State Reps. Sheryl Delozier, R-Cumberland, House Democratic Whip Jordan Harris, D-Phila, Mike Jones, R-York, and Ed Gainey, D-Allegheny, today introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at reforming Pennsylvania’s probation and parole system to reduce recidivism, lessen the workload on Pennsylvania’s counties and help formerly incarcerated individuals avoid technical pitfalls that keep them trapped within the system. Read more
This week's FOX43 Capitol Beat is a bipartisan interview with Cumberland County Republican Sheryl Delozier and Philadelphia Democrat Jordan Harris. The two are working on legislation to improve Pennsylvania's criminal justice system. Read more
The economic benefits of proposed legislation to “free the weed” by state lawmakers was the main talking point at a Wednesday morning press conference to legalize marijuana and allow the state to oversee the selling of it for recreational use.State Rep. Dave Delloso, D-162 of Ridley Township, was flanked with co-sponsors and other advocates of House Bill 1899, the legislation he introduced earlier this week that pushes Pennsylvania to join 10 other states to decriminalize the drug. Read more
Taili Thompson spent three years on probation and wonders if he would have been better off getting to jail.A Pittsburgh resident, Thompson spoke about his experience at a state Capitol rally Tuesday organized by advocates trying to change the probation system. He said he completed his three years on probation and met all the terms. Read more
The Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry recently presented the third annual Allegheny College Prize for Civility in Public Life in Pennsylvania award to the four members of the General Assembly’s Criminal Justice Reform Caucus. Read more
Along with the other three chairs of the Pennsylvania Criminal Justice Reform Caucus, state Rep. Jordan Harris, D-Phila., House Democratic whip, received the Allegheny College Prize for Civility in Public Life award on Monday evening.“It’s incredibly humbling to receive an award that has been given to such great figures in American politics as Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. John McCain, Congressmen Beto O’Rourke and Will Hurd, Senators Dianne Feinstein and Lindsay Graham, the Women of the United States Senate, and Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Antonin Scalia,” Harris said. “Civility in politics is essential to ensuring that we are able to accomplish our goals and properly represent those who elect us to serve. It’s possible to disagree without being disagreeable, and this ability to be civil helps us work together when we find common ground. Success found through bipartisanship can inspire other lawmakers to follow the same path and restore civility to our political process.” Read more
Each year, Pennsylvania taxpayers spends hundreds of millions of dollars on probation violators. Two new bills look to reform the system. Supporters of House Bill 1555 and Senate Bill 14 rallied today at the State Capitol in an attempt to move the legislation. Read more
In a boost to the development of the Schuylkill River Trail and a community center in Wharton Square, state Rep. Jordan Harris, D-Phila., House Democratic Whip, announced today nearly two million in Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program funding coming to the 186th Legislative District. “Both of these grants will provide a huge boost to our community by creating jobs and enhancing our shared community spaces,” Harris said. “I look forward to seeing both projects completed and the positive benefits they will have on our neighborhoods.” Read more
Calling it a tremendous boost to the local economy, state Rep. Jordan Harris, D-Phila., House Democratic Whip, announced a $1.5 million Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant for the University of Pennsylvania. “The University of Pennsylvania is an unparalleled resource for Philadelphia, and I appreciate Governor Tom Wolf realizing that and awarding this grant,” Harris said. “The renovations that will be completed thanks to this funding will boost our local economy and help further innovation and technological advancements being researched at Penn.” Read more
Highlighting the public benefit of shared community space, state Rep. Jordan Harris, D-Phila., announced a Commonwealth Financing Authority grant for the Neighborhood Gardens Trust to renovate its Concert Garden. Read more
NBC10 @ Issue is a weekly public affairs discussion program that takes an in-depth look at local, state and national issues and politics. This week, we discuss gun control with state Reps. Jordan Harris and Chris Quinn. Read more
N.J. Gov. Phil Murphy last year said that if recreational marijuana was legalized in the Garden State, it would generate at least $60 million in taxes annually. The state’s Office of Legislative Services guessed even more, estimating legal sales would reap between $80 and $210 million.In Pennsylvania, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale has said fully legalized weed would net the Keystone State more than $580 million in additional annual tax revenues, an estimate echoed by State Reps. Jordan Harris (D., Philadelphia) and Jake Wheatley (D., Allegheny) in their recently introduced legalization bills. Read more
At the end of a week that saw two mass shootings in Philadelphia, Gov. Tom Wolf signed an executive order Friday morning intended to reduce gun violence in the state.The new order requires state agencies to collect more data about gun violence, instructs state police to boost their monitoring of hate groups and white supremacists, and increases efforts to help local police departments respond to threats of mass shootings. Read more
HARRISBURG, Aug. 16 – House members of the PA SAFE Caucus and others today joined Gov. Tom Wolf in announcing a slate of executive actions to make sweeping changes to state agencies and programs to better target the public health crisis of gun violence. At a news conference Friday in Harrisburg announcing the executive actions, Wolf directed his administration to create new state offices focused on violence prevention and reduction, expand programs that promote safety, refocus departments on combatting gun violence as a public health crisis, and increase collaboration and data sharing between the public, government agencies and other states. Reps. Dan Frankel (D-Allegheny) and Jordan Harris (D-Philadelphia) joined Wolf at the news conference and spoke of the significance of the governor’s actions in light of recent events in their districts, expressed gratitude for Wolf’s leadership and said the state legislature must commit to taking on gun violence when it returns to session in September. Speaking on the tragic impact of gun violence in not only his district, but in those across Pennsylvania, Harris said, “This must stop. It must end. There are far too many victims, there are far too many people who have lost their life to gun violence in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Time is out for the talk. We have to do action, and we have to do it now.” Furthering this call for action, Frankel said, “We currently have about two dozen Read more
Get the latest news with Rep. Harris' summer 2019 newsletter. Read more
One day last October, in a town in central Ghana, a land dispute dating back three generations was about to turn violent.That same day, on another continent thousands of miles away, at a usually quiet state university campus in central Pennsylvania, another crisis was looming: Someone had drawn a swastika in the men’s room at the library. Read more
State Rep. Jordan Harris, D-Phila., House Democratic whip, announced today that two organizations in his district received a total of $950,000 from the Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement Fund to help renovate and construct affordable housing.“This much-needed funding will improve and maintain access to affordable housing for those who need it the most,” Harris said. “Having consistent access to affordable housing is key in helping people maintain a quality standard of life in a place they can call their own home.” Read more
Rep. Harris joins the News Beat podcast to talk criminal justice reform in Pennsylvania, including what's been done and what's next. Read more
Lower-level criminal convictions in Pennsylvania began to be automatically sealed Friday under a state law touted as a way to give offenders a fresh start.State officials and other supporters marked the new phase of the “clean slate” legislation at a news conference in Harrisburg, calling the program a model for other states.Democratic state Rep. Jordan Harris, who helped sponsor the bill, said he’s seen damage the justice system has done to people in the south Philadelphia neighborhood where he’s from. Read more
Shortly after being hired for a new job in 2014, Marilyn was “deathly afraid.”She had two non-violent arrests for possession of marijuana on her record, both of which were resolved with no conviction. More than five years later, though, they still haunted her — and she was anxious the opportunity would slip through her fingers when her employer saw her background check. It wouldn’t have been the first time. Read more
oined by Gov. Tom Wolf, a bipartisan group of lawmakers and advocates, state Rep. Jordan Harris, D-Phila., spoke today on the importance of the initiation of automatic criminal record sealing on the one-year anniversary of Pennsylvania’s Clean Slate Act becoming law.“Today represents the culmination of a tremendous amount of hard work and collaboration between Representative Sheryl Delozier, me and countless other legislators and advocates who are looking to help those who have paid their debt to society truly get their second chance,” Harris said. “This first-of-its-kind legislation put Pennsylvania on the map as a national leader in positive criminal justice reform and shows that we’re serious about the benefits criminal justice reform has for all taxpayers.” Read more
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