The Help Grandfamilies Prevent Child Abuse Act will better support kinship caregivers who have taken over responsibility as primary caregivers for children exposed to substance abuse and trauma.
Read more
Today, Representative Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA), Vice Chair of the House Judiciary Committee, introduced the Justice for Juveniles Act which protects young people from abuse in prisons by exempting them from the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA). This bill, co-led by Representative Kelly Armstrong (R-ND), was introduced with bipartisan support from Representatives Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), John Katko (R-NY), and Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA). Unfortunately, America’s prisons have been home to widespre...
Read more
Today, the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) released an initial report of the investigation into the incident at the PES refinery. Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon released the following statement in response. “Federal investigations concerning the safety and environmental impact of the June explosion and fire at the PES refinery are ongoing but today’s update from the CSB affirms how critical these investigations are for our understanding of the causes of this incident, the h...
Read more
Today, Representatives Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-5) and Ilhan Omar (MN-5) introduced the Student Borrower Advocate Act – a plan to transform the Federal Student Aid Office’s Ombudsman into the Office of the Borrower Advocate. Over 45 million Americans currently have a federal student loan, including one-third of all young adults. For most people, student loans have become the largest monthly expense, outpacing that of a home mortgage and often leading to financial hardship. “Borrowers currently lack...
Read more
Today, Representatives Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-5), Brendan F. Boyle (PA-2), and Peter Welch (VT-At Large) introduced the Better Tools to Lower Costs Act of 2019 which would expand access to affordable prescription drugs for low-income Medicare beneficiaries by suspending a restrictive asset limit that prevents many in need from qualifying for relief. Under current guidelines, the Low-Income Subsidy (LIS) program, otherwise known as the “Extra Help” program, provides subsidies to low-income Medicar...
Read more
Today, Representative Mary Gay Scanlon led a bipartisan letter addressed to the House and Senate Armed Services Committee Leadership requesting they honor the House position on funding for the Advanced Chinook program for the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The CH-47F Block II program funds the production of this advanced capability aircraft, built in Ridley Park, which can lift more weight, fly at higher altitudes, and fly in hotter temperatures. This letter was sig...
Read more
Today, Congresswomen Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), Jahana Hayes (CT-05)and Lucy McBath (GA-06) introduced H.R. 4298, the Pell Grant Restoration Act. This critical legislation would amend Title IV of the Higher Education Act to restore students’ Pell Grant eligibility for any period of time during which they would have qualified for loan forgiveness due to school closure or institutional fraud or misconduct. A companion measure was introduced in the Senate by Senator Elizabeth Warren (MA). Under exi...
Read more
Today, Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon released the following statement in response to reports that PES executives put profits before workers and the environment. “While federal investigations concerning the safety and environmental impact of the June explosion and fire at the PES refinery are ongoing, it really adds insult to injury that PES executives chose to line their pockets with millions of dollars, while hundreds of workers were laid off without health insurance or severance pay. “These ...
Read more
Today, Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon joined 213 members of the House Democratic Caucus in signing onto a letter, led by Gun Violence Prevention Task Force Chairman Mike Thompson, to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell demanding he immediately call the Senate back into session to pass H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, and H.R. 1112, the Enhanced Background Checks Act. Both of these bipartisan bills were passed by the House in February of this year and have been blocked for a vote...
Read more
Today, Representative Mary Gay Scanlon joined Representatives Elaine Luria (D-VA) and Robert J. Wittman (R-VA) in leading a letter to Rear Admiral Charles W. Rock, Commander of the Navy Region Mid-Atlantic, in support of federal firehouses adopting an Alternative Work Schedule. In recent years, many federal firehouses have adopted an Alternative Work Schedule in an effort to allow firefighters greater rest and recovery periods in between shifts. However, the Navy Region Mid-Atlantic is one of t...
Read more
