Join Us for a Day of Advocacy for PA Momnibus 2.0 on June 16!

Rep. Ismail Smith-Wade-El June 6, 2025 | 12:16 PM

Dear Neighbor,

Beginning this session week, the PA Legislature began its work on passing the 2025-26 state budget. I will keep you updated on progress on social media and in my weekly newsletters.

Also, in this e-newsletter:

? Join us for a Day of Advocacy! New Momnibus 2.0 Legislative Package!

?Delivering for You in Harrisburg: Bills Passed This Week

?The Fight for Funding Public Transit is on!

? A Successful Shred & E-Cycling Event

?Fall 2025 PA House Legislative Fellowship Program

?PA House of Representatives Archival Internship Program

? Trump Cuts Postpone Voucher Program

? How a Bill Becomes a Law

? State Grants Now Accepting Applications

?Back to School Event

In the State Capitol

Join Us for a Day of Advocacy!

New session, New MOMNIBUS! Building on the overwhelming success of our PA MOMNIBUS package in the previous legislative session, the PA MOMNIBUS 2.0 has been retooled and reintroduced for the 2025-26 legislative session!

Please plan to join us on Monday, June 16 for our PA MOMNIBUS Day 2025 at the state Capitol in Harrisburg!

The day will kick-off at 11 a.m. with a voting meeting of the House Health Committee where they are scheduled to consider two of the bills in our PA MOMNIBUS 2.0 – the PA Dads Matter Act and Expanding Maternal Blood Pressure Monitoring Coverage. You can also watch that meeting on YouTube.

Next, we’ll hold a news conference and rally in the Rotunda at 1 p.m. to deliver an update on the legislation priorities of the PA MOMNIBUS 2.0 and build support for our continued focus on improving birthing outcomes. You’ll also be able to watch a livestream of the news conference here.

Lastly, we’ll hold a reception at 4 p.m. in the East Wing Rotunda of the state Capitol to connect with legislators, community leaders, maternal health advocates, supporters and health providers to strengthen support for maternal health equity.

Please let us know that you’ll be joining us! RSVP on our website – or plan to watch our events online!

PA MOMNIBUS Day 2025 is a signature advocacy and engagement day hosted by the PA Black Maternal Health Caucus to spotlight the ongoing fight for maternal health equity across Pennsylvania. This event reinforces the Commonwealth’s continued commitment to improving outcomes for all birthing people, while uplifting the voices, legislation, and partnerships driving lasting change.

And, along those lines….

VOICES of Black Women study

Relay for Life of Lancaster County is looking for the unique perspectives of Black women aged 25-55 who have never been diagnosed with cancer (except basal or squamous skin cancer) and are living in the United States.

Learn more below:

Delivering for You in Harrisburg

This week, my House Democratic colleagues and I passed important bills that will help our neighbors and improve our communities:

We’re ensuring access to affordable health care by requiring health insurance coverage for contraceptives (HB 1140).

We’re protecting consumers by banning “speculative ticketing,” a practice that allows unofficial sellers to list tickets for sale even though they do not actually possess – and may never have - those tickets (HB 463).

We’re supporting seniors and individuals with disabilities who qualify for the Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program by permitting these rebate payments to be issued at any time after an application is filed and approved by the PA Department of Revenue instead of having to wait until July 1 or later to receive their rebates (HB 1072).

Finally, we delivered the bipartisan Cyber Charter Reform Act (H.B. 1500). Cyber charter schools have been a drain on their host school districts. This bill would return more than a half billion dollars to taxpayers, set limits on how much taxpayer money cyber charters can stockpile, stop cybers from offering gifts to parents to enroll their kids, and put low-performing schools on notice. Our bill makes sure the money spent on cyber charters is spent to educate our kids and makes sure YOU have a say about how cybers do business.

The Fight for Funding Public Transit is on!

People get ready! We’re coming for fully funded public transit in this year’s budget!

The free movement of people is a human right, and the right of millions of Pennsylvanians to get to work, to access healthcare, to enjoy life - that right relies on public transit.

Whether you take SEPTA, CATA, RRTA, or any other transit system, you know what a loss it would be if our transit authorities folded.

We the people deserve affordable, accessible, reliable transit, everywhere in the Commonwealth, and we’re here to turn that right into reality, so get on board!

In the District

A Successful Shred & E-Cycling Event

We had a great turnout for our free shredding and e-cycling event last Saturday. We were happy to offer this resource to residents and we are grateful to our partners and volunteers who helped make this public service happen.

Secretary Arkoosh was here in district on Wednesday for a press conference at Union Community Care. Rep. wasn't able to make it due to session, but wasn't sure if it makes sense to just shout out the visit given the framing around the importance of Medicaid.

Congratulations to the Lancaster County Housing and Redevelopment Authority, Tenfold, the Lancaster County Homelessness Coalition, the YMCA, Otterbein United Methodist Church, and the many other stakeholders involved on the official ribbon cutting ceremony for the Clay Street Emergency Shelter, providing 80 low-barrier beds to those most in need of shelter.

Staff and interns were present for the City's Pride flag raising ceremony on Monday (which was also our interns' first day - welcome Jonathan Perez and Xavier King!).

Government Programs

Trump Cuts Postpone Voucher Program

My office is devastated to share that voucher distribution day for the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program is being postponed by several weeks and the number of available vouchers will be significantly reduced.

Make no mistake—this is a direct result of the Trump Administration’s ongoing cuts to many federal funding programs that support state-level programs across the nation, including here in Pennsylvania.

With the federal government failing to release funds that were already appropriated to state food programs like this, the state must step up and fill the funding gaps to combat hunger.

I was proud to vote this week for HB 1096 that would establish a statewide program to provide benefit incentives – called Food Bucks – to SNAP recipients purchasing qualifying fruits and vegetables.

Nobody should go hungry in the wealthiest and most powerful nation on Earth.

Our seniors deserve so much better from Trump.

Low-Income Taxpayer Clinics

The PA Department of Revenue launched a new webpage for Low Income Taxpayer Clinics (LITCs) that provide free legal aid on state tax issues, including appeals, audits, collections, and more. The department is providing funding to LITCs to ensure that Pennsylvanians have access to additional assistance. The closest one to residents is a LITC in York County.

Check to see if this free legal support can help you:

Low Income Taxpayer Clinics | Department of Revenue | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania House of Representatives Legislative Fellowship Program

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives Legislative Fellowship Program is currently accepting applications for the Fall 2025 semester. Applications are due on July 1, 2025.

The Fellowship Program is based in Pennsylvania’s magnificent Capitol Building in Harrisburg. Fellows are assigned to work in House Standing Committees or House Leadership offices, are compensated for their work (which may also include college credit), and are provided opportunities to draft and present their own legislation, attend meet-and-greets with various public officials and staff, and tour some of the Commonwealth’s historic public spaces, to name a few.

Qualified applicants will be:

College undergraduate juniors or seniors, graduate students, or law school students.
Enrolled in a Pennsylvania college/university, or a Pennsylvania resident enrolled in an out-of-state institution.
Pursuing any major with a GPA of 3.0 or higher.

If you are interested in the Fellowship Program, please visit the website at: www.pahousefellowship.us. Applications can be submitted via email to: pahousefellowship@pabmc.net.

PA House of Representatives Archival Internship Program

This internship provides a great opportunity for interested students to receive a well-rounded archival experience. Interns will work with archivists and research analysts covering several facets of the job. Additionally, interns gain a better understanding of the PA House of Representatives and its members.

Apply here: Internships - PA House Archives Official Website

How a Bill Becomes a Law

As I mention legislation — mine and my colleagues — that has passed the House, I wanted to take the opportunity here give you an outline of how a bill becomes a law.

A legislator has an idea and writes a bill, and it’s sent to committee
The committee votes on the bill, and it’s sent to the full House, if it’s a House bill. If it’s a Senate bill, it starts in the Senate.
The House reviews it on three different days and votes on it on the third day.
After the House passes it, the bill is sent to the state Senate, or vice versa.
It’s referred to a Senate committee.
The Senate committee approves the bill.
It goes to the full Senate, which reviews it on three different days and votes on the bill on the third day.
If both chambers approve the same bill, it then goes to the Governor to become law or to be vetoed.
If the House and Senate pass two different versions, it goes back to the other chamber to repeat the above process until both chambers vote on the same version of the bill.
Then it goes to the governor. The governor can choose to sign it into law, veto it, or let it become law without his signature.

If you’re old enough to remember, one of the most popular Schoolhouse Rock episodes the ‘70s, “I’m just a bill” (you can watch it below), puts into song the process by which a bill becomes a law at the federal level, the same process that we follow here in Pennsylvania:

If you have any question on this process or would like more information on a bill, you can contact my office.

State Grant Programs Accepting Applications

Click here to learn about state grant programs accepting applications at this time.

Register for My Back-to-School Event!

The 14^th Annual Back to School Event is BACK & Pre-registration is LIVE through Aug. 4! This event serves students in grades K-8 from schools within the 96^th and 49^th legislative districts -- the School District of Lancaster, Manheim Township School District, Hempfield School District and Penn Manor School District. Students will receive FREE clothing, shoes, backpacks, school supplies, reading books, haircuts and MORE! My staff will also be available to answer questions about state-related matters. You can register at state Rep. Nikki Rivera | Back to School.

If you are interested in volunteering at the event, visit the following link to sign up: 14th Annual Back to School Event: Volunteer Sign Up.