Demystifying Harrisburg: Elections
Edition
Last week, we hosted another installment of our
“Demystifying Harrisburg” series on Elections. Thank you
to McCandless Township for hosting us, to our panelists, and to
everyone who came out and made the event such a success! If you
weren’t able to attend or you’d like to share with a
friend, you can check out the video at SenatorLindseyWilliams.com/DemystifyingHbg.
Senator Williams was joined by Ruth Quint, Co-President of the
League of Women Voters; Jessica Garofolo, Director of Administrative
Services of Allegheny County; and Richard Ting, Senior Staff Attorney
for ACLU of Pennsylvania to discuss the different types of elections,
what Allegheny County does to prepare for every election, what you can
expect at the polls, and how ballots are processed and counted.
Some important resources for everyone:
Events
Halloween Costume
Drive
Ross or Harrison Township Offices,
September 2 - October 4, 2024
There are two weeks
remaining in our costume drive with North Hills Community Outreach -
plenty of time to donate your new or gently used Halloween costumes
for a child in need. Everything from scary to sweet will be accepted.
Drop off new or gently used costumes before October 4th at one of our
Distinct Offices:
Ross Township Office
5000 McKnight
Rd
Pittsburgh PA 15237
(412) 364-0469
Monday-Friday
9-5pm
Harrison Township Office
1826 Union Ave.
Natrona
Heights, PA 15065
(724) 224-2131
Monday-Thursday 9-5pm
North Hills Community Outreach will distribute the costumes at their
Coat Shop, a free winter coat event on October 12, 19, and 26. Thank
you in advance for your donations!
5th Annual
Community Baby Shower!
Sheldon Community
Park, 480 Park Ave, Natrona Heights, September 26, 2024,
4-6pm
Rain Location: Deborah D. Booker Community
Center, 100 Park Ave, Natrona Heights
Senator Lindsey
Williams 5th annual Community Baby Shower is next Thursday, September
28th from 4pm-6pm at Sheldon Community Park, 480 Park Avenue, Natrona
Heights, PA 15065!
Join us at this resource fair for parents,
grandparents, foster/kinship families, guardians, or anyone looking to
start a family. Some of the organizations attending this year include
Pittsburgh Firefighters Project Warm, Toys for Tots, UPMC
Children’s Injury Prevention, Trying Together, Allegheny Family
Network, Achieva Early Intervention, Russellton Palmer Pharmacy (flu
shots), and many more. Hope to see you there!
Questions? Call
us at 412-364-0469 (Ross) or 724-224-2131 (Harrison) or email us at
[email protected].
Good News
A Victory
for Healthcare Workers Across the Region
When
nurses and hospital workers stand up together, THEY WIN.
Congratulations to the SEIU union nurses and hospital workers at
Allegheny Valley Hospital and West Penn Hospital on ratifying new
contracts that provide raises and improve working conditions and
patient care.
When healthcare workers win, we all win!
Steel City
Squash Opens in Larimer
Congratulations to
Steel City Squash on the opening of their new facility in Larimer!
Thank you to everyone involved in this project, including the Larimer
Consensus Group, the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh, and
neighborhood partners who are working incredibly hard to keep Larimer
a vibrant, growing community.
This new facility will be a
great resource for the students and families in Larimer, and I'm glad
to have been a part of bringing it to life!
Protecting
Your Identity
Thank you to everyone who came
out to our shredding event with Rep. Mandy Steele and Shred America
earlier this month! If you missed out, you have another chance to
shred your confidential documents at Rep. Steele's Shred Event!
- October 5, 2024
- 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon
-
Rep. Steele's Cheswick District Office, 296 Pittsburgh Street,
Cheswick, PA 15024
Honoring the
Heroes of 9/11
I was grateful that my staff was able
to join the beautiful Harrisburg 9/11 Memorial honoring the heroes of
Flight 93. These incredible men and women made the ultimate sacrifice
to save untold lives on that fateful day 23 years ago. We are forever
in their debt.
Building a
Greener Future Together
Last week I joined Climate
Action Campaign, County Councilwoman Anita Prizio, City Councilwoman
Erika Strassburger, Moms Clean Air Force PA Field Organizer Vanessa
Lynch, and Pittsburgh Region Clean Cities Board Secretary Emily
Phan-Gruber to talk about how the federal Inflation Reduction Act and
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law are bringing federal dollars to our
region to address climate change, modernize our infrastructure, and
create family-sustaining jobs.
The Inflation Reduction Act and
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law are allowing us to think big and solve
problems regionally. Our water, and our air, and our environment
don’t stop at municipal boundaries. This is our chance to use
this once-in-a-generation funding to evaluate and improve upon how our
current and future systems will benefit and protect this entire region
today and in the future.
McCandless
Community Day
My staff and our intern Campbell joined
Representative Venkat’s and Congressman Deluzio’s staffs
last weekend at the Town of McCandless Community Day to join in the
fun and festivities and offer state and federal resources to
residents. We also celebrated McCandless’s receipt of an Act 13
Greenways, Trails, and Recreation grant earlier this year that will be
used for their Parks Master Site Development Plan and Pine Creek
Corridor Feasibility Study. This work will allow residents of all ages
and abilities to get outside safely and enjoy time with friends and
neighbors!
Legislative Update
Stopping
State Preemption of Local Authority
The Senate
returned to Harrisburg this week for the first time since passing the
2024-25 fiscal year budget. Included in that budget was a last-minute
provision added to the Fiscal Code, a 140-page omnibus piece of
legislation that authorizes the state to spend money, as a part of
this summer’s budget deal. This provision allows certain
rodeo-hosting companies to hold ticketed, public rodeo or
rodeo-related events on up to 12 days per year. During those 12 days,
any local rodeo regulations shall not apply. There was no public input
or consultation with stakeholders prior to the inclusion of this
preemption of local law in the budget.
Now that we’ve
returned to Harrisburg, I have announced that I will introduce legislation that
will repeal the preemption of local rodeo bans and return the
authority to prohibit cruel and abusive animal practices to individual
municipalities across the state.
Since 1992, Pittsburgh City
Council has banned the use of electric prods, bucking straps, and
spurs, which are used to control animals, but also inflict pain and
cause injuries to those animals. This has had the practical effect of
banning rodeos in Pittsburgh for over 30 years.
Local
municipalities and their elected officials are in the best position to
regulate numerous issues, and the state should only preempt that
authority when necessary. There is no reason for the state to override
Pittsburgh’s ability to regulate rodeos within its own
boundaries, especially when it results in a financial windfall for a
small subset of private companies. This is a clear example of the
state legislature overstepping local control, with no input or
transparency, and it must be corrected immediately.
This
legislation is supported by animal rights organizations, including
Humane Action Pittsburgh.
You can read more here: https://senatorlindseywilliams.com/senator-lindsey-m-williams-to-introduce-rodeo-ban-legislation
News You Can Use
Applications are Open for Two New
School Safety Grants
The Pennsylvania
Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) is inviting organizations
to apply for $56.5 million in state grant funding under PCCD’s
existing Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP) grant program and
the first-ever Building Opportunity through Out of School Time (BOOST)
program, which aims to reduce community violence by providing more
after school opportunities for young people. Thanks to a 40 percent
increase in state funding for violence prevention and intervention
initiatives in the 2024-25 budget, these programs can fund solutions
that make our communities safer.
The graphics above
outline both programs. For complete information and to apply go to Gun
Violence Grants & Funding (pa.gov)or use the QR codes above.
Applications are open until Thursday, October 31, 2024, at
8pm.
ACLA Social
Work in Libraries Program Offers Community
Assistance
In need of assistance with a job
search, information on resources, or help connecting to community
programs and activities? Head to one of the Allegheny County Library
Association (ACLA) libraries that are hosting a social work student
fellow! Here in Senate District 38, you can work one-on-one with a
social work student fellow at the East Liberty Carnegie Library at 130
S. Whitfield Street. Services are free and available to all!
The Social Work in Libraries Program is a partnership between ACLA,
the University of Pittsburgh, and member libraries. Through the
program, social work students are matched with local libraries to
assist with community needs. Participating libraries change from year
to year. To read about this year’s students and the libraries
they are staffing click here.
To read more about the program to: Library
Social Work Fellowship | School of Social Work (pitt.edu).
My
Brother’s Keeper, Pittsburgh Relaunched
Last week, Pittsburgh Mayor Gainey relaunched My
Brother's Keeper (MBK), Pittsburgh, a community-driven program
fostering empowerment and support for Black men and boys that
originated with the Obama administration. MBK Pittsburgh’s
vision is to create a region where our Black men and boys are safe and
free from violence, feel welcome and see themselves in a positive
manner, and have equitable access to opportunities that allow them to
thrive.
MBK collaborates with partner organizations to provide
mentorship, educational resources, employment opportunities, and
community engagement to Black men and boys from high-
and extreme-need communitiesto improve six milestone goals:
- All of our children enter school cognitively, physically,
socially, and emotionally prepared.
- All of our children read
at grade-level by third grade.
- All of our young people
complete post-secondary education or training.
- All of our
young people graduate from college.
- All of our youth who
have graduated from college or a training program are employed.
- All of our young people are safe from violent crime, and those
who need it, receive the second chance they deserve.
MBK also spotlights Black men and boys from the City of Pittsburgh for
achievements in a variety of endeavors. To nominate someone to be
highlighted and for more details about how to get involved with My
Brother’s Keeper, Pittsburgh go to My
Brother's Keeper | Engage Pittsburgh (pittsburghpa.gov).
2024
Oktoberfest Fundraiser
Come on out to
Pittsburgh Brewing Company Saturday, September 28, 2024 from noon -
9pm for the Chief
Justin McIntire Memorial Foundation’s 2024 Oktoberfest
celebration. All funds raised are used for initiatives that serve
local communities and first responders.
To purchase
tickets and to register for the cornhole tournament go to: CHIEF
JUSTIN MCINTIRE MEMORIAL FOUNDATION
(chief-justin-mcintire-memorial-foundation.com).
As always, please feel free to reach out
with any questions you may have by phone at 412-364-0469 (Ross
Office), 724-224-2131 (Harrison
Office) or by email at [email protected].
My staff will return your call/email within 24 hours
(Monday-Friday).
Senator Lindsey Williams
