State Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, announced today that the House Democratic Policy Committee will hold a public hearing on COVID-19 testing challenges on Tuesday, Aug. 11. Read more

Materials from a public hearing held in the Capitol and co-chaired by State Rep. Liz Hanbidge. Read more

State Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, announced today that the House Democratic Policy Committee will hold a public hearing on COVID-19 eviction mitigation legislation introduced by state Rep. Maureen Madden, D-Monroe. The hearing will be held at 2 p.m. Monday, Aug. 10 in Room G-50 Irvis Office Building in the Capitol Complex. The media and public are invited to watch the livestream at www.pahouse.com/live . Requested by Madden, the hearing will collect input on her bills that would require landlords to create a payment plan option for tenants, prohibit landlords from charging late fees on rent payment, and create a landlord-tenant mediation and counseling program. Testifiers and members will participate in person and remotely. Testifiers will include: Marc Stier , director, PA Budget and Policy Center. Michael Tukeva , president and CEO, Pocono Mountains United Way. Gale Schwartz , associate director for policy and strategic initiatives, Housing Alliance of PA. Andrea Custis , president and CEO, Urban League of Philadelphia. Sue Wasserkrug , program administrator, Good Shepard Mediation Program. Rasheedah Phillips , managing attorney of housing policy, Community Legal Services Inc. Vikram Patel , staff attorney, Community Legal Services Inc. Bob Damewood , staff attorney, Regional Housing Legal Services. Erin DeRosa , landlord. Following the hearing, testimonies and full hearing video will be posted at Read more

Materials from a public hearing held jointly with the PA Legislative Black Caucus in the Capitol and co-chaired by State Rep. Carol Hill-Evans. Read more

HARRISBURG, Aug. 4 – State Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, announced today that the House Democratic Policy Committee will hold a public hearing on H.B. 2105 , which would provide insurance coverage of hearing aids. The hearing will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 6 in Room G-50 Irvis Office Building in the Capitol Complex. The media and public are invited to watch the live stream at www.pahouse.com/live . The hearing was requested by state Rep. Liz Hanbidge, D-Montgomery, to collect feedback on her legislation. She noted that hearing aids are currently only required to be covered for Medicaid recipients under age 21, leaving many Pennsylvanians in need to pay exorbitant out-of-pocket costs (an average of $2,300 per device) to access hearing assistance. Testifiers and members will participate in person and remotely. Testifiers will include: Neil McDevitt , executive director, Deaf-Hearing Communication Centre. Kay Tyberg , deaf and hard-of-hearing advocate on behalf of Hearing Loss Association of PA and Puget Sound Association of the Deaf. Alexandra Costlow, Au.D., F-AAA , doctor of audiology. Read more

HARRISBURG, Aug. 3 – State Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, and state Rep. Stephen Kinsey, D-Phila., announced today that the House Democratic Policy Committee and the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus will hold its third hearing on police reform. The hearing will be held at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 6 in Room G-50 Irvis Office Building in the Capitol Complex. The media and public are invited to watch the livestream at www.pahouse.com/live . Requested by state Rep. Carol Hill-Evans, D-York, HDPC Chair Sturla and PLBC Chair Kinsey said this hearing will focus on the York region. Testifiers and members will participate in person and remotely. Testifiers will include: Police Commissioner Osborne (Moe) Robinson , City of York Police Department. Police Chief Timothy Damon , York Area Regional Police Department and president of York County Chief of Police Association. Bishop Carl Scott , Bible Tabernacle Christian Center and former president of Black Ministers Association of York County. Pastor Dr. Ramona Kinard , Wheatfield Church of the Living God and BMAYC vice president. Senior Pastor Bill Kerney , Covenant Family Ministries and BMAYC president. Rev. Aaron Anderson , CEO of Logos Academy and BMAYC member. Following the hearing, testimonies and full hearing video will be posted at www.pahouse.com/policycommittee . ### Read more

HARRISBURG, July 29 – State Rep. Tim Briggs today hosted a House Democratic Policy Committee hearing to discuss the challenges and importance of contact tracing in Pennsylvania. Briggs requested the hearing to discuss contact tracing and ways the process could be improved. The hearing included testimony from state and local health officials, including Michel Masters, division director of Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Montgomery County Office of Public Health. “The federal government’s failure to lead with a cohesive national strategy requires us at the state and local level to work collaboratively to learn and share successful approaches and best practices to protect our communities from COVID-19,” said Briggs, D-Montgomery. “Contact tracing is an essential tool to allow our schools and economy to reopen. This hearing brought together those on the front lines to share their experiences for the benefit of all Pennsylvanians.” The hearing was attended by legislators from around the state, including Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Allegheny, Democratic chairman of the House Health Committee; and Rep. Mike Sturla, chairman of the House Democratic Policy Committee. “I thank Representative Briggs for requesting this hearing to enable us to hear how DOH and various counties are conducting contact tracing. This tracing is critical for an effective handling of the COVID-19 Read more

Full public hearing held in the Capitol on July 29, 2020. Read more

Materials from a public hearing held in the Capitol and co-chaired by State Rep. Tim Briggs. Read more

Full public hearing held in the Capitol on July 28, 2020, with the PA Legislative Black Caucus. Read more