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| The Latest News from Your State Representative |
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| Please do not reply to this e-mail, as I am unable to respond to messages sent to this address. You can contact me directly at vgaydos@pahousegop.com or here. |
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The past five months have been challenging, to say the least. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Pennsylvania, many of us have never seen or experienced anything quite like this. While the specific threat of coronavirus is new, the dynamic is not. Our Commonwealth and nation have faced – and overcome – unprecedented obstacles in the past and I am sure that we will pull through this challenge together in the coming months and perhaps years.
We do know however, that the results of a recent survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirm that the ongoing pandemic is significantly harming Americans’ mental health. To address this concern, I will be hosting a telephone town hall meeting on recognizing and responding to mental health risks and concerns in the time of COVID-19.
on Wednesday, Aug. 26, from, 6:45 to 7:45 p.m.
I will be joined by Dr. Tim Murphy, a licensed psychologist, specializing in resilience and recovery who will discuss the effects of the disruption of the academic school year on children and young adults, special needs caretakers and the shut-in elderly.
Phone calls inviting people to participate in the meeting will go out on Wednesday, Aug. 26 starting at approximately 6:40 p.m. You simply stay on the line to participate. To ensure you receive the call, please sign up by calling my district office in Moon Township at 412-262-3780 or by visit my website at www.RepGaydos.com. I hope to hear from you soon.
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Sincerely,
Valerie Gaydos |
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Joint House and Senate Education Committees Holds Hearing on Safe Reopening of PA Schools
As a member of the House Education Committee, Rep. Gaydos and her colleagues joined the Senate to hold a joint House and Senate public hearing with administration officials this week to discuss the safe reopening of Pennsylvania schools.
Members questioned Dr. Rachel Levine, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, and Pedro Rivera, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, about several recommendations made by the agencies over the last few weeks and shared the frustrations they’ve heard from parents, students and school officials about the changing guidelines just days before some schools are set to open their doors.
Concerns about the effectiveness of online instruction, masking requirements, safety and liability protections, how to handle confirmed cases in a school and the availability of substitute teachers were among the main issues discussed during the hearing.
Rep. Gaydos has consistently voiced her concerns about the lack of transparency and consistency coming from the administration during the entire pandemic and, during the hearing Gaydos questioned Dr. Levine. Watch it here.
To watch the meeting in its entirety, click here.
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Schools’ Fall Sports Participation Should Be Local Decision
With Gov. Tom Wolf continuing to push for a statewide delay of all school sports until at least Jan. 1, 2021, the House Education Committee has endorsed legislation designed to make resumption of sports and other extracurricular activities a LOCAL decision.
The committee adopted House Bill 2787, which specifically grants the exclusive authority to determine whether to hold school sports activities, including competitions, intramural play and scrimmages, as well as other in-person extracurricular activities during the 2020-21 school year, to the local school board or governing board of a nonpublic school. Health and safety plans would be required for all activities.
The governor has said local school officials should be making decisions about how to resume student instruction this fall, and it makes sense to have them making decisions about school-related athletics and activities as well. We should not be using a one-size-fits-all approach when some areas of the state are still seeing elevated rates of COVID-19 while others have very few cases.
The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) announced last month it would move forward with the fall sports season this year only to have Gov. Tom Wolf comment at a press conference that he is recommending all sports be delayed until at least the start of next year. Since that time, I have heard from so many parents and students asking that they be given the choice to participate.
During the meeting, the committee also approved House Bill 2788, which would allow students and families the option to continue the student’s education and extracurricular activities for an additional year to make up for the loss of instruction and competition during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years; and Senate Bill 1216, which allows the secretary of the Department of Education to address certification challenges for existing teachers, as well as recent graduates and undergraduate students. All three bills go to the full House for consideration.
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Your Resources for Voting Information
My office is receiving many calls about new procedures and options with voting in Pennsylvania this year.
VotesPA.com is the state resource with all information regarding voting in Pennsylvania. It's a great starting point for your questions. Links are available to:
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Rep. Gaydos and Moon Township to Host ID Theft/Shredding Event Sept. 12
Rep Gaydos’ upcoming ID Theft/Shredding Event with Moon Township on Saturday, Sept. 12, from 9-11 a.m. at McCormick Elementary School is a great opportunity to have documents containing personal information shredded by a commercial shredding machine for ultimate safety. With the risk of identity theft still very prevalent, I encourage area residents to take advantage of this service. Come out, I would like to meet you!
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Hazard Grants Awarded
Grants totaling $50 million have been awarded to employers in life-sustaining industries across Pennsylvania to help them provide hazard pay to their workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The hazard pay program was created to keep front-line employees working in vital industry sectors.
More information, and a link to the list of grant awardees from Allegheny County, is available here.
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A Century of Suffrage: Celebrating 100 Years of Women’s Right to Vote
One hundred years ago, women in Pennsylvania and across the country were given the right to vote. The 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified on Aug. 26, 1920. Two years following this historic event, eight women were elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Over the last 98 years, 185 women have been elected to the Pennsylvania State House. To date, women have represented 48 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties. Today, 55 female legislators comprise a little more than one-quarter of the chamber’s population.
Across America, women began mobilizing as part of the suffrage movement in the 1830s. Initially their efforts focused on anti-slavery, and later, on the right to vote. The suffrage movement lost momentum over the Civil War, but regained strength as discussions regarding the 14th Amendment and the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution raised familiar questions of suffrage and citizenship. For nearly a century, women marched, held peaceful demonstrations, met with elected officials, went on hunger strikes and went to prison to secure their rights.
This brief video shares more on the important history of the women’s suffrage movement and celebrates this month’s important landmark.
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African Americans in Aviation Traveling Museum Coming to Sewickley
Rep. Gaydos is invited all of her constituents from the 44th District to visit Chauncey Spencer and his African Americans in Aviation Traveling Museum on Tuesday, Aug. 25, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in Sewickley.
Spencer will be visiting the Tuskegee Airman’s Memorial at Sewickley Cemetery, along with the Tuskegee exhibit at the Pittsburgh International Airport.
Spencer will be traveling from Palm Springs to Washington, D.C. for the Civil Right March on Aug. 28.
His goal is to teach a piece of American history that has been left out of America, what most people refer to as “Black History.”
Please try to stop by and visit this amazing traveling museum. Click here for more information.
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Latest Census Information
If someone visits your home this year to collect information for the 2020 Census, check to make sure they have a valid ID badge with their photograph, a U.S. Department of Commerce watermark, and an expiration date. Census workers may also carry Census Bureau bags and other equipment with the Census Bureau logo.
Census takers will wear masks and follow local public health guidelines when they visit your home. All census takers complete a virtual COVID-19 training on social distancing and other health and safety protocols before beginning their work in neighborhoods.
Census takers are hired from our area, and their goal is to help you and everyone in your home be counted in the 2020 Census. It is very important that we all complete the Census because this information is used to help make funding decisions at both the state and federal level.
For more information on the United States Census click here.
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Beware of Contact Tracing Scams
The Pennsylvania departments of Health and Aging are warning Pennsylvanians about contact tracing scams.
Contact tracing is the process of identifying people who may have come into contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 so that they can quarantine and monitor for symptoms. Scammers are attempting to take advantage of how this process works by pretending to be contact tracers and trying to get personal information out of victims through phone calls or electronic messages.
A legitimate contact tracer may ask for verification of your date of birth, address, and any other phone numbers you may have; and if you have already tested positive for COVID-19 they may also ask for the date and location of where you were tested.
A contact tracer will NEVER ask for your Social Security number, financial or bank account information, or personal details unrelated to your potential exposure to someone with COVID-19; personal information through SMS/text message or send you to any website link asking for personal information; photographs or videos of any kind; passwords; or money or payment.
A contact tracer will never share your information with any local, state or federal law enforcement agency. People who receive a call from a contact tracer are welcome to contact the Department of Health to verify their legitimacy by calling 1-877-PA HEALTH (1-877-724-3258).
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| Office Locations |
| District Office: |
| 1009 Beaver Grade Road, Suite 220, Moon Township, PA 15108 | Phone: (412) 262-3780, Fax: (412) 262-3783 |
| Capitol Office: |
| Room 428, Irvis Office Building, PO Box 202044, Harrisburg PA 17120-2044 | Phone: (717) 787-6651 | |
| Email: vgaydos@pahousegop.com |
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