State Representative PRSRT STD

U.S. POSTAGE

Dick Stevenson PAID

HARRISBURG, PA
PERMIT NO 529

PO Box 202008
Harrisburg, PA 17170-2008

Dear Friends,
With the 2007-08 budget debate now behind us and a spending plan in place, I wanted to provide you with an update
of other news from Harrisburg and around the 8th District.
In addition to information on my perspective of the final budget, this fall edition of my newsletter includes information
about legislation I’ve sponsored to help local businesses and organizations recoup money they’ve lost from bad checks,
and information about upcoming legislative meetings.
You’ll also find a new feature I’m introducing in this newsletter, called “Cheers,” that recognizes people and organiza-
tions for their accomplishments. All of those listed received citations from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
If you have any questions about any of the information contained in the newsletter or about state government, please
get in touch with my district offices in Grove City or Butler, or visit my Web site at DickStevenson.com.

Sincerely,

Dick Stevenson

Stevenson Joins Effort to Reduce State Borrowing

Part of my responsibility as a state leg- financial sense. And it’s too risky for Pennsylvania.
islator is to ensure that your tax dollars are We cannot afford this borrow-now, pay-later attitude.
being spent wisely. Unfortunately, the past That is why I have joined with colleagues in the House Republican Policy Committee to serve
five years of the Rendell Administration has as vice chairman of a special task force studying the Commonwealth’s debt. We will be examining
led to a historic increase in the amount of this issue as the months progress, and I am hopeful our efforts will result in limiting Pennsyl-
borrowing. vania’s increasing
Through the end of the current fiscal burden of debt.
year, Pennsylvania’s outstanding debt will
have increased by $2.4 billion. If this trend in
borrowing continues, at the end of Rendell’s
second term in office in December 2010, debt
will have increased to $11.5 billion, more than
any other governor in state history to date.
This borrowing translates into long-term
debt that will have to be paid by our children During a Capitol press
and grandchildren, when the state’s debt conference, I discussed
the level of the state’s
service will take up a larger chunk of state debt that has accrued
spending. over the past five years.
A simple analogy is found in people’s own As a fiscal conservative
households. If people spend their paychecks, who believes that
exhaust their savings and max out their credit government should live
within its means, such
cards, and then ask for their credit lines to be borrowing sets a wrong
extended, any responsible credit company direction for our state.
would consider this to be too risky to make

DICKSTEVENSON.COM
 Stevenson Votes ‘No’ House OKs Bill to Increase
to Inflated State Bad Check Service Charge
Budget Businesses would be better able to recover costs from writers of
bad checks under legislation I have introduced that recently won the
The 2007-08 state budget this year came
down to a battle of wills, with 25,000 state
workers furloughed and a partial shutdown of
state government occurring for one day.
Although I am pleased the stalemate is
over, I could not lend my support to the final
spending plan. We fought off the governor’s
seven proposed new taxes, but still, I am
disappointed that spending is far above the
rate of inflation. As a government, we should
be looking at ways to contain spending, not
add to it.
The final budget was more than 3.7 percent
more than last year, totaling nearly $27 billion.
My first budget in 2001 was nearly $20 billion.
In six years, the budget has grown more than
35 percent.
With a $650 million surplus at the end of
the 2006-07 fiscal year, we should be finding
ways to return that money to the taxpayer,
not add new government programs that will
only lead to even greater state spending in
the future.
In addition, I continue to be appalled at
the level of borrowing our governor insists is
needed to move Pennsylvania forward.
Many members of the agriculture commu-
nity called my attention to the importance of
retaining the $3 million budget item to supple-
ment crop insurance premiums. I and many of
my counterparts from rural areas of the state
also recognize the importance of this budget
item as an essential risk management tool to
help protect farmers, and the state’s economy,
from the effects of devastating crop losses.
Unfortunately, even though I consider it one
of the most successful programs the state has
ever embarked upon by using state dollars
as an incentive for private sector investment,
and even though I conveyed this message
during budget negotiations, my efforts were
only marginally successful. The governor pro-
posed to cut this funding by two-thirds to only
$1 million. While the goal was to restore this
funding to the $3 million level of past years,
we were only able to get agreement with the
administration to fund the program at $1.5
million for fiscal year 2007-08.
For this reason, combined with concerns
about increased spending and borrowing, as
well as other ill-advised priorities reflected in
the budget, I was a “no” vote on final passage
of the budget. Nonetheless, it did pass and
we will have to work within its limits for the
next year.
support of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
Bad checks cost businesses millions of dollars each year, but be-
cause of current state law, merchants’ hands are tied when it comes
to recovering their costs.
When a business or organization deposits or cashes a bad check,
its account is charged the bank’s processing fee, and this legislation
will allow it to recoup the loss it has encountered by raising its service
fee from $20 to $50.
House Bill 296 allows individuals, organizations and businesses
to charge a service fee of $50 when a bad check has been passed to
them. If the actual amount of service charges incurred by the payee
is more than $50, then the actual amount will be assessed against
the bad check writer.
It is against the law in Pennsylvania for a person to knowingly and
intentionally write a check for which there are not sufficient funds to
cover and he or she fails to make good within 10 days after receiving
notice of the refusal of the check.
Upon conviction, the person who wrote the bad check must reim-
burse the payee or such other party the face amount of the check, as
well as any service charge if written notice of the service charge was
conspicuously displayed on the payee’s premises when the check
was issued.
A written notice of the service charge amount must still be conspicu-
ously displayed at the place of business.
The legislation is now with the state Senate for consideration.
Time to Renew Do Not Call
Registration
Some Pennsylvania residents need to renew their registration on
the state’s Do Not Call list to continue avoiding telemarketing calls.
Registration for the Do Not Call list is only valid for five years from
the date of initial registration. The list is updated quarterly, so if you
registered when the list first came out in 2002, your listing expires Nov.
1. If you were not able to re-register by the Sept. 15 deadline, you can
still re-register. You may, however, experience some telemarketing
calls for a couple of months until your registration is updated.
Phone subscribers should be aware of several exceptions to the
Do Not Call law by which telemarketers may call your home even if
it is registered on the Do Not call list. The exceptions include calls
from:
• Telemarketers who have had an established business
relationship with you up to 12 months prior to the call.
• Tax-exempt charitable organizations, veteran’s organizations
chartered by the U.S. Congress and calls made on behalf of a
political candidate or political party.
• Telemarketers calling at the express request of the residential
telephone customer.
For more information on how to be placed on the Do Not Call list
or to renew your registration, visit my Web site at DickStevenson.
com, or call the Office of the Attorney General at 1-888-777-3406.

Legislative Meetings Set for Fall

Please join me this fall at one of three legislative meetings I have scheduled around the 8th District.
This is an opportunity for me to give you an update on legislative activity in the Capitol, hear your concerns
about issues in our area, and to answer your questions about state government.
The meetings are scheduled for:
• Friday, Sept. 28, 8 to 9:30 a.m. – Doc Stewart Hall, Harmony.
• Thursday, Oct. 25, 6 to 8 p.m. – Pine Grove Community Center, North Street in Grove City.
• Friday, Oct. 26, 8 to 9:30 a.m. – West Sunbury Firehall, 772 Hall Road, West Sunbury.
Please let us know if you can come so we can plan for your attendance. You may call my Grove City office at
(724) 458-4911 or my Butler office at (724) 284-1431. I hope to see you there!
 Students from Moniteau High School’s Future Farmers of America program traveled to the State Capitol
on March 27 to learn more about state government and the legislative process. The group consisted of
(front row) student Amber Foulk and teacher Brian Dean; and (back row) Tim Ealy, Travis Steele and Brian
Benson. While there, they had this photograph taken on the historic Capitol Rotunda staircase with me.

During the Mercer Memorial 500 weekend, I joined with local residents to unveil three 45 foot by 90 foot, 300-
pound American flags. The weekend event celebrates the lives of the men and women from Mercer County
who died in our nation’s wars and all of the county’s veterans. I’d like to commend all of the organizers and
volunteers for the Mercer Memorial 500 for yet another successful event.

Several students from the Moniteau School District traveled to Harrisburg in April to participate in the Teens
Against Tobacco Use rally at the state Capitol. During their visit, they had this photo taken on the historic
Capitol Rotunda steps. Pictured are: Jennifer Kelly, Justin Castello, Gabriel Alcorn, Christopher Cokan,
Samantha Ambuster, Jessie Flaherty, Stephanie Bonzo and Michael Kosick. Accompanying them on the trip
was Kristi McEwen; Sharon Maxwell from the Moniteau School District nurses office; and Dr. Donald Gibala,
executive director of Community Health Challenge.

During Heritage Week at the state Capitol in March, I had the opportunity to welcome Mercer County
couple, Mark and Linda Brown, who served as Penn Ambassadors. Penn Ambassadors are nominated by
a member of the Legislature and participate in a series of events sponsored by the Pennsylvania Historical
and Museum Commission (PHMC). This year, Penn Ambassadors had the opportunity to examine the
PHMC’s Civil War Muster Rolls conservation project as well as behind-the-scenes tours of the State
Museum and the State Archives. Pictured with us is Debi Dodson with PHMC.

As a member of the House Republican Policy Committee, I recently took part in a public hearing on the
governor’s proposed health care coverage plan and its impact in the insurance marketplace. Testifying were
officials with the Insurance Federation of Pennsylvania. Pictured with Stevenson are (from left): Rep. Gordon
Denlinger (R-Lancaster) and Rep. Kathy Rapp (R-Warren/Forest/McKean).

Butler County Man First to Receive Specialty

License Plate
Constituent suggested the idea for special veterans plate
Butler County resident Dave Stoops was the first resident in Pennsylvania to receive a specialized veterans
recognition license plate.
Stoops, who lives in Harrisville, first suggested the idea of a license plate for veterans of general service to me
a couple of years ago. I was happy to create legislation necessary for such a specialty plate, and when the bill was
signed into law, I requested that Stoops be the first to receive it.
Stoops is a 40-plus year, life member of the American Legion, Post 852 of Harrisville.
Act 50 of 2005 established three specialty license plates for automobiles and light trucks: the Operation Iraqi
Freedom veterans’ plate; the Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) veterans’ plate; and a special plate for
veterans of general service.
Each license plate costs $20 in addition to the normal annual registration fee to obtain. The Pennsylvania Depart-
ment of Transportation (PennDOT) is required to certify those
veterans applying for such plates as serving in one of the above-
mentioned military campaigns, or in the case of the veteran plate,
any military service by the applicant.
Presently, several military plates for veterans of various con-
flicts already are issued and include Pearl Harbor Survivors,
Korean War, Vietnam Conflict, World War II, and the Persian
Gulf War.

Dave Stoops, a 40-plus year member of the American Legion Post 852 of Harrisville, poses with
his new license plate, which was created under Act 50 of 2005. Stoops suggested the idea to
Rep. Dick Stevenson (R-Mercer/Butler) that a special license plate should be created to honor
veterans who participated in general military service.
 Cheers
The following individuals, couples and organizations were honored with citations from the Pennsylvania
House of Representatives.

50th Wedding Anniversaries

James and Ruth McKinley
Milford C. and Hope K. Dennison
Ralph and Loretta Groves
Robert and Marilyn Cranmer
Carol and Shirley Flory
Donald and Ruby Fair
Leroy and Margaret Leise
Wilson and Evelyn Weissert
William and Carol McBride
Franklin and Meryl Fugini
Raymond and Sylvia Campbell
Paul and June Ondic
Lawrence and Christine Baptiste
Fred and Suzanne Barron
James Sr. and Carol Clemente
Dayne and Shirley Wahl
Clarence and Patricia Bishop
Merle and Marilyn Hughes
Fred and Carol White
Robert K. and Ellen-Marie Hughes
Gale and Barbara McFadden
Robert and Gwedolyn Follweiler
Kenneth and Donna Bryan
Robert H. and Carmella J. Critchlow
Jim and Viola Maletta
James and Joyce Wigton
Paul M. and Lois Gilmore
Abraham and Dolores Smith
Don and Betty Himes
L. James and Mabel Vensel
Norman and Virginia Turner
Lawrence and Ruth Whitehouse
Donald Scott and Mary L. Frampton
Cletus and Mary Ann Birckbichler
William and Marjorie Giesler
Frederick and Carole Schmidt
Howard and Agnes Brehm
Dave and Dottie Kelly
William and Barbara McLaughlin
Ronald and Shirley Faull
Allan and Meredith Daum
Richard C. and Myrtle McGill
James and Veva Martsolf
Robert and Glenda Miller

Eagle Scout and Gold Awards

Patrick Moran Van Arsdale Joshua R. Schepp Rachel A. Opp
Benjamin A. Clark Adam Stillwagon Amanda Edwards
Kendall Francis Greene Brian Pavkovich Alexandros Petridis
Kristopher Rhodaberger Darren D. Weaver Audrianna Daniels
Jordan Richard Williams Ann Margaret Bartman Christopher Ross Williams
Robert Daniel Karns Elizabeth Weyman Tyler Truman
Andrew David Fenstermacher Joshua Edward Dietrich Garrett David Evans
Aaron Joseph Keck Derrick L. Orloski Elizabeth Kerr
Eric Hartle Carl Wagner Ashley Faherty
Zach David

Seventh Annual Senior Expo

to be Held Oct. 19
Please mark your calendar for Friday, Oct. 19, when my annual Senior
Expo will be held in the intramural room at Grove City College from 9 a.m.
until noon.
In recent years, more than 45 vendors and organizations provided a
wealth of information on health care, prescriptions, long-term care, safe
driving, Meals on Wheels, and post-retirement living.
This year, our 2007 Senior Expo promises to be yet another enjoyable
and informative social event.
My staff and I always look forward to meeting with local seniors and their
families during the Senior Expo, and we hope to see all of you there!
For more information, contact my district office in Grove City at (724)
458-4911 or in Butler at (724) 284-1431.

During annual Senior Expo last During a recent Boy Scout Breakfast, I joined with
year, I was able to meet with members of the French Creek Council to honor
hundreds of local constituents and Doug Thomas (second from right), honoree of
this year’s breakfast. Pictured with us are Cliff
hear their thoughts and concerns
Hovis (far left), district chairman of the French
about state-related issues. One of Creek Council, and Dan Lindh Sr., district scout
those attending my expo last year executive of the French Creek Council.
was George Patterson of Grove
City. This year’s event will be held
Friday, Oct. 19, in the intramural
room at Grove City College from 9
a.m. until noon.

Representative Dick Stevenson

HARRISBURG OFFICE: 155B East Wing / PO Box 202008 / Harrisburg, PA 17120-2008 / Phone: (717) 783-6438 / FAX: (717) 705-1949
DISTRICT OFFICES: 234 West Pine Street / Grove City, PA 16127 / Phone: (724) 458-4911 / 1-800-287-0085 / FAX: (724) 450-4104
1771 North Main Street Ext. / Butler, PA 16001 / Phone: (724) 284-1431 / FAX: (724) 284-1518
Visit Rep. Stevenson on the Web at DickStevenson.com