Lifetime Ratings by Policy Category

The Pennsylvania Economic Development for a Growing Economy (PA EDGE) program provides $1.97 billion in tax credits over the next 25 years to hydrogen producers, milk processors, bio-medical researchers and semi-conductor manufacturers. The bill is designed to incentivize businesses within these industries to move to the state. Oppose is the Moms for America Position as as it shifts tax burdens to other individuals and businesses not favored by government, providing select companies with competitive advantages over others. Instead of attempting to centrally plan the economy, lawmakers should utilize the $2 billion to cut taxes across all industries, which will allow the free market to provide far greater job and business growth.

This omnibus tax reform package gradually reduces the state's corporate tax rate from 9.99% to 4.99%, starting with 8.99% in 2023 and a 0.5% annual reduction until 2031. The bill also codifies PA tax bulletin 2019-04 into law, which requires online sales tax collections on entities with sales above $500,000 annually. Furthermore, the bill conforms the state to the federal tax code concerning deductions and deferrals in Section 179 and 1031. Support is the Moms for America Position as Pennsylvania has one of the highest corporate tax rates in the nation, placing the state at a competitive disadvantage in attracting businesses and growing the state economy. Additionally, provisions such as codification of the online sales tax collection helps ensure that all businesses are treated equally under the tax code and that certain companies do not receive competitive advantages over others.

This bill amends the state's Crime Victims Act to ensure victims of violent crimes are provided notice of the defendant's bail proceedings and are provided the opportunity to appear and offer comment. Support is the Moms for America Position as ensuring public safety and protecting property rights serve as essential components of government. While it is critical all defendants be provided their Fifth Amendment right of "innocent until proven guilty", victims of crime deserve the right to communicate harms they allege throughout the arrest and arraignment process.

This bill establishes a taskforce to study the challenges, economic feasibility, financial impact, and the security requirements involved in turning the Port of Philadelphia into a LNG export terminal. Support is the Moms for America Position as exporting LNG from Philadelphia boosts American energy production and economic growth. It also opens the door for improving international relations and security by making the European market less reliant on Russian energy.

The "Affordable Housing Unit Tax Exemption Act" authorizes local governments to provide property tax exemptions for both single-family and multi-family housing units that are occupied by individuals whose income does not exceed 60% of the median income within its area. Oppose is the Moms for America Position as not only does this measure further enrich developers of "affordable housing" who receive hefty payouts under the state and federal low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) program, but this bill further drives up property tax burdens for all other homeowners who must now subsidize the amenities and lost revenue from these properties. Instead, lawmakers should allow the free-market to reduce housing costs by eliminating zoning and regulatory barriers that prohibit housing development.

This resolution blocks the implementation of new charter school regulations imposed by the Wolf Administration. Specifically, the measure disapproves Department of Education Regulations (#6-349), which sets a series of regulations and requirements charter schools and cyber charter schools must abide by. Such regulations and requirements including providing comparable health benefits to employees that public schools provide, meeting new disclosure requirements when applying for establishment, posting non-discrimination and student selection policies on their websites, among other new rules. Support is the Moms for America Position as while all charter schools, which receive taxpayer funds, should be subject to oversight to ensure accountability, these onerous regulations are primarily designed to serve as barriers to charter school establishment and protect public schools from competition, reducing the quality of the state's education system.

This bill represents a five-part Constitutional amendment package. Firstly, the package prohibits taxpayer funding of abortion and declares the state does not guarantee a "right to an abortion". Secondly, the package implements voter-id requirements and an audit system for elections. Thirdly, the bill allows gubernatorial candidates to select their Lt. Governor as a running mate rather than selecting him or her through a separate election. Finally, it allows lawmakers to disapprove regulations without facing a gubernatorial veto. Support is the Moms for America Position as it is not the role of government to guarantee abortion and force payment from taxpayers (many of whom may have strong religious objections). Furthermore, voter-id requirements and election auditing to prevent voter fraud are critical aspects of ensuring free and fair elections, an essential component of democracy under our nation's constitutional republic.

The Muth amendment #4699 to a bill pertaining to the Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee (MCSAC) expands the size of the committee from 23 to 27 members. Two of the new members must be from organized labor, one new member from an alternative-powered commercial vehicle manufacture, and one new member representing the Hazardous Materials Response Team. The MCSAC recommends, assesses and evaluates regulations. Oppose is the Moms for America Position as this measure to stack the membership of the MCSAC with individuals representing interests that have a history of largely being anti-limited government in their beliefs and policy advocacy will inevitably lead to greater regulation and higher taxpayer and consumer costs within the transportation sector.

This bill requires the Department of Human Services (DHS) to perform monthly checks on death certificates with the Department of Health's Bureau of Vital Statistics against its recipients of Medical Assistance and SNAP benefits. The bill is in response to an audit conducted by the Auditor General, who found 2,324 deceased individuals were still receiving benefits, including cases of other individuals getting ahold of the benefits for their personal uses. Support is the Moms for America Position as all taxpayer resources should be protected from waste fraud and abuse. This measure serves as a step in the right direction to curb abuse, especially considering the fact over $70 million in Pennsylvania welfare EBT card benefits are used outside of the state each year.

This bill authorizes urban municipalities to seize any ATV or dirt bike that is operated unlawfully on public roadways or areas. The property is subject to forfeiture and upon a conviction is to be sold or destroyed. Oppose is the Moms for America Position as one of the foundational principles of our nation's Constitution is strong property rights. While government has a duty to uphold the rule of law to ensure societal safety and order, which it can do by increasing fines and imprisonment for vehicular violations, this measure weakens property rights while creating moral hazards, such as "policing for profit".

This bill amends election law by requiring all mail-in ballots be returned through the mail or in-person at election offices as opposed to "drop boxes". Support is the Moms for America Position as this reform strengthens election integrity and helps reduce politicalization within the election process. Select placement of drop boxes and their distribution density can provide advantages to some candidates over others. Additionally, unsecured ballot boxes can create avenues for "ballot misplacement" and "ballot harvesting", which undermine the integrity of our nation's electoral process.

This bill requires public schools to identify sexually explicit content in school curriculum, materials, and books and notify parents that their child's coursework includes such content or that a book their child wishes to view in the school library contains explicit content. Support is the Moms for America Position as strong parental rights and individual liberties are critical to a free society. Parents, not government employees, should be the ones to make decisions over the types and degree of sensitive material that their child views.

This bill appropriates nearly $600 million to four "state-related" universities: Penn State University, Temple University, Lincoln University and University of Pittsburgh. Officials estimate these funds help lower tuition rates by $15,000 per year and are in addition to other subsidies these institutions receive from the federal government and private foundations. The $155 million given to the University of Pittsburg received controversy due to its research program which utilizes fetal tissue from abortions. Oppose is the Moms for America Position as it is a necessary role for government to provide quality K-12 education - ideally through school choice. College and university-level education should be funded through user fees (i.e tuition) by those who wish to pursue their selected career path. These enormous costs should not be imposed on individuals who elect to pursue activities other than higher education, such as those who start their own businesses or work in the trades. Furthermore, Pennsylvania's state debt and liabilities currently exceed $120 billion, representing a $15,600 debt burden for each state taxpayer. The state must pursue every available avenue to reign in its out-of-control spending, as, when coupled with the over $185 trillion federal liabilities, represents the greatest existential threat facing this country.

This procedural motion by Sen. Costa attempts to discharge (advance) a bill relating to "extreme risk protection orders" from the judiciary committee. The bill creates a "red flag" program whereby any individual may seek to have a firearm immediately taken away from another person through an "ex-parte" (one-sided) petition to a court if the individual alleges the firearms owner is a danger to themselves or others. Oppose is the Moms for America Position as the one-sided petition violates due process under the law (an individual can't provide their defense) and this program lacks provisions that prevent nefarious individuals from abusing the system to harass or harm law-abiding individuals, thus unduly infringing their Second Amendment protections and leaving them defenseless.

The "Poll Watcher Empowerment Act" permits all eligible registered voters of Pennsylvania to enlist as a poll watcher in any precinct and levies penalties against election officials who prohibit poll watchers from performing their official duties. Previously, poll watchers had to be a resident of the precinct they were appointed to. Support is the Moms for America Position as poll watchers play a critical role in maintaining election integrity and transparency, an essential component of democracy under our nation's constitutional republic. Due to the fact a vote cast in any of the state's precincts has an impact on the outcome of a state-wide election, every precinct must be properly staffed with competent poll watchers, regardless of where the poll watchers reside.

This bill expands the definition of "farm vehicle" to include passenger vehicles if, like trucks and truck tractors, they are solely used for local agricultural deliveries. As a result, farmers will have lower insurance costs and not have to obtain yearly safety inspections for the vehicles. Additionally, the bill reforms regulations at fueling stations to allow greater flexibility in where emergency shut-off devices must be located. Support is the Moms for America Position as this measure not only provides regulatory and financial relief to farmers, but it also benefits motorists by reducing the number of slow and heavy vehicles traversing roadways. Additionally, providing greater regulatory flexibility at fuel stations helps improve design layouts and unnecessary costs.

The Sen. Ward motion removes from the table (advances) a bill which amends the state Constitution to declare "The policy of Pennsylvania is to protect the life of every unborn child from conception to birth, to the extent permitted by the Federal Constitution. Nothing in this Constitution grants or secures any right relating to abortion or the public funding thereof. Nothing in this Constitution requires taxpayer funding of abortion." Support is the Moms for America Position as it is not the role of government to guarantee abortion and force payment from taxpayers (many of whom may have strong religious objections). All abortions are tragedies and every child deserves the right to life.

This motion overrides the Governor's veto of a resolution which prevents the Commonwealth from joining the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The motion is in response to actions taken by the legislature to block an executive order by the Wolf Administration, which entered the Commonwealth into the RGGI without the approval of the legislature. The RGGI serves as a carbon tax imposed on electricity producers that is estimated to collect $781 million annually. Oppose is the Moms for America Position as implementation of this cap and trade system under the RGGI unnecessarily increases consumer electricity costs by 30% while significantly harming the competitiveness of the state's manufacturing sector.