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SPRING 2018

State Senator

KEEPING IN TOUCH

Andy Dinniman

INSIDE:

Fighting for Fair Districts • Pipeline Safety Bills • Transportation Projects

Reforming Harrisburg • Education Update • Protecting Our Pets

FORGING A STRONG FUTURE

for Chester County

FORGING A STRONG FUTURE

for Chester County

Keeping in Touch—SENATOR ANDY DINNIMAN

Dear Friend,

Together, we’ve built Chester County on common ground and common

values. Values like . . .

• Ensuring fair elections as the foundation of democracy.

• Reforming government to cut wasteful spending and pass balanced

budgets on time.

• Protecting our natural resources, land, and water rights.

• Putting the health, safety, and quality of life in our communities first.

• Building a modern transportation infrastructure that drives economic

growth.

• Supporting strong schools that focus on teaching and learning.

Now, the question is: what are our government agencies in Harrisburg and

Washington doing to support, promote, and embrace our Chester County

values?

Unfortunately, not enough.

All too often, it seems like our government is putting itself and special

interests before the people.

We see it when pipeline companies are permitted to steamroll through our

neighborhoods with little to no safety precautions, emergency response

plans, or environmental protections. We see it when lawmakers fail to pass a

complete budget on time and then rely on $1.5 billion in borrowing to

support excessive spending. And we see it when our legislative districts are

so blatantly gerrymandered our map looks like a piece of abstract art.

As both your state Senator and a fellow citizen, I cannot overlook the recent

failures of government to address some of the most pressing and important

issues of the day. And you shouldn’t either.

Here, I’ll discuss where our government is falling short and how we must

unite to enact real change.

At the end of the day, it’s important that we are fully informed and stand

together to successfully demand action on the issues that matter most to us,

to our families, and to Chester County.

Sincerely,

ANDREW E. DINNIMAN

State Senator – 19th District

DISTRICT OFFICE

One North Church Street

West Chester, PA 19380

(610) 692-2112

Fax: (610) 436-1721

Hours: Mon. – Fri.

8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.

HARRISBURG OFFICE

Senate Box 203019

182 Capitol Building

Harrisburg, PA 17120-3019

(717) 787-5709

Fax: (717) 787-4384

www.senatordinniman.com

E-MAIL UPDATES

Senator Dinniman issues regular

legislative e-mail updates on a variety

of issues. To sign up for electronic

updates, visit

www.senatordinniman.com/e-news

Senator Dinniman meets with students from Conestoga High School’s

New Voters Club on the floor of the Pennsylvania Senate. The club was recently honored

for registering more than 85 percent of their eligible classmates to vote – the first school

in the Commonwealth to meet this milestone. Pictured (from left to right) Bryce Bundens,

Jahnavi Rao, Senator Dinniman, and Grace Lanouette.

On the cover:

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@SenatorDinniman

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Should they be able to do so in a

densely populated area without

conducting an independent

assessment of the risks and potential

safety issues at stake?

Senator Dinniman doesn’t think

so. That is why he is calling for strong

safety measures on pipeline routes

and during pipeline construction.

Dinniman has been a vocal critic

of Sunoco’s Mariner East II pipeline

project from the beginning – a project

that has been plagued by problems

including contaminated wells, drilling

fluid spills, and an expanding sink-

hole that threatens homes and is within

100 feet of Amtrak’s Keystone Line.

Chester County may not be home

to Marcellus Shale drilling, but it is

being crisscrossed by one of the

highest numbers of pipelines in the

Commonwealth, some of which, like

Mariner East II, are slated to carry

highly volatile natural gas derivatives

like liquid propane and butane. More

and more of these pipelines are being

planned every day.

“At the very least, we expect our

state agencies to gather all neces-

sary data, put in place a strong

emergency response plan, thoroughly

review geological research, and

conduct an independent risk

assessment,” Dinniman said.

“Unfortunately, time and time again

we’ve learned that this is not the

case.”

After six months of Dinniman

calling for action, including bringing

dozens of impacted residents to

Harrisburg and helping circulate a

petition signed by thousands of

citizens, the Pennsylvania Depart-

ment of Environmental Protection

(DEP) ordered a temporary, partial

suspension of pipeline construction.

However, the order only related to

environmental concerns and it was

lifted after Sunoco paid a hefty fine.

In response, Dinniman has

brought together a grassroots group

Dinniman stands with Chester County residents,

children, and families in delivering a petition and

letters to the governor’s office calling for a halt in

the construction of the Mariner East II pipeline

ntil a risk assessment is done.

of residents impacted by Mariner East

II and members of local and regional

citizens groups to obtain an indepen-

dent risk assessment on their own.

“It’s hard to believe that an

independent risk and safety assess-

ment was not required to begin with,

but we’re not about to sit on our

hands and wait for our government

to do its job. We’re going to move

forward. We’re going to do it

ourselves,” Dinniman said.

In addition, he said that the

repeated failures of DEP, the Public

Utility Commission (PUC), and the

governor’s office to address very real

pipeline safety concerns highlight the

need for legislative changes in the

process.

Dinniman, who serves on the

Senate Environmental Resources and

Energy Committee, has introduced

several bipartisan bills to improve the

safety of pipelines. They include:

■ Senate Bill 928 requiring pipeline

companies to apply for authorization

on the placement of pipelines to be

constructed under safety and

environmental standards. Right now,

Pennsylvania is one of the only states

that does not regulate the placement

of intrastate pipelines.

■ Senate Bill 574 allowing local

municipalities and school districts to

tax natural gas and hazardous liquid

pipelines as real estate, as is done in

other states, including New Jersey,

Ohio and West Virginia.

■ Senate Bill 931 calling for remote

shutoff valves on pipelines in high-

consequence areas.

“Clearly, Pennsylvania’s current

process for permitting pipelines is at

best, falling woefully short and at

worst, completely broken. We need

comprehensive pipeline reform and

we need it now,” Dinniman said.

◆ Pipeline Safety Update

Should an energy company be permitted to install a pipeline

carrying highly combustible materials within a few dozen feet

of homes, schools, playgrounds, or public libraries?

Senator Dinniman is a dogged fighter for

tough animal cruelty laws in Pennsylvania while

working to help keep pets out of animal shelters.

Dinniman has introduced Senate Bill 480,

which calls for strengthening Pennsylvania’s

Animal Cruelty Law to increase the penalty when

animal abuse happens in a domestic-violence

situation. This often occurs when an estranged

spouse or partner (who is under a protection

from abuse order) will try to inflict emotional harm

on an individual by hurting or killing their pet.

Dinniman has also partnered with the Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical

Foundation and Meals on Wheels (MoW) of Chester County to launch Henry’s

Helping Paws Fund, which delivers free pet food with MoW meals to disabled

or homebound senior citizens who lack the financial resources to care for their

beloved animal companions.

“Our mission is keeping people and their pets together in their homes and

both well fed,” Dinniman said.

The program is named for Henry, the Dinniman family’s late poodle who

was well-known throughout the Chester County region.

◆ Protecting Our Pets

Dinniman takes his rescue

dog, Jagger, on a walk in

downtown West Chester.

at the site of what is slated to be the

new Downingtown Train Station.

The project will transform the

entrance to Downingtown, with plans

to build 442 residential units atop

14,200 square feet of retail space on

68 acres at the intersection of Boot

Road and Route 322. In addition,

the development will feature a

pedestrian bridge connecting

Downingtown’s Johnsontown Park

to the east bank of the Brandywine

Creek and a trail system that links

to the proposed extension of the

Chester-Valley Trail.

Exton, work is underway to

significantly upgrade the Exton Train

Station. Already the parking lot has

In Coatesville, construction

continues to progress on the Third

Avenue Streetscape Project, the first

phase of revitalization work related

to the new Coatesville Train Station.

The project aims to transform Third

Ave. as a gateway to the city from

the new train station, and includes

repaving and the installation of

sidewalk improvements from Lincoln

Highway to Fleetwood Street. The

next phase calls for the realignment

of Fleetwood St. The entire project is

expected to be completed by the

end of the year.

In Downingtown, the Hankin

Group recently demolished the

abandoned Sonoco Paper Mill to

make way for Brandywine Station, a

transit-oriented development located

Dinniman visits the site of work on the Third

Avenue Streetscape project in Coatesville.

been expanded and reconfigured to

accommodate nearly 70 additional

vehicles. Currently, crews are

working on constructing new, 500-

foot-long raised platforms to make

the train accessible for those with

disabilities. Once the platform work

is completed, work will begin on the

construction of a heated station

building on the inbound (eastbound)

side with a ticket office, waiting area,

and restrooms, and a new canopy

and glass shelter on the outbound

(westbound) side. The project is

expected to be completed this fall.

In Paoli, the first phase of work

continues on a project that will

eventually replace the current train

station building, which dates back to

1953, with a modern intermodal

transportation center. Crews have

already made significant progress on

constructing a new high-level

platform between the eastbound and

westbound tracks, to make that train

accessible to those with disabilities.

In addition, construction is in

progress to expand parking to the

north side of the tracks to improve

the flow of traffic and add about 50

new parking spaces.

The first phase of the Paoli project

also calls for elevators and ramps, a

pedestrian overpass, and upgrades

to the station’s rail infrastructure. It is

expected to be completed by mid-

next year.

Dinniman has also worked with

PennDOT to allocate $3.5 million in

funding for preliminary work related

to the major improvements slated for

◆Transportation Projects

inniman (right) looks over plans for transit-oriented

development in Downingtown with Mike Malloy (left),

General Counsel for the Hankin Group.

the Parkesburg Train Station.

“These new train stations and

related revitalization projects will not

only drive economic growth in our

region, but they’ll also provide a safer

commute for rail riders while helping

relieve traffic congestion on some of

our busiest roadways,” Dinniman said.

Dinniman, who serves on the Senate

Transportation Committee, is also

spearheading the effort to accelerate

work on two vital intersections in

southern Chester County.

He worked with colleagues from

across the aisle to secure crucial

funding to improve and realign the

intersection of Route 796 and Old

Baltimore Pike at the site of the

former Red Rose Inn in Penn

Township. The project, which is now

underway, aims to improve traffic flow

and safety by adding additional

turning lanes.

Dinniman has also secured

$600,000 in funding to reconstruct the

intersection of Baltimore Pike and

Newark Road in New Garden.

Currently identified by planners as the

top intersection for improvement in

Chester County, its narrow layout,

steep grade, and skewed alignment

lead to chronic safety issues and

traffic congestion.

Senator Dinniman continues to lead the charge

against expanding expensive and excessive

standardized testing in our schools. Between the state

and local school districts, Pennsylvania has either

already spent or contracted to spend more than $1 billion on standardized

testing and related costs in the last nine years. Dinniman, who serves as

minority chair of the Senate Education Committee, continues to work to

replace the Keystone Exams with the SAT, which most high school students

already take.

Work is now underway on significant upgrades and revitalization

projects related to several train stations throughout Chester County.

◆ More Teaching, Less Testing

Senator Dinniman continues to

lead the effort to end gerrymandering

by establishing a redistricting

process that is independent of

politics and the legislature.

“Several congressional districts

in our region have gained national

notoriety for how obviously they were

drawn to favor incumbents and

majority candidates,” Dinniman said.

“Real redistricting reform is needed

to protect the integrity of

government. The voters not only

deserve it, they demand it.”

Late last year, Dinniman

presented testimony in two cases

challenging the congressional redistrict-

ing process in both state and federal

court. As of this writing, the state

Supreme Court ruled that Pennsyl-

vania’s 2011 map of congressional

districts ‘plainly and palpably violates

the Constitution of the Commonwealth

of Pennsylvania’ and directed the

legislature to redraw the map and

submit it to the governor and the court

for approval. However, additional legal

challenges may occur.

“Gerrymandering is the wrong

way for either party to go about

redistricting and it must stop. The only

way to do that is to change the

◆ Reforming Harrisburg

Our government ought to run

effectively, efficiently, and with the

least cost to the taxpayers. Senator

Dinniman is working to reform

Harrisburg to ensure it does just that.

He has introduced and supports

several bills to cut costs, end perks,

reduce the size of government, and

hold lawmakers accountable.

■ Smaller Government: Pennsylvania

has one of the largest full-time

legislatures in the nation. Dinniman is

working to reduce its size and stream-

line operations to save taxpayer dollars.

He voted for and continues to support

House Bill 153 to cut the size of the

House by one-quarter. Since it

requires a constitutional change, the

bill, which was passed last session,

must be passed again this session

before it goes to the people of Pennsyl-

vania in a referendum vote. Dinniman

also supports an amended version of

House Bill 153 and, a separate piece

of legislation, House Bill 253, both of

which call for cutting the size of the

Senate by at least one-quarter.

■ Eliminate Perks: Did you know that

state lawmakers can automatically

collect $175 for every day they are in

session in Harrisburg – money that

comes in addition to salary? Since

being elected, Dinniman has never

accepted a single per diem, saving

taxpayers more than $125,000 in the

process. He has repeatedly called for

an end to the system of automatic per

diems and is a co-sponsor of Senate

Bill 732 to terminate it once and for

all. If lawmakers want to receive funds

for job-related expenses, they need to

submit receipts like everyone else.

■ Holding Lawmakers Accountable:

When budgets run late or are

incomplete, it’s legislators and the

governor who should pay, not the

people. Dinniman introduced Senate

Bill 830 to impose real consequences

on them when budgets run late. It calls

for the legislature to remain in

continuous session, meeting every day

without leave, without pay, without

reimbursements, and without per

diems, if a complete budget is not

passed and signed by July 1. The

same goes for the governor, his senior

staff, and cabinet members.

■ Balanced Budgets: In addition,

Senate Bill 830 requires the legislature

to pass a complete budget – meaning

a spending plan with sufficient revenue

to fund it. It’s very simple: you can’t

decide what you’re going to spend

before you know how much you

have. The legislature’s practice of

passing a spending plan at the

eleventh hour or later and putting off

passage of a revenue package for

weeks or months at a time is

unacceptable. Families and

◆ Fighting for Fair Districts

process. It’s high time that we removed

the influence of politics and politicians

from redistricting,” Dinniman said.

Dinniman remains a vocal and

consistent supporter of Senate Bill 22

to establish an Independent Citizen’s

Redistricting Commission to redraw

legislative districts. He also co-