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Dear Friends,
Hello! Thank you for subscribing to my E-newsletter. I am honored to serve the 23rd Senate District and look forward to working with you toward building a better future for Pennsylvania!
This E-newsletter serves to keep you updated on what is happening throughout Bradford, Lycoming, Sullivan, Tioga and Union counties and what I am doing as your state senator in Harrisburg. I hope that you will find this E-newsletter helpful, and if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.
Gene Yaw
State Senator
www.SenatorGeneYaw.com
Click here to find the latest information on coronavirus from the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
State Senate Reconvenes This Week
Tune-In at 1PM
Sen. Yaw, Rep. Wheeland to Announce Pennsylvania Skill Game Regulation Measure Wednesday
WATCH LIVE
Rep. Jeff Wheeland and I will hold a press conference on Wednesday, November 10, 2021, beginning at 2PM in the State Capitol Media Center (East Wing), to announce legislation that will regulate video skill games in the Commonwealth.
Legal skill games provide much-needed revenue for restaurants, bars, fraternal organizations and veterans groups. During the pandemic, they have been lifelines for small businesses and organizations, such as VFWs and American Legions, that say they would have shut down for good if not for skill game funds. Skill games were deemed legal by a 2014 Court of Common Pleas decision in Beaver County.
Sen. Yaw Honored as Champion of Small Business
[Sen. Yaw is presented the NFIB’s Guardian of Small Business Award by Melissa Wilbur Morgan, Assistant State Director in Pennsylvania.]
I was recently recognized by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) as a Guardian of Small Business for my voting record in support of key small business issues during the 2019-20 legislative session.
Small businesses drive the Commonwealth’s economy, and we recently witnessed what can happen if they’re prevented from doing business. They truly impact not just our economy, but also the availability of goods and services. The COVID-19 response was a grave reminder of how critical it is for all of us to support small businesses, and I am grateful that I’ve been given the opportunity to do that in a meaningful way.
OAG/Chesapeake Settlement Information Session
The Office of Attorney General will be hosting an Information Session on its Settlement with Chesapeake Energy on Tuesday, November 9, 2021, at 6:30 pm at the Towanda Area Jr/Sr High School at 1 High School Drive, Towanda, PA 18848.
Attorneys for the Office will provide an overview of the Office of Attorney General’s Settlement with Chesapeake Energy. They will also explain the election options available to Pennsylvania Royalty Owners with Chesapeake Leases regarding payment of future royalties. The Attorneys will not provide any advice on what option to select. The Attorneys will be available after the Information Session for questions until 9:30 pm. They will also be available at the Bradford County Commissioners’ Offices at 301 Main Street, Towanda PA, 18848 on November 10, 2021 from 8:30-4:30 for questions.
Under the Office of Attorney General’s settlement with Chesapeake Energy, Pennsylvania Royalty Owners with Chesapeake Leases have until November 29, 2021, to make their election about how royalties will be paid in the future. Royalty owners who do not make a choice will be deemed to have made the default election under the settlement.
If Pennsylvania Royalty Owners with Chesapeake Leases have not yet received a letter from Epiq, the Claims Administrator, about their election options, the Office recommends that they go to http://www.PAroyaltysettlements.com to make their election or contact Epiq, at 855-907-2082 or e-mail chesapeakeinfo@epiqglobal.com. They may also contact the Attorney General’s Office at (717) 787-4530 or by email at Antitrust@attorneygeneral.gov if they have any questions. The Settlement website identifies options and allows royalty owners to make their elections about how royalties are to be paid in the future. It also identifies how royalties will be paid under royalty owner leases should they fail to make an election.
Reuniting Veterans with Military Decorations
The Pennsylvania Treasury’s vault holds tangible unclaimed property, including hundreds of military decorations that Treasury is working to return to each and every veteran or their family. There are military ID tags, pins, campaign ribbons and medals, Bronze Stars and Purple Hearts.
Most tangible property received by Treasury is auctioned off after about three years, but not military decorations. These symbols of sacrifice are kept in perpetuity and never sold.
Treasury has a database dedicated to military decorations so families can easily search to see if anything is waiting to be returned to them or a loved one. Click here to search the database of unclaimed military decorations.
Ensuring Pennsylvania Homes, Employers Have Access to Diverse Energy Options
The state Senate voted to ensure Pennsylvania homes and employers have access to diverse energy options. Senate Bill 275, known as “Energy Choice” legislation, would limit municipal entities from banning a specific type of fuel source for appliances and heating homes or businesses.
Pennsylvania’s history of energy choice has resulted in reductions in energy costs as well as emissions. While other states are seeking to ban fuel sources, such as natural gas, Pennsylvania residents have a myriad of energy options from which to choose, helping to keep energy bills lower. By allowing businesses to retain the option to choose energy sources, the bill helps employers stay competitive in an increasingly challenging global market.
The bill now moves to the state House of Representatives for consideration.
Approving Tax Reform Measure for Small Business Employers
To help Pennsylvania move out of a pandemic economy and create jobs, the Senate passed a bill to bring state tax law governing expense deductions in line with federal law. It would eliminate the unequal treatment of small businesses in Pennsylvania.
Senate Bill 349 is part of a Small Business Tax Reform Package to help employers recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and mandated shutdowns.
The federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 raised the federal limit for IRS Section 179 expense deductions from $500,000 to $1 million annually. However, Pennsylvania law limits the deduction to $25,000 for personal income tax purposes, which covers S Corporations, partnerships and individuals.
The increase in limits makes it easier for employers to buy equipment and to invest, which promotes job growth in Pennsylvania.
Small businesses create 65% of the jobs in Pennsylvania. Passage of Senate Bill 349 is part of a broader recovery effort to rebuild Pennsylvania’s economy.
The bill will be sent to the House of Representatives for consideration.
Green Light-Go Program Now Accepting Applications
Through the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s Green Light-Go Program, approximately $40 million is expected to be available to municipalities and metropolitan or rural planning organizations for upgrading traffic signals to light-emitting diode (LED) technology and intelligent transportation applications. It may also be used for autonomous and connected vehicle-related technology, performing regional operations such as retiming, developing special event plans, monitoring traffic signals and for maintaining and operating traffic signals.
Grant applications will be accepted through Jan. 14, 2022. Prior to application submission, applicants must complete and submit a Pre-Application Project Form to the appropriate Department Engineering District in accordance with the Green Light-Go Program Guidelines. Applicants must also update information in the Department’s Traffic Signal Asset Management System as indicated in the Green Light-Go Program guidelines available here.
Grant recipients must provide a 20% match of the grant awarded.
Annual Aggressive Driving Enforcement
Kimberly A. Smith | Safety Press Officer
PA Department of Transportation
Engineering District 3-0
Each year there are three PennDOT-funded Aggressive Driving Enforcement Waves. The extra enforcement is part of Pennsylvania’s Highway Safety Program and is funded by part of PennDOT’s investment of federal funds from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The next wave began on October 25 and runs through November 14, 2021. The current theme of this wave is the Move Over Law, Pennsylvania’s School Bus Stopping Law, speeding, and tailgating.
Approximately 300 municipal police departments and the Pennsylvania State Police will participate in these enforcement efforts. More than 100 roadways statewide will be targeted in this effort.
Driver’s frustration, impatience and anger cause aggressive driving. These feelings lead to selfish and bold driver behaviors.
To learn more about aggressive driving, visit www.penndot.gov/safety.
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