Casey Votes to Protect Small Pennsylvania Airports

Altoona, Bradford, DuBois, Johnstown, Lancaster and Oil City/Franklin Airports Will Benefit
 
WASHINGTON, DC— U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) today voted to preserve support for Pennsylvania airports in the Essential Air Service (EAS) program when an amendment to eliminate the program came to the Senate floor today. The amendment was rejected by a vote of 61-38.

“Eliminating the EAS program would have been devastating to the economies of rural communities in Pennsylvania,” said Senator Casey. “I am proud to stand up for the regions of Pennsylvania that rely on the EAS program for sustained economic development and jobs. At a time when the Commonwealth is struggling to recover from a devastating recession, I will continue to fight everyday for economic growth and job creation strategies for Pennsylvania.”
 
Earlier this month, Senator Casey joined three Senate colleagues in sending a letter to U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) outlining their opposition to Senator McCain’s amendment to the FAA Reauthorization Bill that would have eliminated the EAS program.
 
In Pennsylvania, six community airports, including Altoona, Bradford, DuBois, Johnstown, Lancaster and Oil City/Franklin are served by EAS supported airlines.  Last year, roughly $8.8 million in federal funding was provided to ensure air service in these communities. 

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Representative Mike Kelly Votes to Extend Three Patriot Act Counterterrorism Provisions
 
Washington, D.C.—Representative Mike Kelly (PA-03) voted today for a 90-day extension of three expiring provisions of the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 and Intelligence Reform of Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. The provisions have given national security investigators the tools they need to pursue and dismantle terrorist plots, including roving wiretap surveillance authority; an ability to track threats from non-U.S. citizens acting as “lone wolf” agents; and authority to obtain documentation from businesses and other institutions that provide evidence of or leads to suspected terrorist activity. Rep. Kelly issued the following statement:
 
“Ten years ago, nearly 3,000 innocent American lives were lost during the terrorist attacks of September 11. As our nation mourned, we vowed: Never Again.

“Since 9/11, at least 36 known plots against America have been prevented.  We have been kept safe because of the tireless and valiant efforts of our intelligence community, law enforcement, armed forces, and countless others. But make no mistake: the threat of another terrorist attack is real and we must remain vigilant. As it’s been said, those charged with protecting us from an attack have to be right 100 percent of the time, and those terrorists seeking our harm only have to be right once. 

“The provisions extended today give national security investigators the tools they need to stay ahead of the terrorists. These tools are lawful and obtained through an extensive judicial process. They are the same tools that have been used for decades by criminal investigators going after the mob, drug dealers, child pornographers and kidnappers. We should go after terrorists just as aggressively, especially when you consider the possibility of another 9/11.

“Over the next few months, Congress will continue to evaluate these amendments to ensure that the constitutional protections they provide are secure and sufficient. Significant safeguards have been put in place to protect civil liberties as we work to protect and defend the homeland. The two are not incompatible and we will continue to strike that critical balance.”
 
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Representative Jim Gerlach Votes for Massive Tax Increase on the Middle Class
 
Breaking his own “no new taxes” pledge, today, Representative Jim Gerlach voted to raise taxes on middle income families at a time when they can least afford it.
 
Representative Jim Gerlach opposed an amendment offered by Representative Joe Crowley that would block tax increases on any American earning below 500 percent of the federal poverty level as part of the Republicans’ misnamed ‘true up’ bill.
 
Representative Jim Gerlach’s vote against the Crowley Amendment is tantamount to a massive middle class tax increase. It also represents the newest way that Republicans are hoping to keep Americans from enrolling in the health exchanges that are part of last year’s health insurance reforms.
 
“Today’s vote by Representative Jim Gerlach to hit hardworking Americans with a massive tax increase is not only an outrageous assault on the middle class, it also proves that his ‘no new taxes’ campaign pledge isn’t worth the paper it was printed on,” said Jesse Ferguson of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Representative Jim Gerlach’s vote represents a double-blow to hardworking Americans. It’s a tax increase at a time when they can least afford it and it will also keep more people from enrolling in health exchanges that will finally give they and their families access to affordable health care.”
 
Background
 
·         HR 705 would force a family of four earning $88,000 a year but who got a small year end bonus of $300 to be forced to repay all of the tax benefits they received to afford private health insurance for their family – a tax increase estimated at upwards of $5,000 based on an average family of four health plan costing $13,000 per year.
 
·         The $25 billion in new tax revenue from H.R. 705 would not come from people gaming the system, but rather from payments to middle income families in the health exchange.
 
·         The Crowley Amendment to H.R. 705, offered in the House Committee on Ways and Means, would repeal the middle class tax increase proposed in the Republican bill if it raises taxes on any American below 500% of the Federal Poverty Level. This amendment would the tax increase on middle income families earning up to $88,200 for a family of four.  [Crowley amendment to HR 705, 2/17/11]
 
·         Representative Jim Gerlach signed the Americans for Tax Reform Taxpayer Protection Pledge opposing “any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses.” [ATR.org, accessed 2/17/11]
 
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DeWeese expresses ire over prison cancellation
 
HARRISBURG, Feb. 17 – State Rep. Bill DeWeese, D-Greene/Fayette/Washington, today demanded that the Corbett administration give the people of the 50th District a fuller explanation on why it decided to cancel a long-planned state prison for German Township.
 
“As governor, Tom Corbett can no longer hide details behind his well-worn mantra of, ‘It’s under investigation’ in order to evade answering difficult questions,” said an upset DeWeese. “He no longer wears the cloak of state attorney general – but it appears he still wields the dagger.”
 
DeWeese pointed out that the official cancellation letter sent to a contractor appeared on the state Department of General Services website for only a few minutes Thursday morning, after which it mysteriously disappeared from public view – along with links to 13 documents chronicling the considerable progress made on the $200 million, 650-job prison. The cancellation letter reappeared late Thursday afternoon; the other documents did not.
 
“Like the cosmonauts who fell out of favor in the old Soviet Union, whose images were airbrushed out of group photos, all visible details on the German Township prison evaporated into thin air,” said DeWeese. “Last week, the House voted unanimously for H.B. 15, which would put even more state documents online for public viewing. Perhaps someone should clue the Corbett administration in as to which direction we are heading when it comes to transparency and accountability.”
 
DeWeese, who represents the part of German Township where the prison was slated to be built just outside Masontown, said the people of Fayette, Greene and Washington counties deserve a fuller explanation than “the project has been canceled in the best interest of the Commonwealth.” That was the terse reason listed in the cancellation letter, written to the contractor that had been selected for contract negotiations by the outgoing administration of Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell.
 
“This is a huge and sudden reversal of fortune,” said DeWeese, who personally called Corbett twice Thursday to ask for a more thorough explanation but received no reply. “If Republican Tom Corbett thought he was playing more politics with Bill DeWeese, he was wrong. He is now playing politics with the people of the 50th District. In last year’s race for governor, Fayette, Greene and Washington county residents helped put him in the governor’s mansion. He needs to explain to them why he did this.”
 
DeWeese said the abrupt about-face means that the state will lose a considerable amount of money and time already invested in the project over the past two years, while still paying to house 2,000 inmates in Virginia and Michigan.
 
“How can we scrap a project that comes in millions under budget, in a county with high unemployment?” asked DeWeese. “Corbett’s ripping the heart out of the people of Fayette County in particular – and as a result, 650 futures are being lost.”
 
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ALTMIRE PAYS TRIBUTE TO CHUCK TANNER ON HOUSE FLOOR
 
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Congressman Jason Altmire (PA-04) spoke on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives to pay tribute to Pittsburgh Pirates manager and New Castle native Chuck Tanner. The text of Congressman Altmire’s remarks is below and a video is attached.

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the life of major league baseball player and manager Chuck Tanner, who died in his hometown of New Castle, PA in my district on February 11 at the age of 82. After hitting a home run in his first major league at bat in 1955, Tanner played eight seasons and later rose through the ranks to manage four major league teams, including the Pittsburgh Pirates who acquired him in a 1977 trade. It is in Pittsburgh where he reached the pinnacle of his baseball career in 1979, when he managed the Pirates to a World Series Championship.
 
“Following his retirement from baseball, Tanner returned to New Castle with his late wife Babs, his wife of 56 years. Tanner became a fixture at the New Castle restaurant that bears his name and where he ate nearly all his meals. Nearby the Shenango High School baseball field is also named in his honor. Chuck Tanner spent a lifetime in baseball and made friends and fans the world over, but it is in New Castle where he will be most fondly remembered and most sorely missed.”
 
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ALTMIRE INVITES HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS TO SUBMIT ENTRIES FOR CONGRESSIONAL ART COMPETITION

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) — U.S. Congressman Jason Altmire (PA-04) today invited high school students who live in Pennsylvania’s Fourth Congressional District to submit entries for the 29th Annual Congressional Art Competition. Each year, all 435 congressional districts host art competitions to celebrate the talents of America’s young artists.

“The Congressional Art Competition provides students with a wonderful opportunity to showcase their artistic skills,” Congressman Altmire said. “Having visited schools across the Fourth Congressional District, I know that our region is home to a number of very talented young artists. I hope that all interested students will apply, and I look forward to seeing this year’s entries.”Students’ artwork will be evaluated by a jury of local artists. The first place winner will have his or her work displayed in the Cannon Tunnel of the U.S. Capitol for one year and will receive a scholarship to the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Students in grades 9-12 interested in participating in the art competition, and art teachers with questions, should call Congressman Altmire’s office at (724) 226-1304 for specific details on how to apply. The deadline for submissions is Friday, March 18 at 5 pm. Applicants can find more information on Congressman Altmire’s website by clicking here.

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Casey Seeks to Prevent Cuts to Funding for PA Children’s Teaching Hospitals
 
Hospitals in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh Also Voice Opposition
 
WASHINGTON, DC— U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) today called on President Obama not to eliminate funding that benefits Pennsylvania’s children’s hospitals.  The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children would be hit by the elimination of the Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical Education (CHGME) program, which has provided funding to allow for children’s hospitals to provide job training for physicians who care for children.  
“In Pennsylvania, we have three hospitals who participate in this important program, including the Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia which has the largest program in the United States,” wrote Senator Casey.  “While I share your commitment to expanding the primary care workforce, this cannot be done at the expense of training those physicians who care for our children.”

For over a decade, the CHGME program has provided children’s teaching hospitals with federal support comparable to what other teaching hospitals receive through Medicare.  Through this funding, over 5,000 residents are trained every year.  Pennsylvania has three hospitals that would be affected by the cut: The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia; Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children.  These three hospitals received almost $40 million in federal funding in 2009.
 
“I am deeply concerned about the elimination of the Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education (CHGME) Program which is crucial to training the next generation of pediatricians.  Our nation is already experiencing a significant shortage of pediatricians and pediatric specialists.  If this program is eliminated,  we will most certainly expand the gap between children’s medical needs and our ability to meet them in the future,” said Steven M. Altschuler, M.D., chief executive officer at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “I look forward to being part of the debate and working aggressively alongside Senator Casey and other child health advocates in Congress to restore the funds for this vital program so that all children can obtain the necessary medical care they deserve.”
 
“Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC is the only pediatric training program in western Pennsylvania and we train 100 percent of the pediatricians, pediatric specialists and research scientists. About half stay in this region to practice pediatrics; the rest take positions as pediatricians, specialists and scientists all over the country,” said Dena Hofkosh, MD, MEd, director of the Pediatric Residency Program at Children’s Hospital and professor of Pediatrics  at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. “Without CHGME funding, Children’s Hospital will be forced to decide whether to cut programs and services for our patients or training programs for our physicians.  Either way, we all lose.”
 
Senator Casey plans to introduce legislation to reauthorize the CHGME program next month.