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In this Update:
Kicking Off the 2026 Pittman Student Government Seminar
I was thrilled to have 200 students from 17 high schools across the 41st Senatorial District take part in my 5th Annual Student Government Seminar this year – our largest thus far! This “Senator for a Day” event was held at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Click here to watch my reel and stay tuned next week for photos from the day! The event is an opportunity for students to gain a glimpse of how state government functions and how it reacts to public policy issues. An opening presentation was held, along with two sessions during the day, which all allowed students to interact with each other, as well as with members of the General Assembly, legislative staff, organization advocates, and the media. Students took on the roles of lawmakers, discussing bills, advocating for or against legislation, and drafting laws which they then considered as a legislative body. My thanks to all who attended and those who helped organize the event. Best wishes to all the students who participated for continued success in their future endeavors! Senate Acts to Protect Fairness in Women’s Sports
The Senate again approved legislation to protect the safety and opportunities of female athletes by requiring scholastic sports teams to be designated based on biological sex. You can watch a video of my Senate Floor remarks here. Senate Bill 1293 would require public schools and colleges to label sports teams as male, female or coed. The legislation states only biological females can join teams designated for women. The bill would also allow students to take legal action if they are harmed by violations of this rule. Since 2020 in Pennsylvania, men have stolen first place from female athletes 87 times and unjustly took second or third place 64 times. Recently, the International Olympic Committee enacted new policy guidelines ensuring all sporting events under their jurisdiction for any female category are limited to biological females only. The legislation is similar to Senate Bill 9, which was passed by the Senate in May 2025 with bipartisan support. Since then, it has been delayed by procedural maneuvers by Democrat leaders in the House of Representatives, leaving young female athletes at risk. I urge the House to act on this legislation and restore fairness to athletic competition in our commonwealth. Read more about this issue here. Senate Session Introduction of Local High School Students
It was great to welcome two groups of high school students from Indiana Area School District and Purchase Line School District to the capitol this week and introduce them during Senate session. The students were accompanied by their advisors & teachers, Ms. Beth Sabatini & Ms. Malinda Oesterling from Indiana High School and Mrs. Melinda Knapp from Purchase Line High School. As a proud Purchase Line Alum, I truly enjoyed spending time with these bright young leaders from Indiana County. Thank you all for visiting the Capitol! Strengthening Electricity Affordability and Reliability
Pennsylvanians need electricity that’s affordable and reliable. That’s why I joined legislative colleagues in February urging action to preserve critical baseload power generation by preventing the premature shutdown of two commonwealth power plants. Click here to watch my video update. I’m pleased to report the Trump administration has reached agreement with the state Department of Environmental Protection and the operator of the Keystone and Conemaugh Generating Stations in Indiana and Armstrong counties to allow continued operation of both plants. The agreement ensures continued, environmentally compliant generation of 3,400 megawatts of electricity for the regional grid and preserves the livelihood of more than 1,000 workers. I applaud the parties for working to find common ground, and will continue working to expand Pennsylvania energy production to provide our residents with a true “all of the above” energy strategy to ensure affordable, reliable electricity. Dayton VFC – Annual Banquet
It was a pleasure to attend Dayton District Volunteer Fire Company‘s Annual Banquet— and an extra special bonus to spend time with my Goddaughter, Brianna Riva Keener. During the banquet, members were recognized for their service milestones, and two members, Brianna Atherton and Sam Powell, were honored for completing the rigorous Firefighter 1 training — nearly 400 hours of dedication and hard work. The department also presented its first ever 𝐿𝑖𝑓𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝐴𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐴𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 to Barry Lockhart, a proud member since 1986. Volunteer firefighters continually go above and beyond for their communities, sacrificing personal time and comfort to ensure the safety of others during emergency calls. Their commitment extends far beyond responding to calls — they also devote countless hours to training and fundraising. Thank you to all the volunteer members for your unwavering dedication and service to the community! Indiana YMCA Groundbreaking
It was wonderful to take part in the groundbreaking ceremony at the YMCA of Indiana County for Phase 2 of their JSM Campaign. The YMCA received state funding to assist with this project, which will bring areas within the building up to ADA compliance. Construction will also take place for a new wellness center, renovating outdated wellness spaces to allow for group exercise and classes, as well as adding community space, teen space, kitchen space both for feeding at risk youth outside of school hours and for teaching. In addition, the project allows for needed utilities repairs, major maintenance, and infrastructure improvements. This groundbreaking helps the YMCA move forward as it serves Indiana County residents from our infants to our senior citizens. The community is to be lauded for their efforts in fundraising local dollars for the local match and investment on this project – well done! Committee Approves Measure Eliminating Emissions Test Mandate for Newer Vehicles
Legislation exempting state emissions testing for newer vehicles and removing it entirely for counties where it’s no longer needed was approved by the Senate Transportation Committee. Senate Bill 1298 exempts vehicles five years old or less from the requirement and removes Blair, Cambria, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Lycoming, Mercer and Westmoreland counties from the emissions program. The Vehicle Emissions Inspection and Maintenance program mandates motorists in 25 Pennsylvania counties undergo annual emissions testing. However, a Joint State Government Commission study has shown that removing seven of these counties from the program would have minimal impact on maintaining federal air quality standards. Less than 1% of the five most recent model year vehicles fail annual emissions inspections. The measure now goes to the full Senate for consideration. You can read more about our efforts to reform emissions testing here. Take the PA Family Health Needs Assessment Survey
You can provide feedback to help improve maternal, child and family health in Pennsylvania by completing the Family Health Needs Assessment Survey by April 30. You can find the survey here. It’s part of the federal Title V Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant, managed in Pennsylvania by the Department of Health. It requires a comprehensive needs assessment every five years to identify key health priorities. The survey takes about 20 minutes to complete. If you have any questions, please email RA-DHPATITLEV@pa.gov. Booklet Helps You Prepare Your Child for Kindergarten
If your child is entering kindergarten this fall, you can help prepare them for the experience with the Kindergarten Here I Come booklet filled with resources and activities that follow Pennsylvania’s Early Learning Standards. Topics in the booklet include:
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