a number of measures. The League opposes both of these bills, and asks League members to contact legislators asking them to oppose both of these measures. You can use this link: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-your-legislator-to-reject-hb-1800/

Subpoena for voter data. A lawsuit is currently in the Commonwealth Court opposing the Senate Intergovernmental Committee’s request for voter data, specifically driver’s license numbers and last 4 digits of the social security number. The League is a co-litigant.

Redistricting. The Legislative Redistricting Commission recently completed public comment on the proposed new maps; Susan Gobreski, LWVPA Director of Government Policy, testified this past week. The 5 person LRC unanimously approved the proposed Senate Map, but approved the House map on a split vote.

The League has concerns about the Congressional maps, though. This may be going to litigation. The Governor has vetoed the map drawn by the PA House Government Committee. An application has been made by voters including the Executive Director of Common Cause PA, active members from the State League, and advocates from Fair Districts PA. They are being represented by the Public Interest Law Center, and are asking the State Supreme Court to intervene and adopt a redistricting plan in time for the 2022 primary election. In addition to fair districts, they are also seeking to block prison gerrymandering.

Committee focus of the month – Local elections. We are encouraging local Leagues to increase their involvement in local poll watching, working to ensure fair elections at the local level. We anticipate partnering with the Voter Services Group to do a joint training, and support local leagues in recruiting. The committee is seeking feedback on how the state League can support local efforts.

LWVPA Social Policy Committee – Report to LWVIC

School Funding Trial. We are closely following the trial regarding the inequitable structure for school funding in Pennsylvania. The League encourages local Leagues and other local groups to get involved in increasing public awareness of this issue and its implications, and holding state lawmakers accountable. Actions include passing a resolution supporting the lawsuit and writing a letter to the editor.

Gun Safety. Two points here. First: Currently before the House, HB 235, HB 1903 and HB 1846 increase safety measures such as comprehensive background checks and safety training. The League supports their passage, and encourages sending a letter of support to your legislature. Second, the Social Policy Committee has arranged with CeaseFire PA to offer a Leadership Institute for League members on Wednesday Jan. 26, at 6pm in Zoom. This event will be an informational session on gun violence statistics in PA and gun safety policies. Registration is required: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYqceyvpzkqGtRr9zE9L0Ww8Eux-1C_A9Sw

Engaging Younger Audiences. The committee is also creating a Student Ambassador Program for the League as an effort to engage younger audiences and constituents. The committee is exploring working with the Voter Services Committee and may also potentially link with the Government Policy Committee’s January focus on recruiting local poll watchers.

Potential Legislation Covering Curriculum and Race in Public Schools. In June 2021, Representatives Russ Diamond and Barbara Gleim along with 29 other members introduced HB1532. Entitled Teaching Racial and Universal Equality (TRUE) Act, this act establishes specific limitations regarding what speech will be permitted in all Pennsylvania public school districts and postsecondary institutions, as well as all state, county and municipal agencies. No votes have been scheduled on this bill at the present time. We are monitoring the bill and will encourage our legislators to vote no if it is brought forward.

Broadband Internet Funding and Expansion: At the present time, the League does not have a published position on broadband access in rural areas; the Social Policy committee is currently developing a statement for consideration. For information, the House just unanimously voted to create a governmental body to develop a statewide plan to coordinate the grant money that will be coming to the state. The bill, HB 2071, has gone on to the Senate for vote.

For additional information on these and other issues, please check out a new feature on the LWVPA website: www.palwv.org/on-our-radar Called “On Our Radar,” this webpage provides current information from three committees: Government Policy, Social Policy Committee and Environmental Policy.