Press Releases
Schwank Press Conference Thursday to Unveil Pension Review Commission Bill
HARRISBURG, Feb. 25, 2015 – State Sen. Judy Schwank and advocates will hold a press conference at 3 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 26, in the senator’s district office, to announce the introduction of her bill to best address Pennsylvania’s pension crisis. The combined unfunded...
Industrial Hemp Bill Formally Introduced by Sens. Schwank, Folmer
READING, Feb. 12, 2015 – Pennsylvania farmers would be able to grow a new cash crop and participate in a wide range of manufacturing opportunities if a bill that Sens. Judy Schwank (D-Berks) and Mike Folmer (R-Lebanon) formally introduced today. Senate Bill 50 would...
250 New Acres Added to Farmland Preservation Program, Schwank Says
HARRISBURG, Feb. 12, 2015 – Add another 250 acres of Berks County land to Pennsylvania’s farmland preservation program. The three tracts, valued at nearly $625,000, were approved for inclusion in the record-setting operation today by the Pennsylvania Agricultural Land...
Free Help for Families Struggling to Navigate College Student Aid, FAFSA
READING, Feb. 12, 2015 – Berks Countians looking for help in paying college tuition can get free guidance and tips this Saturday, Feb. 14, during a FAFSA Preparation Seminar in Sen. Judy Schwank’s district office. “While improvements have been made to the online Free...
Schwank Appointed to Serve on PASSHE Board of Governors
Improved accessibility, expanding lifelong learning opportunities goals of service HARRISBURG, Jan. 30, 2015 – Named as one of the newest members of the organization that governs Pennsylvania’s 14 state-owned universities, Sen. Judy Schwank today said she intends to...
Schwank Urges Lawmakers to Finally Adopt Medical Cannabis Bill
HARRISBURG, Jan. 27, 2015 – To better help desperate moms and dads who are seeking relief for children who suffer from countless seizures and to help many other Pennsylvanians who need relief from chronic illnesses, Sen. Judy Schwank today urged fellow lawmakers to...
Schwank Outlines Committee Assignments for 2015-2016 Session
READING, Jan. 15, 2015 – Berks County’s agriculture industry will continue to have a front-row seat in Harrisburg as state Sen. Judy Schwank will carry on as the Democratic chair of the Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee. “We are protecting a record number...
Pension Reform the Right Way: Schwank Introduces Bill to Form Commission
Panel would finally employ PA’s arsenal of experts READING, Jan. 13, 2015 – Faced with a growing multi-billion dollar pension deficit and no good proposal to solve the problem, state Sen. Judy Schwank today said she will introduce a bill that would direct a new...
Schwank, Folmer to Discuss How Industrial Hemp Bill Would Help Ag
HARRISBURG, Jan. 8, 2015 – To help Pennsylvania farmers tap into the multi-million dollar hemp industry, state Sens. Judy Schwank (D-11) and Mike Folmer (R-48) will hold a media briefing at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 10, at the Pennsylvania Farm Show to talk about...
Schwank, Argall, Community and Business Leaders, First Responders Meet on Route 222
BLANDON, Dec. 18, 2014 – Heeding the growing concerns about the safety of Route 222, state Sens. Judy Schwank (D-11) and David Argall (R-29) met here last night with local leaders to work towards solutions that would make the highway less deadly. The gathering...
Ag Preservation Panel Adds 3 More Berks Co. Farms to List, Schwank Says
HARRISBURG, Dec. 11, 2014 – Another 150 acres of prime Berks County agricultural land were added today to Pennsylvania’s record-setting farmland preservation program, Sen. Judy Schwank said today. The 150 acres added by the Pennsylvania Farmland Preservation Board now...
Food Market Owners, Gov’t Officials to Meet Monday Evening with Sen. Schwank
READING, Dec. 5, 2014 – Reading city food market owners and representatives from local, state and federal governments will meet with state Sen. Judy Schwank at 6:00 p.m., Monday, Dec. 8, at Reading Area Community College. The informational meeting will detail changes...
Sen. Schwank to Host 2nd Annual Elected Municipal Officials’ Meeting
READING, Dec. 2, 2014 – Sen. Judy Schwank will hold her second annual “Elected Municipal Officials’ Meeting” at 7:30 a.m., Thursday, Dec. 4, at Wyomissing Family Restaurant. This event gives local leaders with the opportunity to obtain information that impacts their...
Pa. Women’s Health Caucus calls for waiver extension for SelectPlan for Women
HARRISBURG, Oct. 28 – State Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Allegheny, and state Sen. Judy Schwank, D-Berks, co-chairs of the Pennsylvania Women’s Health Caucus, today called for the Corbett administration to take action to extend the federal 1115 Family Planning Waiver,...
Winter is Around the Corner, so is LIHEAP, Sen. Schwank Says
READING, Oct. 27, 2014 – With almanacs and woolly bear caterpillars predicting a tough winter and others predicting a mild season, state Sen. Judy Schwank today said the one sure thing about the approaching season is LIHEAP will be there to help those who need it....
Kutztown Playground to Become Happier Place for Kids with $150k Grant, Schwank Says
Grants also approved for Reading, Union Township READING, Oct. 21, 2014 – New playground equipment, stepping stones and plaza space will be the new features of Kutztown’s only playground thanks to the award today of a $150,000 state grant, Sen. Judy Schwank said...
$730k in State Grants to Back Berks Co. Swimming Pool, Parks, Schwank Says
READING, Oct. 20, 2014 – Two parks in Berks County and a swimming pool in Fleetwood have been awarded nearly $730,000 in state grants, state Sen. Judy Schwank said today. The money, from the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, will help to expand French...
3 Berks Co. Farms Help PA to Become 1st in U.S. to Preserve 500,000 Acres, Schwank Says
HELLAM, Oct. 16, 2014 – Pennsylvania became the first state in the country today to preserve 500,000 acres of valuable farmland and three Berks County farms helped accomplish the milestone, Sen. Judy Schwank said today. “Berks County is a big reason the commonwealth...
Public Health Care Improvements, Better Oversight Expected with Adoption of Advisory Council Bill, Sen. Schwank Says
HARRISBURG, Oct.15, 2014 – Berks County residents and Pennsylvanians should expect improvements in the quality and cost-effectiveness of the Medicaid system with the approval today of a bill to create the Patient-Centered Medical Home Advisory Council, state Sen. Judy...
Sen. Schwank, PHEAA, RACC to Hold ‘College Financial Aid Awareness Night’
HARRISBURG, Oct. 7, 2014 – Sen. Judy Schwank will host her annual “College Financial Aid Awareness Night” from 7 p.m. until 8:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 9, at Muhlenberg High School. The free event will include presentations by Schwank and financial aid experts from the...
Minimum Wage Can’t Buy Bread, Eggs and Cereal, Schwank Says as She Continues Fight to Increase PA’s hourly rate to $10.10
HARRISBURG, Sept. 29, 2014 – Standing with the dozen eggs, loaf of bread and box of cereal she attempted to buy with the $7.25 Pennsylvania’s minimum-wage workers receive for 60 minutes of labor, state Sen. Judy Schwank today joined a statewide action campaign to urge...
With Eye on Reading, Schwank Votes to Reform PA’s Act 47 Law
READING, Sept. 24, 2014 – Representing one of Pennsylvania’s 20 communities that are financially distressed, state Sen. Judy Schwank has voted to change the law that governs the commonwealth’s municipal recovery program. Schwank’s vote Wednesday helped to send the Act...
Schwank ‘Encouraged’ by New Report’s Next Steps on Heroin, Opioid Epidemic
HARRISBURG, Sept. 23, 2014 – Urged by state Sen. Judy Schwank to examine the growing problem of heroin and prescription drug abuse, the Center for Rural Pennsylvania canvassed the state and issued its report today. Sen. Schwank said she worked with Sen. Gene Yaw, the...
Schwank Comments on Panel’s Adoption of Property Tax Reform
HARRISBURG, Sept. 16, 2014 – Sen. Judy Schwank issued the following statement following the Senate Finance Committee’s 6-5 approval of Senate Bill 76, which would reform the way schools generate revenue from property owners: “Although it was a narrow vote, it was a...
Schwank Announces Environmental Grant for Leesport Borough Authority
READING, Sept. 9, 2014 – Sen. Judy Schwank today said Leesport residents will benefit from a new $100,000 state grant that will help the Berks County community pay for a sewer replacement project. Commonwealth Financing Authority approved the “Small Water and Sewer...
Schwank, Caltagirone Announce Funding
READING, Sept. 9, 2014 - - The Commonwealth Financing Authority today approved a state Multimodal Transportation Fund grant in the amount of $1 million to support a road improvement and bridge replacement along Saint Bernardine Street in Angelica Park in the City of...
Sen. Schwank Works on ‘Heroin Crisis’ During RACC Public Hearing
READING, July 22, 2014 – Working to stem the tide of heroin overdoses and deaths in Berks County and throughout the state, Sen. Judy Schwank joined other elected and health officials today to talk about the “Heroin Crisis Facing Pennsylvania.” The forum, held at the...
Sen. Schwank, Officials to Dedicate ‘Chief Warrant Officer-2 Jarett M. Yoder Highway’
READING, July 16, 2014 – Sen. Judy Schwank, members of the Pennsylvania National Guard, local emergency responders, family, and other public officials will hold a dedication ceremony at 10 a.m., Friday, July 18, to officially name a stretch of Route 662 in...
Sen. Schwank Says $110k Heading to Berks County to Increase Recycling Efforts
READING, July 10, 2014 – More Berks County residents will be able to recycle their waste now that $110,000 in new state grants is headed to two local governments’ recycling programs, state Sen. Judy Schwank announced today. Exeter Township will receive $79,781 through...
Intimate Partner Harassment Bill Wins Senate Approval, Schwank Says
HARRISBURG, July 1, 2014 – The proposal that would make it a crime to publish unapproved, sexually explicit pictures of a former partner moved one step closer to becoming law today when the Pennsylvania Senate agreed to return an amended version of the bill to the...
New PA Budget Gets Schwank’s Vote of No
HARRISBURG, June 30, 2014 – Because it fails to address Pennsylvania’s real issues – like property tax reform and taxing Marcellus Shale companies – state Sen. Sen. Judy Schwank today voted “no” on Pennsylvania’s $29.1 billion 2014-2015 budget. “We have worked hard in...
Schwank Proposal Naming Alsace Twp. Road, ‘Lance M. Vaccaro Memorial Highway’ Approved by Senate
HARRISBURG, June 25, 2014 – A bill containing a proposal by state Sen. Judy Schwank that would name Route 12 in Alsace Township, Berks County, as the “Special Warfare Operator Chief (SEAL) Lance M. Vaccaro Highway” has been approved by the Senate. “Chief Special...
Legislation Would Change PA Truancy Laws After Berks Mom Dies in Prison
HARRISBURG, June 20, 2014 – State Sens. Stewart Greenleaf (R-Montgomery) and Judy Schwank (D-Berks) today announced changes they are proposing to state law following the death of a Reading woman while she was jailed for truancy charges in Berks County Prison. Eileen...