Make Your Voice Heard!
By the time the PA legislature returns to session in September, they will be facing a tight timeline to receive the delayed 2020 Census data that will be used to redistrict House and Senate seats and reapportion congressional districts from the current 18 seats to 17.
The stakes for congressional reapportionment are extremely high – specifically, how the boundaries of the 9th Congressional District represented by our own Congressman Dan Meuser will be drawn. There will be several possible scenarios considered for the final map but suffice it to say that any possibility of splitting Schuylkill County would be absolutely detrimental to the best interests of Schuylkill County, our businesses, and all of our nonprofits currently under the representation of the current 9th Congressional District.
Senator David Argall, Chair of the Senate State Government Committee, will be a key part of this process and has been in communication with the Schuylkill Chamber of Commerce to request leadership through a community-wide initiative. The Schuylkill County State Delegation is completely united in its desire to keep Schuylkill County unified in one single Congressional District. However, they will need our help as other areas throughout Pennsylvania will be fighting for a scenario beneficial to their respective communities.
In conjunction with our State Delegation, Senator Argall and Representatives Knowles, Kerwin, and Twardzik, we need to send an immediate message to Harrisburg that it is critical for Schuylkill County to be kept whole in the 9th Congressional District under Congressman Dan Meuser's representation.
Any other scenario would weaken Schuylkill County and our representation as a whole in Congress. Many positive developments have happened under the leadership of Congressman Meuser and through the benefit of having all of our State legislative and Senatorial districts being under the umbrella of the 9th Congressional District. Fragmenting Schuylkill County will weaken that representation---something that we cannot afford at this difficult economic time in our Country's history.
Furthermore, we would like this intended advocacy to extend to the PA Legislative Reapportionment Commission (LCR), a five-member panel responsible for redrawing the boundaries for state Senate and state House districts, advocating for the retention of one State Senatorial District for Schuylkill County and the retention of three State House Representative Districts for Schuylkill County (some also representing areas of other counties). Our state constitution names the four PA Senate and House caucus floor leaders as members of the commission and they have agreeably selected the required independent apolitical citizen of Pennsylvania, not holding any positions in the state, local or federal government, to serve as chair of this commission as their fifth member. Their work in state Senate and state House redistricting is important as we work to keep Schuylkill County “whole” in representation.
Contact your legislators in support of keeping Schuylkill County whole in its entirety within the 9th Congressional District.
