Controlling the Size of Government

Taxpayers work hard to live within their means. Lisa believes government should do the same. She understands that government has no money of its own - it’s the taxpayer’s money, and government has a responsibility to use it effectively and responsibly. To that end, Lisa supports a state constitutional amendment to reduce the size of the state legislature, and she supports state spending limits to ensure that the Commonwealth lives within its means and has sufficient reserves for emergencies.

Lisa will also work to gain control over the constant expansion of state government. She supports efforts to restrict the practice of borrowing money at the expense of future generations. She will work aggressively to assure that today’s political initiatives are not financial burdens on our children.

Holding Government Accountable

People, not government, are best able to make decisions affecting their lives and their communities. Lisa’s extensive experience has shown her what works well in government and what doesn’t. From day one, she will be prepared to fight for the residents of the 20th District and work for necessary reforms. Lisa believes that government must be open and accountable to its citizens and she will demand results from state government programs.

Law Enforcement

One of government’s fundamental responsibilities is to ensure the safety of its citizens. Lisa supports increasing the number of state troopers to provide much needed help to local communities which have experienced so much growth in recent years that their police protection is stretched beyond limits. Lisa will also work with local government officials to encourage cooperation and, where appropriate, regionalization of services so they are efficient and effective.

Volunteer Fire and Emergency Responders

Volunteer fire and emergency service organizations provide invaluable services to countless Pennsylvanians. They also generate significant cost savings for local governments. Lisa supports efforts to improve emergency services delivery in the 20th District, including offering tax credits to current emergency services personnel and employers of volunteer emergency service workers, and establishing grant programs to assist organizations to secure the equipment and training they need to protect our communities.

Child Abuse Prevention

Lisa supports community prevention efforts to reduce child abuse and neglect. Lisa endorses the establishment of local children’s advocacy centers to provide training, prevention, intervention, and treatment services for children in need. She also supports efforts to allow child victims of crime to testify by video tape or closed circuit television, to help minimize their trauma while bringing their abusers to justice.

Prosecuting Child Predators

With the increased use of the Internet, incidences of sexual predators and child pornography have grown tremendously. Lisa supports expanding the authority of the Child Predator Unit under the Office of Attorney General. She also supports comprehensive monitoring of offenders, as well as increased criminal penalties for those who are convicted of exploiting our children.

Senior Crime Prevention

Pennsylvania has an increased obligation to protect its seniors from elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Lisa supports programs to better educate seniors about scams and cons, and to provide families and caregivers with the information and skills needed to prevent elder abuse. She will work to enhance law enforcement’s ability to address elder abuse, and to increase training so that health care professionals are prepared to recognize and respond to elder mistreatment.

Property Taxes

Lisa understands the crippling effect of the over-reliance on property taxes and is committed to addressing reform of our property tax system and how we fund schools in Pennsylvania.

The current structure of education funding unfairly hurts our senior citizens, farmers and those on fixed incomes, and it is a hurdle for young families who want to buy a home. Lisa supports efforts to address meaningful local property tax reform, but she opposes any plan that would adversly impact our small businesses or place further burdens on working families.

Lisa believes taxes must be based on one's ability to pay. She supports shifting from property taxes to an earned income tax, or some other tax, if the voters approve it. She is in favor of offering an option to make installment payments of property taxes and supports expanding the Property Tax and Rent Rebate program for low-income seniors.

As important as reform of the tax system is, reform of spending is just as critical. If we can't control spending, we can't control taxes. Lisa supports giving local tax payers a strong voice when it comes to school spending increases through voter referendum.

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

The first order of business is for the General Assembly to enact spending controls on state government. Through spending controls, Lisa believes we can reduce taxes on families, create new jobs and make Pennsylvania economically competitive again.

Lisa will fight for reforms that produce real, long-term, sustainable economic development. High taxes and regulatory excess mean fewer jobs, declining business growth, and dwindling opportunities for Pennsylvanians. She will work to implement tax incentives to phase out or reduce taxes that burden our job creators. Lisa is also committed to eliminating unnecessary regulations. She understands the critical role the legislature plays in ensuring that state agencies are responsive to business and industry throughout the various permitting processes.

Health Care

There are few issues more complex and daunting than that of health care. We have to work together to make health care more accessible and affordable for individuals, families and businesses. Lisa has spent the last three years working with hospital administrators, physicians, health care professionals and community health partners to improve the health of our region. As a legislator, she will use the knowledge she's gained to make an immediate impact on health care reform.

Lisa knows that by engaging individuals and our communities to take accountability for their health, we can limit the need for costly health interventions in the future. She supports continued funding for education, prevention, and wellness programs at the community level. Lisa understands that by helping people adopt and practice healthy behaviors, we can begin to address the root causes of many diseases and conditions impacting health care costs.

Additionally, Lisa supports making contributions into Health Savings Accounts free from state income taxes and providing health care tax credits for small businesses. She also supports efforts to secure reimbursement for Medicare and Medicaid for hospitals and physicians in rural communities that reflect real costs.

Medical liability concerns are also an issue. A growing inability to find affordable insurance has forced hospitals and physicians to stop providing or curtail certain health care services, resulting in growing problems of access to care for patients. Lisa supports the passage of new joint and several liability reform. She also supports a constitutional amendment to provide limits on non-economic damages and the implementation of alternative dispute resolution systems.

Education

Lisa supports greater local control of school districts. She favors eliminating unnecessary state government mandates. She also supports initiatives giving voters the power to approve school budgets that grow faster than the rate of inflation.

Lisa is a proponent of educational standards and accountability, and believes we must hold ourselves (students, parents, educators, and community members) responsible for meeting student achievement targets through a continuous cycle of planning, evaluation, and reporting. However, she understands that results cannot be achieved at the expense of other areas of education.

Lisa supports the expansion of early childhood education so that all children have the chance to get a jump start on learning. She supports increasing state funding for the Head Start Program to assist at-risk children and families, as well as funding for after school day care, education and nutrition programs.

Abortion

Lisa does not believe government can or should make personal decisions for individuals and families. However, she does not approve of abortion. Government’s role must be to support life by providing assistance to individuals and families.

Lisa supports the Pennsylvania Abortion Control Act, and she is opposed to the use of any taxpayer funding for abortion, cloning or embryonic stem cell research. Lisa will work to increase funding for alternatives-to-abortion programs, to further promote and ease the process of adoption, and to ensure that all pregnant women have access to good doctors and hospitals, in order to provide high-quality pre and post natal health care.

Furthermore, Lisa will fight for additional support of community programs such as the Nurse-Family Partnership and Shepherd’s Maternity House, which give women the assistance and opportunity to raise healthy families.

Protecting Our Environment

Pennsylvanians have a right to clean air, to pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, and historic treasures of our Commonwealth. Lisa supports conservation programs, such as the Pennsylvania Greenways program, the Easement Purchase program and Growing Greener, which preserve and protect our lands and waters for fishing, hiking, and farming. She will continue to work toward developing innovative solutions to protecting the environment while meeting the economic development needs of our communities.

Preserving Our Sporting Heritage

As a wife and mother of avid sportsmen, Lisa opposes any legislation or regulation that attempts to restrict the rights of law-abiding individuals to purchase, possess, and use firearms for legitimate purposes, as guaranteed by the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. Lisa supports concealed carry laws and the rights of citizens to defend themselves, their families and their homes from criminals.

Additionally, Lisa believes fish and wildlife management decisions should be left to the experts, but with input from license holders and other stakeholders. She understands that the role of politicians is to ensure that the Game Commission and the Fish and Boat Commission are accountable to the sportsmen and women of the Commonwealth, who foot the bill for these agencies.

As Senator, Lisa will create a 20th Senatorial District Sportsmen’s Advisory Committee to review issues relating to hunting, trapping, fishing, and conservation. The committee will provide an opportunity for sportsmen and women to regularly discuss issues of local concern with her and representatives from both wildlife agencies.