WEST CHESTER, Dec. 6 – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation awarded a $150,000 competitive grant to the Brandywine Regional Airport to improve the airfield with new hangar space, state Rep. Carolyn Comitta said today. Twenty-six airports across the commonwealth will make infrastructure and equipment upgrades to maintain safety and expand aviation-related operational and economic opportunities with the help of over $6 million in targeted state investments announced by Gov. Tom Wolf today. “I’m pleased that the Brandywine Airport is getting this attention from the state – it’s an amazing economic multiplier for our region – and the development there is sure to create jobs,” said Comitta, D-Chester. “I look forward to supporting more development at Brandywine, as officials there continue to grow and improve its services and infrastructure.” State funding from PennDOT’s Aviation Development Program comes from the state’s jet fuel tax, and $4 million from the Multimodal Transportation Fund. Read more

As we reflect on the 2018 midterm election results, there is a notable trend nationwide and in Pennsylvania. A record number of women ran for office and won seats at both the national and local level. According to data acquired by the Pennsylvania Center for Women and Politics at Chatham University, the number of women in the Pennsylvania General Assembly will rise from 19 percent to about 25 percent. A total of 134 women ran for the General Assembly this year, and 63 won – 52 in the House and 11 in the Senate. In the state House where I serve, Democrats picked up 11 seats to make the count there 110 Republicans to 93 Democrats. The 116 th Congress will have at least 125 women serving, where women will represent 23 percent of total seats, reaching a step closer to Vision 2020’s goal of a 50-50 shared representation among men and women. In Pennsylvania, we will go from having no women in our congressional delegation to having four represent our southeast region in the U.S. House of Representatives. In 2010, I was the first woman elected mayor in the borough of West Chester. Since then, I have continued to work and promote women’s issues. After I was elected as state representative for the 156 th Legislative District, I was appointed by Gov. Tom Wolf to serve on the Pennsylvania Commission for Women. The commission is a bipartisan organization that works as an advocate and advisor to the governor on policies and legislation that impact women; supports Read more

WEST CHESTER, Oct. 24 – West Chester Area School District was awarded a $5,000 grant by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry to increase job shadowing opportunities for students by partnering with post-secondary institutions, state Rep. Carolyn Comitta said. The Career Readiness mini-grants were awarded to 41 school districts across the commonwealth. The grants will help students learn about career opportunities and create stronger connections between schools and community partners. “This is another example where WCASD stood out and invested directly into its students,” said Comitta, D-Chester. “I’m always proud to help connect district interests with career education and apprenticeship program funding from the state. A state that invests in students is sure to grow economically.” The career readiness activities funded by the mini-grants include: • Conducting work-based learning experiences, job shadowing and field trips to job sites; • Providing online programs that assist students with career awareness and exploration; • Facilitating professional development for educators; • Hosting career fairs, guest speakers and mock interview programs; • Establishing, scaling or sustaining career pathways; and • Educating and engaging parents/guardians about high-demand industries in the region. This is the second year that the Career Readiness mini-grants were awarded. In the 2017-18 Read more

WEST CHESTER, Oct. 22 – A program to train electricians in Chester County received state government funding, state Rep. Carolyn Comitta announced today. The Chester Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee will receive $15,000 from the Pennsylvania Department of Education to train electricians on technical instrument calibration. “From Day 1, this administration’s goal has been to invest in jobs to grow the economy and empower earners,” said Comitta, D-Chester. “I have shared that priority since taking office and am proud every time we put the funding behind the promise. “Congratulations to the CJATC on securing this competitive grant money. The hard work of its staff and trainers reflect highly on our region.” The training course takes place at IBEW Local Union 654. Electricians who complete it will earn their EPRI Part B Instrumental Certification. Read more

RG, Oct. 17 – State Rep. Carolyn Comitta today announced West Goshen Township was awarded a $135,000 state grant to send 45 local emergency responders, municipal managers, engineers, public works workers and emergency coordinators to intensive pipeline emergency response and regulation training. The state Department of Education grant will cover two educational trips: the first for responders, which is an intensive 40-hour course at Texas A&M covering hazardous material training, and the second will offer classroom learning for municipal coordinators at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Transportation Safety Institute in Oklahoma City. West Goshen Township officials said in their grant application that they proposed the Midwest courses because they are cutting-edge educational opportunities in a part of the country that has more experience in energy pipeline work. “I commend West Goshen Township for capitalizing on an excellent opportunity to equip its managers and area first responders with world-class safety training,” said Comitta, D-Chester. “Residents here deserve nothing less than the best-trained public responders, and I thank the Pennsylvania Department of Education and the Wolf administration for recognizing the same.” Read more

HARRISBURG, Oct. 16 – State Rep. Carolyn Comitta today announced money stemming from pipeline work infractions will be returned to the community as watershed restoration and stormwater management grants. In the 156 th Legislative District, projects in East Goshen Township, West Goshen Township and the West Chester School District were selected to receive part of a $12.6 million penalty that the Department of Environmental Protection collected from Sunoco Pipeline over work violations on the Mariner East 2 pipeline. West Chester Area School District will receive $61,656 to help remove invasive species and restore natural diverse forest in Westtown Township. East Goshen Township will receive $350,000 to enhance water resources and recreation opportunities in the township. West Goshen Township will receive $215,273 for stormwater management to reduce impacts to Taylor Run and $110,142 to restore a riparian buffer in the Chester Creek watershed. “This grant money comes directly from fines imposed on Sunoco for infractions that harmed our watersheds, so the grant money must be used to improve those watersheds and the stormwater infrastructure impacted by its Mariner East project,” said Comitta, D-Chester. “I am pleased that a portion of this fine money has been granted to our community to improve overall environmental health and safety, which my constituents and I consider our top priority.” The projects were among 61 Read more

WEST CHESTER, Oct. 16 – Signs reminding drivers to “Merge with Mercy” and a memorial garden were erected this weekend at the PA Route 100 spur approaching U.S. Route 202, where Bayard Rustin High School graduate Bianca Roberson was shot and killed by an enraged motorist last year. Roberson, who would have celebrated her 20th birthday Wednesday, aspired to be an FBI agent but was killed three weeks following her high school graduation. The Bianca Roberson “Merge with Mercy” project began with the vision from Bianca’s mother, Michelle Roberson, who wanted to turn tragedy to beauty by planting a tree and garden in memory of Bianca under Pennsylvania’s beautification area program. The sign she designed further reminds people to “merge with mercy.” The project became a joint effort of the state Transportation Department, local volunteers and donor businesses, Roberson’s friends and family, and state Rep. Carolyn Comitta, who also recently introduced state legislation to outlaw driving with a loaded gun. “The garden and signs remind us to treat one another with respect and mercy and to resist anger on the road,” said Comitta, D-Chester. “This beautiful display will remind us to thoughtfully share the road. “As a lawmaker, it’s my duty to propose legislation that will help deter preventable tragedy. The mere presence of a loaded gun in a vehicle was a huge factor in this Read more

WEST CHESTER, Oct. 12 – Two bills introduced by state Rep. Carolyn Comitta could help people overdosing from opioids or who are in danger after drinking while underage. The two bills would extend the immunity protections to victims in either case, including cases of self-reporting and Good Samaritan intervention. Comitta was joined during a news conference today in West Chester by state Rep. Mary Jo Daley, D-Montgomery, an early co-sponsor of the bills. “The opioid epidemic has proven to be the biggest public health crisis in a generation,” said Comitta, D-Chester. “Too many among us have witnessed firsthand its ravaging effects on our family, friends, neighbors and children. “Victims have been overlooked far too long and deserve compassion rather than punishment for making their best attempt to survive.” Daley is the state representative for Mary Ciammetti, whose son died from alcohol poisoning after a party. She said these protective bills could have saved Christian Ciammetti’s life. “When we look at the legislation introduced in Harrisburg, we have to ask ourselves: will it make a positive impact on Pennsylvania and will it help foster a healthier, better life for our constituents,” Daley said. “In this case, the answer is most undoubtedly yes. These bills will save lives. No one should have to choose between acting to save their life and admitting to a mistake that millions of people can make. Read more

WEST CHESTER, Oct. 4 – West Chester Area School District received a $20,000 Pennsylvania Department of Education Safe Schools grant, state Rep. Carolyn Comitta, D-Chester, announced today. The funding will establish a program within the district to prevent and reduce violent incidents. West Chester Area School District was one of 60 public school entities across the state that received funding. “This award signals a commitment from the administration and General Assembly to help keep students safe and focused on learning,” Comitta said. “I applaud the West Chester Area School District for achieving this grant on behalf of its students.” Today’s announcement follows the release in late August of the full report from the Pennsylvania School Safety Task Force created by Gov. Tom Wolf and Auditor General Eugene DePasquale after the high school shooting in Parkland, Fla. The report includes detailed recommendations on how the state, community and school officials should work collaboratively with each other and with students and families to use all the tools at their disposal to prevent school-based violence from occurring. Read more

HARRISBURG, Sept. 25 – State Rep. Carolyn Comitta, D-Chester, this week introduced legislation that would prohibit motorists from carrying loaded firearms in their vehicles. Comitta modeled the legislation in the wake of the June 2017 road-rage killing of Bayard Rustin High School graduate Bianca Roberson. “Bianca was a talented student with a bright future that was cut short due to a senseless act of violence,” Comitta said during a Capitol news conference announcing the bill today. “What happened to Bianca should never have happened. We cannot allow residents of the commonwealth to live in danger of firearm violence as a result of road rage.” H.B. 2669 would prohibit a person from carrying a loaded firearm in any vehicle, with the exception of firearms related to game hunting, law enforcement, military personnel or security drivers. A person who is found carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle would be charged with a misdemeanor for a first offense, and a first-degree misdemeanor for a second or subsequent offense. “It might seem like a simple change, but studies show that drivers who have a firearm in their vehicle may be more prone to anger and more likely to engage in aggressive driving than those who did not have a gun,” Comitta said. “That gun should not be further ready to use. We already know that the mere presence of a gun in a home increases suicide rates and the Read more