Rep. Tim Brennan

Today, as we kick off Pride Month, we celebrate the right of every person to live and love openly as their authentic self. The progress we've made toward LGBTQ+ equality was achieved through the courage of generations of activists who stood up against discrimination to build a more just society; it’s important to honor their legacy.

While some in Washington are working to roll back protections and target LGBTQ+ Americans, we are fighting back every step of the way. History shows us that while progress may face challenges from those who seek to divide us, it cannot be erased -- thinking back to our first Pride flag raising in Doylestown, we've made progress even since then.

I’m eager to celebrate our LGBTQ+ community this month, and to continue advocating for legislation that will further cement Pennsylvania as a place where everyone belongs. Happy Pride Month!

There are a few things I’m more proud of, as a member of the appropriations committee over the last three years, than our new financial investments in the study of neurodegenerative conditions such as ALS.

One of the people who I met lobbying for this funding in my first year was Paul Miller of Lackawanna County (pictured center). He was diagnosed with ALS in 2012 but frequently attended events of the Capital to push for better investments in this research. Sadly, he also lost his son to a distracted driver, and our new distracted driver law, often called “Paul Miller’s Law,” was named after his son.

Individuals with ALS are often given only a few years to live. Session days are often a pressure cooker and in meeting Paul, I couldn’t help but be overcome with emotion that a person who may only have a short amount time was using so much of it to encourage legislators to help others. What he does is good citizenship of the highest order and genuinely changes the world around him. I was happy to see him again Friday when I toured the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center with my friend and colleague Rep. Kyle Mullins and ALS United Mid-Atlantic to see some of the advancements being made with these new state investments in additional research.

New technologies are making personalized medicine a possibility and greatly accelerating the pace of learning. These researchers and institutions are making great strides and progress, unimaginable only a few years ago. Rep. Mullins and I also recently met with the Pennsylvania Biotechnology Center to talk about some of the work being done right here in Bucks County.

Rep. Mullins lost his father to ALS and former Republican leader, Rep. Bryan Cutler, also lost both parents to this terrible disease. I watched them speak together on the house floor several times with one voice. To make this funding happen, both worked tirelessly and in a bipartisan fashion to make it a reality. Other members such as Rep. Melissa Cerrato worked for this funding and spoke about losing family members and her experiences with genetic profiling and susceptibilities to the condition. It was encouraging to the body as a whole to see their bipartisan work which is bringing hope to so many people affected by this disease and similar neurodegenerative diseases.

During the tour and discussion this Friday, Rep. Mullins noted in passing that when his father was suffering with ALS he imagined people like the researchers we met working and rushing to find a cure. Thanks to his work and others, so many families don’t have to just imagine anymore, they can see the reality and urgency in which we are racing for a cure. I am very proud to be associated with these type of people and this type of work. We have great momentum and we owe it to those affected and their families to continue that momentum, in this budget and future budgets.

This month I met with the Dean of my alma mater, andré douglas pond cummings, of Widener University Commonwealth Law School.

While in law school in Harrisburg, I had the chance to take specialized courses to to become certified in Law & Government. Among those courses, I was lucky enough to take a legislation class with Vince Deliberato, the Director of the PA Legislative Reference Bureau for almost 50 years (I received a certificate for the highest grade in that class). Few people have had more influence on the quality and direction of legislation in our Commonwealth's' history.

I also had the opportunity to handle significant amounts of actual state related litigation for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) as a certified legal intern for the Governor's Office of General Counsel. Continuing the government theme, I was a member of the Law Review, writing a comprehensive summary of the 2000 Pennsylvania redistricting, attending the US Supreme Court argument on Vieth v. Jubelirer and drafting a proposed amendment to the PA Constitution to address partisan gerrymandering of congressional districted in our state.

We talked about the continued strength of the connections between the campus and the Commonwealth, the number of state attorneys who graduated from the school and the programs that continue to pull graduates to state work. Many of the student at the school are still working jobs while attending law school and we talked about strategies used to help these students.

The school recently did an alumni profile which can be read here: https://commonwealthlaw.widener.edu/alumni-friends/success-stories/tim-brennan/

On Thursday, David Goldstein from Sen. Steve Santarsiero's office and my Constituent Service Advisor guru Rachel Lamb held our 2nd Central Bucks School District Property Tax Rebate Clinic at Grundy Hall, a senior housing facility.

Thank you, Central Bucks School District for putting money back into the pockets of our seniors that live on a fixed income. With the rising cost of living making it difficult for vulnerable populations to make ends meet, every penny counts!

In order to qualify for the Central Bucks School District Property Tax Rebate, you must have already applied for Pennsylvania's 2025 Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program.

Pennsylvania's Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program supports homeowners and renters across our Commonwealth by providing a rebate ranging from $380 to $1,000 to eligible older adults 65 and over and people with disabilities age 18 and older whose income does not exceed $48,110.

If you have any questions or need assistance with claiming any of these rebates, please don't hesitate to contact my district office staff at 267-884-0395.

Earlier this month on a sunny Saturday afternoon, my staff and I helped New Hope Celebrates with a stroll across the Delaware River on the New Hope-Lambertville Bridge to kick off Pride Month which begins in June.

Since 2003, New Hope has hosted one of the FIRST Prides of the season in May. This Pride festival that brings two beautiful, picturesque small towns together draws more than 15,000 people annually to celebrate diversity, progress, love, and inclusion to our communities.

What a great turnout of more than 1,000 participants!

Last week, the Central Bucks Senior Activity Center welcomed Sen. Steve Santarsiero and I as we hosted our annual Scam Jam event for our senior constituents.

Scams are at an all-time high, and digital tools have allowed them to become more and more sophisticated, more convincing, and more widespread.

From deceptive job postings to malevolent links, false accounts, and phishing emails, scams can feel unavoidable and can easily put people at huge risk of an enormous financial loss.

This critical educational event helped our older adult community members learn how to identify, avoid, and report common frauds and scams.

Special thanks to Katrina Boyer from PA Banking and Securities, Deputy DA Elizabeth Oquendo from the Bucks County District Attorney's Office, Detective Bill Mokoriski from the Doylestown Township Police Department, and Deputy Director Cynthia Townsend from the Bucks County Area Agency on Aging for taking the time out of your busy schedules to spread awareness to our community members.

At the end of last month, I had the honor of receiving the 2026 Keystone Legislative Award from The Pennsylvania Fraternal Alliance , also known as the Keystone of Fraternals.

You might recognize some of the names of their members such as the Polish Falcons of America, Police and Firemen's Insurance Association, Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America, National Slovak Society, GCU (Greek Catholic Union), Ukrainian Catholics in America, RBO (Russian Brotherhood Organization) and the Slovak Catholic Sokol.

Founded in 1901, the Alliance unites Fraternal Benefit Societies across the Commonwealth. Their mission is to provide a platform for grassroots members to participate in community service, leadership conferences and local advocacy. Many of these groups formed in the industrial era to protect fellow neighbors with similar cultural connections when tragedy struck or when workers were injured or killed. My grandmother Flanagan experienced this type of loss when her father died in the mines in the 1930’s and she was immediately displaced from her company home and was taken in by a neighbor.

This award acknowledges a legislator who has demonstrated exceptional support for the fraternal system and the work of the Alliance.

Along with the award, a donation of $1000 was made to a nonprofit organization in my district, we selected the Friends of the Delaware Canal.

Last month, the Bucks members of the the PA House Tourism Recreation, and Economic Development Committee and Visit Bucks County, were excited to host a three-day tour of Bucks County to promote some of our most treasured attractions. We showed off a small sample of places (up and down Bucks County) to our colleagues that make our community a unique and special destination!

We took in the history and artistry at Fonthill Castle, Mercer Museum, and the Michener Art Museum, and saw the fun activities and opportunities for families offered at Washington Crossing Historic Park and Sesame Place. We took a shopping stroll in Peddler's Village, learned about the storied past of the New Hope Railroad, and learned something new at both the Vampa Museum (local folklore!) and Ashlynn Distillery (how to prepare the mash for making spirits!).

We were proud to welcome our colleagues and highlight the attractions and hospitality that make Bucks County a favorite for so many. We truly have something for everyone, and I’m grateful for those who helped make these visits a success!

Did you check out my e-newsletter I sent around on Friday? If not, you can see it on my website -- it's packed with updates on what's been going on in our district, plus news from my work in Harrisburg, including how I'm supporting local Public Works and police departments: https://pahouse.com/brennan/InTheNews/Correspondence/?id=143778

You can have an impact on the next Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) that will prioritize transportation projects in Bucks County for 2027 by submitting public commentary to the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission by June 22nd.

The TIP covers bicycle, pedestrian, highway, public transit, rail, and freight projects. After consideration of public comments, the draft TIP will be presented to the DVRPC Board for adoption at its meeting on July 23rd.

You can submit your comments on the draft TIP in 3 ways:

🌐 DVRPC's website: www.dvrpc.org/tip/draft
📧 Email: [email protected]
📬 U.S. mail: Attn: PA TIP Comments | DVRPC | 190 N. Independence Mall W, Philadelphia, PA 19106

The current version of the draft TIP for 2027 is also located at the link above. Tips for writing your commentary are listed at:https://www.dvrpc.org/tip/pa27/guidetocommenting_pa.pdf