New State Grant Programs Accepting Applications Read more

"These investments will provide students at the Boyce Campus with access to updated labs and safe, well-maintained buildings," said state Rep. Markosek. "These improvements will directly enhance their learning experience and allow the campus to continue delivering a quality education.” Read more

Legislation increasing accountability for PFA violations advances to Senate Read more

“Currently, we have products flooding our communities that are insufficiently regulated, both in their content and their packaging, and there’s nothing we can do about it,” state Rep. Dan Frankel said. “Once the Senate sends us a bill, we can negotiate a regulatory framework that puts Pennsylvania back in the driver’s seat.” Read more

State Rep. Mandy Steele, D-Allegheny, today expressed strong support for Gov. Josh Shapiro’s renewed backing of restrictions on cell phone use in Pennsylvania schools, highlighted in his annual budget address. Read more

“Gov. Shapiro is listening to the people of Pennsylvania, who have watched state after state move toward a living wage for workers and end the failed policy of cannabis prohibition,” said state Rep. Dan Frankel, whose legalization legislation with state Rep. Rick Krajewski passed last year. “Hopefully, my colleagues on the Senate side were listening.” Read more

HARRISBURG, Feb. 3 – Legislation newly introduced by state Rep. Abigail Salisbury would help preserve the tree canopy in Pennsylvania communities by requiring utility companies to plant a new tree for each one they cut down. Salisbury, D-Allegheny, said she introduced H.B. 2161 after residents and environmental advocates in her district expressed growing concerns that trees were being unnecessarily removed, rather than simply pruned or trimmed. “Preserving the tree canopy is critical for urban environments – not just because trees beautify the landscape, but because they provide so many other benefits, from reducing air pollution and stormwater runoff to providing cooling shade and reducing energy costs, to raising property values and increasing pedestrian traffic for local businesses. “Residents recognize the need for utilities to trim and prune trees – and sometimes even remove them – to ensure vegetation does not interfere with power lines. But it’s critical to ensure that those management efforts are done with an eye toward what is best for residents and the environment. My bill would do that by requiring a utility that removes a tree to plant a new one, within two years, in a location of the municipality’s choice.” Salisbury said her bill would align tree removal by electric utilities with existing regulations that require utilities to repair damage Read more

AMBRIDGE, Jan. 30 – More than $90,000 in new grant funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Proection will help food banks serving Beaver County safely store and transport food while reducing food waste, state Rep. Rob Matzie announced today. Matzie, who is chairman of the House Majority Caucus, said the grants – which include $50,000 to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank and more than $40,200 to Families Matter Food Pantry – will fund a range of equipment and resources to help the food banks overcome one of their greatest operational challenges. “Preventing food waste is a major challenge for our local food banks and pantries, but we can help them deal with the problem by ensuring that they have the infrastructure needed to safely store and transport perishable supplies,” Matzie said. “The new grants will help do that by funding refrigeration equipment, vehicles and other resources to ensure more food reaches families in need and fewer supplies end up going to waste.” Matzie said that in addition to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, eight other food banks and pantries in Allegheny County secured more than $250,000 in grant funding. Food Recovery Infrastructure Grants are awarded to reimburse the cost of equipment like refrigerators, freezers, refrigerated and non-refrigerated vehicles, stoves and microwaves to store, transport or prepare the recovered Read more

State grants fund road improvements, sewer upgrades Read more

BRADDOCK, Jan. 21 – New funding of $10 million will bring safer drinking water for District 34 residents whose homes are served by lead water lines, state Rep. Abigail Salisbury announced today. Salisbury said the funding from the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority – which includes nearly $3.9 million in grant funding – will support Phase 4 of a project by Wilkinsburg-Penn Joint Water Authority to replace approximately 1,000 residential lead service lines with copper lines. “Residents have a right to expect that the tap water flowing into their homes is safe, but the existence of lead service lines continues to pose a threat in many communities,” Salisbury said. “The new funding will allow Wilkinsburg-Penn Joint Water Authority to replace approximately 1,000 lead lines with copper ones, to bring more households in our district safer water and more residents the peace of mind they deserve.” Salsbury said the funding to the Wilkinsburg-Penn Joint Water Authority includes a low-interest, 30-year loan of $6.13 million and nonrepayable grant funding of nearly $3.87 million. The project will replace approximately 1,000 residential lead service lines with ¾-inch copper water service lines in Wilkinsburg, Braddock, Braddock Hills, Chalfant, Churchill, East Pittsburgh, Edgewood, East McKeesport, Forest Hills, North Braddock, Rankin, Pitcairn, Swissvale, Trafford, Turtle Creek and Read more