Dear Neighbor,
This week marked the beginning of autumn, and while daytime temperatures are still pushing 80 degrees, we know it’s officially fall in Pennsylvania when the Department of Conservation & Natural Resources brings back its annual Fall Foliage Report. Every Thursday, DCNR publishes an outlook for the coming week so you can plan your scenic hikes or drives. This year, DCNR expects vivid colors that arrive earlier than usual, but a shorter season overall. Be sure to check out the report each week and get out there and enjoy fall’s beauty while you can!
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Fighting for a Fiscally Responsible Budget That Helps Pennsylvanians
On Monday, the House will return to Harrisburg for a busy week of committee meetings and session days. While we have many important legislative proposals before us, the big topic on everyone’s mind is the long overdue state budget.
Tuesday marks three full months since the June 30 budget deadline, and we are still awaiting serious action from the Senate. My team and I continue to hear from school district officials, county services, and nonprofit organizations experiencing the very real consequences of our prolonged budget impasse, as well as from concerned constituents urging the General Assembly to pass a fiscally responsible budget.
Let’s talk about what a fiscally responsible budget looks like.
As state lawmakers, we have an obligation to invest in our working families and future generations. If we want our state to grow and thrive, we need to keep and attract residents of every age and background. The way to do that is to create opportunities for education and jobs and access to healthcare, and by affording people the ability to live in clean, safe, healthy communities.
Right now, the General Assembly has more than $3 billion sitting unused and unallocated while our schools are in need of funding and repair, our community hospitals are closing, roads and infrastructure are aging, fire and ambulance companies struggle to provide lifesaving services, and families struggle to afford housing and groceries, access mental health services, or find quality, affordable care for children, seniors, and adult family members with disabilities.
That’s $3 billion sitting unallocated, above and beyond the healthy $7.7 billion cushion in our state’s Rainy Day Fund. That money should be invested to teach our children, support our working families, create jobs, and ensure a better quality of life and a more secure future for Pennsylvanians. Instead, it’s basically sitting in an envelope on the table while the kids go hungry and the walls and roof crumble around us.
Back in July, the House sent the Senate a compromise budget that cut nearly $1 billion from Gov. Shapiro’s original proposal while still investing in priorities like public education, human services, and support for working families and seniors. Our budget passed the House with bipartisan support. In addition to funding schools and essential services, it would put our money to work for Pennsylvanians, with investments in small businesses, families, communities, and infrastructure that would help to generate returns in the form of lower future costs and increased economic revenues, without raising taxes. The House and the governor also proposed new revenue streams to further close the gap.
But all these proposals have been a non-starter in the Senate. Instead of coming to the table in good faith to debate exactly how—or how much of—our surplus funds should be spent, the Senate failed to take any action at all until August, six weeks past the budget deadline, when they passed their own, unserious, version of a budget plan. This plan failed to address the priorities of Pennsylvanians. It provided no increases to funding, when with inflation rising for all of us—including schools, fire departments, counties, food banks, and every other service provider across the commonwealth, flat funding means a cut to those who can least afford it.
My colleagues and I are continuing to push for all parties in leadership to reach agreement on a state budget that upholds our constitutional mandate to fund schools and invests in services, infrastructure, and programs that benefit all Pennsylvanians.
I’m hopeful that we’ll know more about the status of negotiations after our return to session next week. In the meantime, please keep calling Senate leadership to urge them to get back to work, and please continue to let us know how the delayed budget has affected your school, workplace, or state services. I feel and share your frustration, and I am grateful for your feedback.
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If you have questions or would like to provide feedback on any legislative or state-related issue, please contact my district office at repotten@pahouse.net.
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Help Shape the Future of Pennsylvania Rail
The comment period is open from now through October 24 for the 2025 Pennsylvania State Rail Plan. This plan, updated every four years, focuses on safety, passenger and freight rail, funding, policy, the environment and economic development. It also evaluates opportunities for growth in passenger and freight rail, including local projects such as new passenger stations in Downingtown and Coatesville as well as restoration of passenger service from Reading through Phoenixville to Philadelphia.
Public transit’s short term funding crisis may have been resolved for now, but SEPTA regional rail and Amtrak’s Keystone East Corridor are still in desperate need of a permanent solution. Please take a few minutes to make your voice heard on the future of rail in the Commonwealth.
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Getting Ready for Municipal Election Day
With less than 40 days until Election Day, there is no better time to make sure you are ready to vote!
In Pennsylvania, we hold elections every year, twice a year – with a primary in the spring and a general election in the fall. That means every single year, you have the power to shape who represents you at the local, county, state, and even judicial levels.
This November, voters in our community will be choosing leaders for important positions like:
- School Board Directors
- Township Supervisors & Borough Council Members
- Mayors
- County Offices
- Judges for the County Court of Common Pleas
And statewide, voters across the commonwealth will be voting on state judicial retentions, a state Superior Court judge, and a Commonwealth Court judge.
Unfortunately, Municipal Elections typically have LOW voter turnout, but these elected officials make decisions that impact our day-to-day lives. From decisions about our schools, law enforcement, open space preservation, local taxation, zoning & development, and how justice is administered, these choices matter!
Make sure you are ready for Election Day today!
Your vote is your voice, and your vote is powerful. Be sure to make it heard on November 4th!
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Seasonal Vaccine Opportunities in Chester County
The Chester County Health Department will be hosting community clinics for anyone interested in getting their flu and COVID vaccines. The flu vaccine is recommended for everyone 6 months and older, while the COVID-19 vaccine is recommended for ages 65+, and available for those 6 months–64 with certain medical conditions or by request.
Clinics are being held at community locations such as schools and libraries, and appointments can be scheduled online. To save time, fill out consent forms in advance, bring your insurance card if you have one, and wear short or loose-fitting sleeves for easy access.
For more information and to schedule an appointment, click here.
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Lionville Park & Rossi Park Master Plan Community Survey
Exciting things are in the works in Uwchlan Township!
Uwchlan Township is currently working on a master plan for improvements to Lionville Park and the creation of a brand-new park at the former Rossi Property - and they want to hear from you!
The survey is short & simple and will help shape the future of Lionville Park and Rossi Park.
Take the survey here.
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2025 Property Tax/Rent Rebate Application Deadline Extended
The deadline to file Property Tax/Rent Rebate applications, for rebates on property taxes or rent paid in 2024, has been extended to December 31, 2025. The state will begin to issue rebate checks on July 1, so the sooner you file, the sooner you will receive your rebate if eligible!
Thanks to changes passed in 2023, more people are eligible, with income limits adjusted to keep pace with Social Security cost-of-living adjustments. The Property Tax/Rent Rebate program has made it easier for seniors in Chester County to stay in their homes and afford groceries, medicine, and so much more.
The Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program benefits eligible Pennsylvanians ages 65 and older, widows and widowers ages 50 and older, and people with disabilities age 18 and older.
Please call or stop by my office to find out if you’re eligible and get assistance applying for your rebate. We’d be glad to answer any questions and set up an appointment to help you complete your application online!
For those who prefer to file by mail, paper applications will be available in my office soon, and we will update here when they come in.
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SEPTA Senior Key Cards and Card Renewals
If you have a SEPTA Senior Key Card that has expired or will expire within the next month, we can renew it in our district office. To renew your card before it expires, please stop by my district office, or call us to make an appointment.
My office can also process applications and take photos for new SEPTA Senior Key ID Cards, which allow seniors 65 and older to travel for free on all SEPTA Regional Rail and transit routes within Pennsylvania. Just stop by my district office and bring a form of ID with your date of birth on it, such as a PA driver’s license or non-driver ID, U.S. passport, or birth certificate. We’ll enter your information into SEPTA’s online system, take a quick photo, and then SEPTA will mail your new card to you directly.
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2-1-1 Southeastern Pennsylvania: Health and Human Services
211 SEPA is part of the national 211 Call Centers initiative that seeks to provide health and human services for everyday needs and those in crisis situations.
2-1-1 works with county governments and provider agencies to ensure important local program information is easily accessible.
Visit 211sepa.org for more information.
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Mental Health Resources: Call 9-8-8
Chester County residents experiencing mental-health-related crisis or distress can dial 9-8-8 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.?This system is designed to be a memorable and quick number that connects people in crisis to a trained mental health professional.
Chester County offers additional resources for those in crisis, including Chester County’s warm line, 1-866-846-2722, operated by Certified Peer Specialists, who are individuals in recovery with a lived experience of mental health challenges.
Chester County’s Teen Talk Line ensures seamless referral to Mobile Crisis for youth in need of immediate or higher-level support. The call line is 855-852-TEEN (8336), and the text line is 484-362-9515.
Visit the?Department of Human Services website for more information about the 988 system and other state and local mental health resources.
If you or someone you love is in crisis, please don’t give up hope, and please know that you do not need to walk this path alone. We are here and we will do whatever we can to help.
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My staff and I are here to help make state government work better for you! For assistance with the above programs or any other state-related services, please email?repotten@pahouse.net, call 484-200-8259, contact us through my website, or visit my district office in Exton and let us know how we can help!
Sincerely,
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Danielle Friel Otten
State Representative,
155th Legislative District
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Pennsylvania State Capitol
34 East Wing
Harrisburg, PA 17120
(717) 783-5009
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District Office
631 Pottstown Pike
Exton, PA 19341
(484) 200-8259
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