Aug. 15, 2024
Proposal Will Help Clean Up Voter Roles
Think of the trials of moving into a new house.
Maybe you have been there for a month and, slowly, you are getting used to the new daily cycle, such as getting the kids on their new school bus or knowing when the mail is delivered. Your family has even committed to which local pizza shop they like best.
Yet every so often, you receive mail at your new address for Joseph Smith. A quick Google search and you determine that Mr. Smith once lived at your address in the early 2000s.
You don’t think much of it at first. Applications to renew subscription services and solicitations for new windows or lawn care all seem to run together anyway.
But on the approach to an upcoming election, Mr. Smith is now receiving mail from advocacy groups, political parties, candidates and even applications to apply for a mail-in ballot. You changed your voter registration when you updated your driver’s license, so nothing changes for you, right?
Addressing confusion like this is why I am introducing legislation that would allow a resident to better communicate with their county election office if they suspect voter information at their address is outdated.
As a matter of clarity, maintenance of voter rolls occurs regularly, specifically when a voter passes away or cancels their registration. As for removing voters because of a lack of election participation, current law prescribes clear guidelines, such as not allowing a registration to be removed for lack of activity within 90 days of a federal election and that the election office make two attempts to reach the voter by mail.
My legislation does nothing to impact what is in law currently.
What it does do is create a pathway for a new property owner of a single-family home to communicate with their county’s election office and clarify, this is who lives here now, and no one here is named Joseph Smith.
Such an alert is likely to trigger the county election office to verify when Mr. Smith last participated in an election in that county, Pennsylvania or anywhere else. Did Mr. Smith pass away or maybe retire to Florida? My proposal provides just one more pathway for voter roll maintenance and ultimately improves public confidence in our election system.
Another important subject regarding elections includes requiring voter identification at each election, a bipartisan topic that despite several legislative efforts, is still not written in law.
Going into the upcoming federal election, it is clear Pennsylvania is one of the larger swing states in the country. Regardless of who you are planning to vote for, you and every Pennsylvanian should have complete confidence that every vote cast is legitimate and whoever wins an election, the process was secure and fair. In short, we must continue to pursue election policy that makes it easy to vote and hard to cheat.
Here are some additional news topics and reminders I would like to share.
Slow Down for School Buses - Students are or soon will be returning to class, and that means we will be seeing school buses back on our roads. Motorists, parents and children are encouraged to refresh their memories about how to share the road safely.
Pennsylvania law requires motorists to stop at least 10 feet away from school buses when their red lights are flashing and their stop arm is activated. This applies to motorists when they are behind or traveling alongside a school bus, as well as when meeting the bus or approaching an intersection where a bus has stopped.
Vehicles should remain stopped until the red lights have stopped flashing and the stop arm is withdrawn. Do not proceed until all the children have reached a place of safety. If physical barriers such as grassy medians, guide rails or concrete median barriers separate oncoming traffic from the bus, motorists in the opposing lanes may proceed without stopping.
Penalties for failure to obey school bus safety laws can result in a $250 fine, five points on a driving record and a 60-day license suspension. Violators will also be assessed a $35 surcharge to be deposited into the School Bus Safety Grant Program Account.
Parents are reminded to ensure their children are at the bus stop early to avoid rushing. Students should stay where the bus driver can see them while boarding or exiting the bus.
For more information and tips on school bus safety,
visit here.
Attention Hunters: DMAP Permits Now Available - Pennsylvania hunters may now purchase Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) permits on an array of public and private lands.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) is offering 7,000 DMAP permits on 41 game lands encompassing more than 360,000 acres. To view the PGC’s available DMAP areas, visit the PGC website at
pgc.pa.gov.
The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) is offering 30,328 permits in 101 units totaling more than 1.3 million acres. To view the DCNR’s available DMAP areas, visit the DCNR website at
dcnr.pa.gov.
Permits are also available on participating private lands. The goal of the program is to help landowners better manage the deer population and habitat on their properties.
DMAP permits cost $10.97 for Pennsylvania residents and $35.97 for nonresidents. They can be purchased from any license issuing agent or online at
huntfish.pa.gov. Hunters must identify the DMAP unit number when purchasing a permit.
Representative Jill Cooper
55th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Jordan Frei
724.875.8450
jfrei@pahousegop.com
RepJillCooper.com / Facebook.com/RepJillCooper