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In this Update:
Senate Acts to Protect Fairness in Women’s Sports
The Senate again approved legislation to protect the safety and opportunities of female athletes by requiring scholastic sports teams to be designated based on biological sex. Senate Bill 1293 would require public schools and colleges to label sports teams as male, female or coed. The legislation states only biological females can join teams designated for women. The bill would also allow students to take legal action if they are harmed by violations of this rule. Since 2020 in Pennsylvania, men have stolen first place from female athletes 87 times and unjustly took second or third place 64 times. Recently, the International Olympic Committee enacted new policy guidelines ensuring all sporting events under their jurisdiction for any female category are limited to biological females only. The legislation is similar to Senate Bill 9, which was passed by the Senate in May 2025 with bipartisan support. Since then, it has been delayed by procedural maneuvers by Democrat leaders in the House of Representatives, leaving young female athletes at risk. I urge the House to act on this legislation and restore fairness to athletic competition in our commonwealth. Read more about this issue here. Keeping Young People Safe Online
Earlier this month, I was proud to join Lampeter Strasburg High School in hosting a special informational session to help give parents, guardians and caregivers critical information to keep kids safe online. The event featured experts in law enforcement, mental health and child protection offering information on emerging trends and vulnerabilities for young people online. If you missed this event, you can check out video and resources of the information shared by panelists here. Strengthening Electricity Affordability and Reliability
Pennsylvanians need electricity that’s affordable and reliable. That’s why I joined legislative colleagues in February urging action to preserve critical baseload power generation by preventing the premature shutdown of two commonwealth power plants. I’m pleased to report the Trump administration has reached agreement with the state Department of Environmental Protection and the operator of the Keystone and Conemaugh Generating Stations in Indiana and Armstrong counties to allow continued operation of both plants. The agreement ensures continued, environmentally compliant generation of 3,400 megawatts of electricity for the regional grid and preserves the livelihood of more than 1,000 workers. I applaud the parties for working to find common ground, and will continue working to expand Pennsylvania energy production to provide our residents with a true “all of the above” energy strategy to ensure affordable, reliable electricity. REMINDER: Grow PA Grants Available Now
Eligible Pennsylvanians can now apply for a Grow PA Scholarship Grant for the 2026-27 academic year here. This program offers grants of up to $5,000 per year for in-state students who pursue a degree or certification in an in-demand occupation and administered by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA). The full list of courses of study are available here. To qualify, applicants must submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as well as agree to live and work in Pennsylvania in that occupation after graduation for 12 months for each year they received the grant. Please note: Applicants who received this grant last year MUST reapply to receive the grant again for the upcoming academic year. Committee Approves Measure Eliminating Emissions Test Mandate for Newer Vehicles
Legislation exempting state emissions testing for newer vehicles and removing it entirely for counties where it’s no longer needed was approved by the Senate Transportation Committee. Senate Bill 1298 exempts vehicles five years old or less from the requirement and removes Blair, Cambria, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Lycoming, Mercer and Westmoreland counties from the emissions program. The Vehicle Emissions Inspection and Maintenance program mandates motorists in 25 Pennsylvania counties undergo annual emissions testing. However, a Joint State Government Commission study has shown that removing seven of these counties from the program would have minimal impact on maintaining federal air quality standards. Less than 1% of the five most recent model year vehicles fail annual emissions inspections. The measure now goes to the full Senate for consideration. You can read more about our efforts to reform emissions testing here. Booklet Helps You Prepare Your Child for Kindergarten
If your child is entering kindergarten this fall, you can help prepare them for the experience with the Kindergarten Here I Come booklet filled with resources and activities that follow Pennsylvania’s Early Learning Standards. Topics in the booklet include:
You can review and download the booklet here.
If you have a question about the information in this e-newsletter or other state related matters that you would like a response to, please click HERE to submit your inquiry through my website. This will help to ensure that we are able to respond to your question in a timely fashion due to the high volume of emails and the ever growing amount of computer generated spam mail we receive daily. |
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