thenness@pahousegop.com

State Representative

Tim Hennessey

26th Legislative District

DISTRICT OFFICE:

1038 East Lincoln Highway, Coatesville, PA 19320 Phone: (610) 380-8600

SATELLITE OFFICE:

Old Elverson Train Station, P.O. Box 255, Elverson, PA 19520 Phone: (610) 286-9194

Pottstown: Phone:

(610) 326-2626

HARRISBURG OFFICE:

PO Box 202026, Harrisburg, PA 17120-2026 Phone: (717) 787-3431

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Check us out on the web at

RepHennessey.com

Budget Fails to Meet Proper Priorities

money (which we don’t have), it fails to plan for the future, and its priorities are outof balance. is budget relies on federal funds that were uncertain and overestimated, which creates a chaotic situation for individuals and agencies that rely on state fund-ing.Keeping the film tax credit, and raising it to $60 million, while making cuts in stateparks and libraries and providing only very modest increases for mental health services,makes little sense. In addition, the budget cuts funding for agriculture, Pennsylvania’snumber one industry. e film tax credit, an acceptable idea in good economic times,should have been jettisoned in our current economic straits. We’ll have serious consequences to face in coming years unless the deficit is broughtunder control. Federal stimulus funds are gone after this year, and we face a $4 billionto $5 billion structural deficit in fiscal year 2011-12. Another troubling aspect of this budget plan is the level of borrowing that is autho-rized. In our current economic climate, we should not run up the state “credit cards”by creating large amounts of debt for future generations to pay off. We’ve all seen thisin Washington, and in this budget, $600 million in new borrowing was authorized inPennsylvania. e Commonwealth debt load has grown from $6 billion to more than10 billion during this administration’s tenure, a whopping 66 percent! I voted againstthis borrowing in March, when it was originally proposed, and again when it came back from the Senate in July.e promised $250 million increase for public education may need to be scaled back because the $850 million expected from Washington has been reduced by Congress. A new and separate funding package from D.C. has suddenly emerged which may bringthe Commonwealth an additional $300 million targeted to “public school administra-tion costs,” whatever that means. We’re left with lots of unanswered questions about what funds will be available even as we begin the new school year. We must restore fiscal sanity to state government.

Rep. Hennessey is shown here taking part in a House Republican Policy Committee hearing on special education.

Transportation Funding Must Be AddressedSafe Water Grants for Honey Brook Borough

Grant Awarded

A $400,000 grant has been awarded by the Department of Community and Natural Resources to the Schuylkill Riv-er Greenway. Rep. Hennessey is shownhere with oﬃ cials including Congress-man Jim Gerlach (R-6th) and Depart-ment of Community and Natural Re-sources Secretary John Quigley. An Armed Forces Day testimonial dinner honored Alfred P. Gerhardt Jr. who ﬁnished his year as East-ern Section Commander for the American Legion,Department of Pennsylvania.

Southeastern VeteransCenter ExpansionProject Underway

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our men and women who have worn the uni-form of our nation, and served with honor andbravery.During the Memorial Day and IndependenceDay weekends, I attended the commemorationsat Coatesville Veterans Square, the Elverson Me-morial Day ceremony, at TelHai in Honey Brook Township and at the Revolutionary War Cem-etery in East Vincent Township.I also had the privilege to speak at the Free-dom Ceremony at the Southeast Veterans Cen-er, honoring the C-Battery 108th Field Artillery Battalion of the Pennsylvania Army NationalGuard. e SEVC is home to the unit.

Honoring Our Veterans in the 26th Legislative District

Groundbreaking was heldrecently for a $41.2 millionexpansion to the SoutheastVeterans Center. e proj-ect consists of a four-story,140,000-square-foot additionto the existing center, which will be connected to CoatesHall by an enclosed bridgeand will focus on a commu-nity living concept.is project will be ﬁ-nanced with federal and statefunds. I’m pleased to serve onthe Advisory Board at SEVC,and to be involved with this worthwhile project for our vet-erans. I congratulate the many people whose hard work

anddedication made this a reality.

Eagle Scout Roll of Honor

ongratulations!

I’m happy to report that the state hasranted almost $1.1 million to help defray aubstantial part of the cost of upgrading therinking water and storm water systems inoney Brook.e Honey Brook Borough Councilnd the municipal authority were faced with100-year-old underground pipes, whichver time had become brittle and frequent-y sprang leaks. Borough Manager Kathy hite contacted me, and together, we shep-erded several grant applications throughhe bureaucratic maze of the Department of ommunity and Economic DevelopmentDCED).Initially, we sought partial funding forhe water mains, but logic dictated that sincehe streets would be dug up to replace thosemains, we should also replace the storm wa-er drainage pipes at the same time. atrequired a change of scope” process whichitself was rather complicated and time con-suming, and which met with some sustainedresistance from the agency.Kathy White worked with Joe Deklinski,executive director of the House Environmen-al Committee, and me to unravel the objec-ions and get over each hurdle. DCED agreed with our arguments, and we’ve received the written conﬁrmation from DCED that ourgrant applications totaling $1.1 million wereapproved. at made this sizeable and neces-sary project aﬀordable for the tiny boroughof Honey Brook, and removed that burdenfrom the shoulders of local taxpayers.I’m working with Joe Deklinski andDCED to see if we can get similar fundingfor sewer repairs and upgrades in portions of East Vincent Township and other munici-palities as well.

e legislative year continues to be busy, and as Republicanchairman of the House Aging and Older Adult Services Com-mittee, I’d like to share with you some information on legisla-tive proposals which would aﬀect our seniors:

e proposed merger of the Pennsylvania Department of Aging with Department of Public Welfare’s Oﬃ ce of Long-Term Living:

is proposal would create a new Department of Agingand Long-Term Living, that would balloon the Departmentof Aging’s budget from $900 million to $5.1 billion. eproposal would transfer several Medical Assistance waiver pro-grams from the Department of Public Welfare to Aging. Mostof the waiver programs serve individuals under age 60, leadingto a concern that the mission of the PA Department of Aging would be diluted.My amendment (to protect Lottery revenues for our seniorcitizens) was unanimously supported by Republicans in com-mittee and on the House ﬂoor, but House Democrats unani-mously opposed the Lottery preservation amendments both incommittee and on the ﬂoor.House Bill 1152 passed the House and is currently in theenate Aging and Youth Committee, but indications are thatthe proposed merger will not be enacted, which will give thenext governor a chance to weigh in on this controversial pro-posal.

Expansion of the PA Family Caregiver Support Pro- gram—House Bill 245:

is proposal would expand the Family Caregiver SupportProgram to include reimbursements for non-relative caregivers.e program has not seen an increase in reimbursement levelssince the program was ﬁrst created in 1990. Over the years,House Republicans have introduced bills to increase the reim-bursement levels, but the Senate has not chosen to considerthem.House Bill 245 passed the House by a vote of 193-0 and iscurrently in the Senate Aging and Youth Committee.

Personal Care Home “Statement of Policy” on Con-struction Standards:

is proposal would have required all licensed personal carehomes in the Commonwealth (approximately 1,00) to adhereto the same building construction standards as nursing homesand hospitals. Basically, the statement would require personalcare homes unable to comply to stop admitting residents whohave any type of mobility need” and to discharge any resident who develops a “mobility need.” It has been estimated thatonly 0 of the 1,00 existing homes have the current ability tocomply with the proposed standard. While the ultimate goal is to ensure the health and safety of residents, it is also crucial to ensure that care dependent canstay in their current residences until such time as they need theservices of a skilled nursing facility.House Republican Leader Sam Smith (R-Jeﬀerson) joinedme in sending a letter to DPW Secretary Harriet Dichter toask the department to delay publication of the Statement of Policy until a comprehensive review is made of its potentialimplications. DPW has delayed the proposed policy and hasagreed to meet with stakeholders in the near future to discusstheir concerns.

Final Adoption of Assisted Living Regulations:

On July 17, the Department of Public Welfare publishednew standards for assisted living residences in Pennsylvania.is action is the final chapter of years of effort to create a li-censing program for assisted living residences. Senate Bill 704 was signed into law as Act 56 of 2007. After several moreyears of discussions, debates and negotiations, the final-formregulations are now in place, and long-term care facilities canapply for an assisted living residence license.

Senior Can Get Reduced License Fees

e Pennsylvania Department of Transportation provides65 and older Pennsylvanians with a number of transportation-related services, including a reduced fee for auto registrationand for driver license renewals. Any Pennsylvania resident who is retired or disabled on a ﬁxed annual income of $19,200or less can register his or her automobile for $10 rather thanthe usual $36.

Property Tax/Rent Rebate Deadline Extended:

e deadline to apply for the state’s Property Tax/Rent Re-bate program for 2009 has been extended from to Dec. 31,2010.You can receive a rebate of up to $650 based on yourrent or property taxes paid in 2009. e program benefits eli-gible Pennsylvanians who are 65 years or older, widows and widowers 50 years or older, and those 18 years or older withdisabilities.Eligibility income limits, (excluding 50 percent of SocialSecurity, Supplemental Security Income, and Railroad Retire-ment Tier 1 benefits):•$0 to $8,000 maximum $650 rebate(Homeowners and renters)•$8,001 to $15,000 maximum $500 rebate(Homeowners and renters)•$15,001 to $18,000 maximum $300 rebate(Homeowners only)•$18,001 to $35,000 maximum $250 rebate(Homeowners only)e Property Tax/Rent Rebate program is one of many initiatives supported by the Pennsylvania Lottery, which dedi-cates its proceeds to support programs for older Pennsylva-nians.Each year we help many people prepare and file for thisrebate. Please contact my district offi ce, or visit my website at