Passing A Budget To Help You | Not Raising Your Taxes

Passing A Budget To Help You | Not Raising Your Taxes | Time for Senate Action

Rep. Ryan Bizzarro October 9, 2025 | 4:09 PM

PA Representative Ryan Bizzarro's banner image

HOW WE VOTED

For the third time in the last 100 days, the House passed a bipartisan, balanced, no-tax-increase budget.

This week, the House also voted to allow workers to collect unemployment compensation during a labor dispute (HB 145). The House voted to create a school facilities inventory within the PA Department of Education (HB 1701). We voted to modernize state liquor laws to allow businesses with liquor licenses to have premixed cocktails on tap, just like beer (HB 1702).

The House returns to Harrisburg on Monday, Oct. 27.

You can see how the House voted on all bills here.

SENATE MAJORITY SHUTDOWN

Pennsylvania has now gone 101 days without a budget – all because the Senate Majority can't agree on how much they want to defund the police, defund our schools, and defund our hospitals. You name it, they want less of it.

The budget bills I vote for fully funds YOUR priorities WITHOUT RAISING TAXES.

The Senate Majority returned home without acting on the House’s third bipartisan budget.

The Senate Majority are trying to cover up their failures by saying House Democrats are raising your taxes. They can't point out where this exists in any of our budget proposals! It's a desperate act because vital institutions we need for safe, vibrant communities are getting squeezed because they don't have funding.

Keep the pressure up - tell your Senator to get to work, negotiate and pass a budget that works for us all. If 102 Democrats can agree in the House, surely 26 people in the Senate Majority can figure out something more than "no."

NEW FAIRVIEW HOUSING OPTIONS

Last week, I attended the ribbon cutting at Hammocks at Fairview, which will bring more upscale housing options to our district. Riedman is offering upscale 1- and 2-room apartments as well as 3-bedroom townhomes with community and resort-inspired amenities.

This is just the latest development opened by Riedman, a company that focuses on developing high-quality housing. Riedman now offers almost 400 housing units in Erie and another 300+ in Rochester and 300+ in New York's southern tier.

CLOSED MONDAY

My office and many state and federal offices will be closed Monday – or have altered business hours – in observance of the state and federal holiday. Please note, PennDOT driver license centers will be closed Saturday and Monday.

My office will be closed Monday and returning calls and messages Tuesday morning.

POLICY COMMITTEE CONTINUES WORK ACROSS PENNSYLVANIA

This year, the House Majority Policy Committee has held 42 hearings across 32 ZIP codes in 13 counties, and we expect to host more than 100 hearings this session — our typical workload.

As a member of the House Majority Leadership team, I serve as Chairman of the House Majority Policy Committee. We travel the state, exploring issues and talking to members of the community, workers, advocates and experts on a variety of topics. We examine issues to see if there is a legislative solution to improving lives across the commonwealth.

BREAST CANCER AWARENESS

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month: DYK, 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer. Rich or poor, the disease treats everyone the same. This week, representatives wore pink and Harrisburg turned the Capitol fountain pink to help raise awareness for this terrible disease and the resources now available for patients and their families.

VOTE BY MAIL

Election Day is coming up fast, and you don’t have to worry about finding the time to vote if you ask for your ballot now! For me, it’s easy to securely fill it out at home and return it when it’s convenient.

Vote by mail comes with the added bonus of being able to track my ballot as it gets processed by the county.

I just applied for my mail ballot! Have you? It’s your choice - if you want to apply for yours, you can do so now.

WELCOMING AN ERIE VISITOR

I joined Rep. Bob Merski, Rep. Mary Isaacson, Speaker of the House Joanna McClinton and Rep. Pat Harkins in welcoming Haley Poe back to the House chamber this week. Poe is an Erie native and will represent the U.S. in the international Miss Earth pageant next year.

Poe is a recent graduate from Gannon with a B.S. in biology, and she has been accepted to begin medical school at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine.

WE ARE READY TO HELP YOU

If you need assistance with state programs, my office can help!

Last year, we:

helped 1,200+ people apply for the Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program,
resolved 4,500+ issues with PennDOT, and
completed 38,000+ items of casework.

Trust the professionals! Bring your issues to my team, we can help.

READY TO HELP YOU GET YOUR REBATE

My office helped more than 1,200 people receive their Property Tax & Rent Rebate last year. This state program helps older Pennsylvanians, widows, widowers and people with disabilities recover a portion of what they paid in property taxes or rent during the previous year. Contact us if you have questions or need help applying. Please remember, no appointments are necessary, if you need assistance stop by or contact us!

My office in Millcreek Township is located in Peninsula Plaza at 1101 Peninsula Drive, Suite 213, Erie, PA 16505. We are open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

MY TEAM IS IN FAIRVIEW EVERY WEDNESDAY

I wanted to remind folks that my team and I hold Wednesday office hours from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Fairview Township Building, 7471 McCray Road, Fairview, PA 16415.

The cornerstone of my office is service to you, our neighbors. By holding office hours at the township, we're making it easier for folks to reach us, so we can help them.

MONTHLY VETERANS SERVICE PROGRAM

On the third Thursday of each month, my team and I are proud to host a Veterans Service Officer from the VFW to be available to members of our community.

I am happy to help provide this assistance to our area veterans, who have sacrificed so much for our nation. The next appointments will be:

Thursday, Oct. 16
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
1101 Peninsula Drive
Reserve a spot: 814-835-2880

MULTIPLE WAYS WE CAN HELP

Do you or does someone you know need help accessing state programs or services? Have a question about a state program or law and don’t know where to go? My team and I stand ready to help on a range of issues, including:

Unemployment or the PUA system.
FREE notary (excludes title transfers).
Property Tax/Rent Rebates for seniors.
Voter registration and vote by mail.
Problems with the Department of Human Services (food stamps, medical and income assistance).
Car registrations, special tags, handicap placards, titles and driver’s license applications.
Information on financial assistance for higher education.
Obtaining and completing state forms of all kinds.
Birth and death certificates.
Pennsylvania income tax questions or problems.
Complaints or questions about utilities and the Public Utility Commission.
Complaints and problems with insurance companies.
Renewal of state-issued licenses or certifications.
Problems or questions about the state lottery.
PACE cards for senior citizens.
Consumer complaints.

For help, or to speak with me or a staff member about an issue, please don't hesitate to contact my office.

MY TEAM & I CAN HELP YOU!

Helping people apply for the Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program and all the PennDOT services they need are just two of the ways my team and I serve the community. We help thousands of people each year. We can help you fill out the forms you need and get them to Harrisburg for FREE.

If you have any state government-related questions, stop by and let us help you.

SUBMIT REQUESTS ONLINE OR IN PERSON

My team and I are always working for you! My Millcreek office at 1101 Peninsula Drive, Suite 213, Erie is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You can also call 814-835-2880 or email RepBizzarro@pahouse.net if you need help with state government concerns.

Have questions outside of office hours? We have an online form – the Community Help Center – so that you can submit your request(s) for help with state-related programs and services 24/7. This form is available by clicking below or visiting my website – www.repbizzarro.com.

REP. BIZZARRO'S COMMUNITY HELP CENTER