Affordable housing for seniors, disabled
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick has introduced legislation to increase the amount of affordable housing that’s also adaptable and accessible for seniors and people with disabilities.
The bill is the House version of the Visitable Inclusive Tax Credits for Accessible Living Act introduced by Sen. Bob Casey. It would increase investment in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program and ensure that developers are building more affordable housing units that are more accessible to people with disabilities and seniors and located within communities where residents can walk or move around easily to transportation and neighborhood amenities.
“Our seniors and those living with a disability deserve affordable and safe housing that meets their specific needs,” Fitzpatrick said. “I’m proud to partner with Congressman Evans on the bipartisan Visitable Inclusive Tax Credits for Accessible Living Act to address the lack of affordable housing for our vulnerable communities.”
The VITAL Act would increase funding for the LIHTC and, through adding incentives, increase the number of accessible homes so that more people with disabilities and older adults can live in the communities they choose. It would also require over three years that the states administering LIHTC construct at least 20 percent of their LIHTC units as accessible or adaptable and walkable/rollable. ••
Dignity for women inmates
The House passed H.B. 900, sponsored by Reps. Tina Davis and Morgan Cephas, sending it to the Senate for consideration.
H.B. 900 would create protections for pregnant or postpartum incarcerated women, including prohibiting shackling and solitary confinement; providing trauma-informed care training of corrections officers interacting with pregnant and postpartum women; and providing up to three days of post-delivery bonding time between a mother and newborn child, among other protections.
Davis said, “As the number of pregnant or postpartum incarcerated women rise, we must ensure they are afforded special protection in our corrections facilities. We must treat all individuals with dignity, and that includes incarcerated women.” ••
Cockpit barriers on new aircraft
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick released a statement after the Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration announcement on a final rule regarding secondary cockpit barriers on all newly manufactured commercial aircraft.
At the urging of members of Congress, this provision for a rule was included in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 and was required to be issued by no later than October 2019. In July 2022, the FAA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and solicited public comment for the next 60 days. The final rule will require, within two years, that all passenger aircraft coming off production lines are equipped with lifesaving secondary barriers.
“Since I first came to Congress, I have fought to make our skies and aircraft more secure for our pilots, flight crews, passengers and their families. After five years of waiting, I am proud to see that the Department of Transportation has issued this final rule to require secondary cockpit barriers on covered passenger aircraft from the moment of manufacture,” Fitzpatrick said. “I am grateful for the continued partnership of my colleagues from both sides of the aisle on this issue, as well as the exceptional advocacy of my friend Ellen Saracini, whose husband Captain Victor Saracini perished on September 11, 2001, when the flight he was piloting was hijacked and flown into the World Trade Center. While yesterday’s action is a step in the right direction, this fight is far from being over. As Congress works to formulate the reauthorization of the FAA this year, and until we ensure the safety of the flight deck from physical intrusion, I will not stop pushing for extending the requirement for secondary cockpit barriers to all passenger airplanes.”
Fitzpatrick, alongside a wide range of colleagues, reintroduced H.R. 911, the Saracini Enhanced Aviation Safety Act, in February. This legislation would extend the requirement for secondary cockpit barriers to all commercial aircraft and ensure that Congress lives up to the national promise to “Never Again” allow the events of Sept. 11 to recur. It remains a top priority for Fitzpatrick to include this provision in the 2023 FAA Reauthorization package. ••
Presentations on estate planning
Bucks County Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans’ Court Linda Bobrin will be giving presentations at senior centers across Bucks County, addressing the importance of estate planning.
Half-hour-long presentations will be held on the following dates: July 13, at 12:30 p.m., at Central Bucks Senior Center; July 19 at 11 a.m., at Morrisville Senior Center; July 26 at 10:30 a.m., at Bristol Borough Area Active Adult Center; Aug. 1 at 1 p.m., at Eastern Upper Bucks Senior Center; Sept. 11 at 11 a.m., at Upper Bucks Senior Center; Sept. 19 at 10 a.m., at Bensalem Senior Citizens Association; and Oct. 6 at 9:30 a.m., at Northampton Township James E. Kinney Center.
For more information, email Rachel Landsberg at ralandsberg@buckscounty.org. ••
Lower interest rates on student loans
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, along with Reps. Mike Turner, Donald Norcross and Lloyd Doggett, introduced the Student Loan Refinancing Act.
The legislation would amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 by creating a pathway for federal student loan holders to refinance their loans while still remaining public borrowers.
“Our nation’s student loan crisis is unsustainable and should not be a partisan issue in Congress,” Fitzpatrick said. “The commonsense, common-ground legislation we are introducing today would give borrowers the ability to refinance their loans at lower interest rates. I am grateful to partner with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle on the Student Loan Refinancing Act to ensure that American families and borrowers have more flexibility as they work to pay back their loans.” ••
Farry office hours in Bensalem
State Sen. Frank Farry (R-6th dist.) is offering satellite office hours the first Wednesday of every month, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Bensalem Township Municipal Building, 2400 Byberry Road, Bensalem.
Farry’s staff will be on site to assist with state government services; Property Tax/Rent Rebate applications, birth and death certificate applications, SEPTA Senior Key card registrations and renewals; and unemployment issues. ••
Lower South supervisor meeting schedule
The Lower Southampton Township Board of Supervisors will meet on Wednesday, June 28, at 7:30 p.m., at the Township Building, 1500 Desire Ave., Feasterville.
Future meetings, all at the same times and location, are scheduled for July 12, Aug. 9, Sept. 13 and 27, Oct. 11 and 25, Nov. 8 and 20 and Dec. 13 and 20. ••
Bensalem Council meeting schedule
Bensalem Township Council meetings are generally held on the second and fourth Mondays of each month at 7 p.m. in the Municipal Building at 2400 Byberry Road, Bensalem.
Meetings can be viewed live on Comcast Xfinity Channel 22 in Bensalem and on Verizon Fios Channel 34 throughout Bucks County. They can also be streamed live on the Bensalem Township YouTube channel.
The schedule is July 10 and 24, Aug. 14 and 28, Sept. 11, Oct. 16, Nov. 13 and 27 and Dec. 4 (budget meeting) and 11. ••
Bensalem school board meeting schedule
The Bensalem Township Board of School Directors holds meetings on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 7:30 p.m. at the Dorothy D. Call Administrative Center, 3000 Donallen Drive, Bensalem.
Upcoming meetings will take place on Aug. 22, Sept. 26, Oct. 24, Nov. 28 and Dec. 19 (third Tuesday).
The public is invited to attend.
Due to summer vacation, the board will not meet during July.
The School Board annual reorganization meeting will be held on Monday, Dec. 4, at 7 p.m. ••
Commissioners meeting July 5
The Bucks County Commissioners will hold their next meeting on Wednesday, July 5, at 10:30 a.m. at the Bucks County Administration Building, 55 E. Court St., in Doylestown.
The meeting will be broadcast on the county’s YouTube channel.
Future meetings will be on July 19, Aug. 2, Aug. 16, Sept. 6, Sept. 20, Oct. 4, Oct. 18, Nov. 1, Nov. 15, Dec. 6 and Dec. 20. ••
