Here you will find video clips about important events that have taken place during the current and past Legislative Sessions. en Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST HouseRep RSS v1.0 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification State Rep. Torren Ecker (R- Adams, Cumberland) interviews House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff to discuss legislation that cuts several layers of red tape when patients are trying to access potentially life-saving cancer treatments.

Click To Watch

]]> Tue, 05 Oct 2021 20:48:00 EST A package of legislation designed to highlight the actions of our Veterans and enhance programs that aid in their well-being was the focus at a press conference held in Solder’s Grove in Harrisburg on Wednesday. Majority Leader Benninghoff stressed the commitment we all have - providing for the needs of those who sacrificed on our behalf.

Click To Watch

]]> Wed, 09 Jun 2021 18:47:00 EST A recent data breach exposing the data of over 70,000 Pennsylvanians was the topic of discussion at a recent press conference held in Harrisburg. Lawmakers called for an investigation seeking further information about how a company which was given a no-bid contract by the Wolf administration failed to protect the personal data of tens of thousands of Commonwealth residents.

Click To Watch

]]> Mon, 03 May 2021 20:42:00 EST Majority Leader Benninghoff was a Guest on WPHT's Dom Giordano Program - November 4, 2020.

Click To Watch

]]> Wed, 04 Nov 2020 16:51:00 EST House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff talks with RJ Harris on WHP 580 on 9-2-20. Topics include the Governor's extension of his COVID-19 emergency declaration,and his nonsensical calls for recreational marijuana, and h House Republican efforts to get restaurants and small businesses some help.

Click To Watch

]]> Wed, 02 Sep 2020 14:55:00 EST House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff Joins KDKA Radio on 8-28-20.

Click To Watch

]]> Fri, 28 Aug 2020 23:20:00 EST On this PA Policy Podcast, House Republican Caucus Spokesman Jason Gottesman discusses the Governor’s recent “clarification” on safely reopening schools, and his “one man’s opinion” on school sports in the fall – announcements that throw a wrench into the plans of school districts across the Commonwealth.

Click To Watch

]]> Fri, 21 Aug 2020 17:49:00 EST Newly Elected Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff (Centre, Mifflin) introduces the new House Republican Leadership Team.

Click To Watch

]]> Tue, 23 Jun 2020 03:17:00 EST House Republicans held the line on state spending over multiple budget cycles, and now those smart fiscal policies are paying off. The House Appropriations Committee says revenue collections for the month of April were more than $4.4 billion, which is $465 million more than the Department of Revenue’s official estimate. For the 2018-19 fiscal year, general fund collections total $29.16 billion year-to-date, which is $828.5 million above the official revenue estimate. Rep. Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre & Mifflin) said the good fiscal news for the Commonwealth is the direct result of Republican leadership in efforts to control the growth of state spending and to stand up for taxpayers while the governor has called for tax increases.

Click To Watch

]]> Wed, 01 May 2019 20:25:00 EST Pennsylvania-born adoptees from around the country joined together at the state Capitol on Monday to celebrate their recently restored right to access their original birth certificates, which had been sealed since 1984. Legislation sponsored by Rep. Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre/Mifflin) reinstated the rights of adult adoptees to apply for and receive a non-certified copy of their original birth certificate in Pennsylvania. Although Benninghoff’s bill became law on Nov. 3, 2016; it was not until Nov. 3, 2017 that the state Department of Health began actually processing those requests. Under previous Pennsylvania law, adoptees could petition the courts for a copy of their original birth certificate; however, that request could have been denied by a judge. Rep. Benninghoff, who also recently received his own birth certificate information through the new law, offered the following comments on how this has helped thousands of Pennsylvania born adoptees to reconnect with their roots.

Click To Watch

]]> Mon, 22 Jan 2018 23:15:00 EST House Republican lawmakers and business leaders introduced a package of Regulatory Reforms Tuesday in Harrisburg aimed at improving the state’s business climate and reining-in government regulatory overreach. The bill are based on information gathered in the House State Government Committee’s Regulatory Overreach Report, which included findings from a series of public hearings held across the state last year that included testimony from various employers, organizations and experts on state regulatory policy. The report called for reforms to Pennsylvania’s restrictive regulatory system that is credited with holding back business development, limiting job creation and crippling economic growth. House Policy Committee Chairman Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre & Mifflin) offered comments on the package of legislation.

Click To Watch

]]> Tue, 16 Jan 2018 23:41:00 EST House Republican lawmakers called for action on legislation to help contain costs and bring real reform to Pennsylvania’s welfare system. Reps. Aaron Kaufer (R-Luzerne) and Mike Tobash (R-Schuylkill/Dauphin) announced a package of bills Tuesday in Harrisburg to give more Pennsylvania families an opportunity to improve their quality of life, while tackling waste, fraud and abuse from within the current benefit system. The package also contains measures aimed at enhancing the value of work and strong families, while recognizing that those receiving benefits need help to gain financial independence, not continue a life of dependence. House Majority Policy Committee Chairman Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre & Mifflin) attended the news conference and offered comments on the package of legislation.

Click To Watch

]]> Tue, 02 Jan 2018 21:49:00 EST House Republican lawmakers are calling on Governor Wolf to sign welfare reform legislation now on his desk to help control spending on state human services programs that are growing at a rate that outpaces available revenue. House Bill 59 would help contain costs for entitlement programs and includes reasonable reforms like work or job search requirements for able-bodied Medicaid recipients. House Republican leaders and a large number of rank and file members joined Tuesday in asking for the governor to sign the reform bill and not follow through on his threatened veto. Majority Policy Committee Chairman Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre/Mifflin) commented at the Capitol press conference on the bill.

Click To Watch

]]> Tue, 17 Oct 2017 22:48:00 EST Legislation designed to reform Pennsylvania’s state employee and public school employee retirement systems has been approved by the Pennsylvania House. Senate Bill 1 would establish a hybrid retirement benefit plan, including defined benefit and defined contribution components. New employees would be mandatory members of the new hybrid plan.

Click To Watch

]]> Thu, 08 Jun 2017 20:51:00 EST Tackling Pennsylvania’s opioid crisis was the topic of a bipartisan hearing held Monday by state lawmakers in Venango County. The event was the beginning of an eight stop tour across the Commonwealth by members of both the House and Senate to gather testimony from experts about the growing drug epidemic and how it is impacting communities. At the conclusion of the tour, the House Policy Committee will make legislative and policy recommendations for the Legislature to consider when it reconvenes this fall for a special session on the opioid crisis. House Majority Policy Committee Chairman Rep. Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre & Mifflin) said lawmakers must do all they can to give communities the tools they need to address the many facets of opioid addiction.

Click To Watch

]]> Tue, 02 Aug 2016 21:23:00 EST Lawmakers took action Wednesday in the state capitol to provide essential funding for the remainder of the 2015/2016 state budget. The current year’s fiscal plan remains unresolved due to the Governor’s line-item vetoes of more than $6 billion for basic and higher education, as well as money for the Department of Corrections and agriculture programs. The House and Senate put forth the supplemental budget legislation to address funding holes created by the Governor’s vetoes and restore state funding for these programs. The funding bill approved today provides for a 200 million dollar increase for basic education, a 5 percent increase for higher education, and ensures that no schools will close in the Commonwealth. House Majority Policy Comm. Chair Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre & Mifflin) said it is past time to complete the budget and provide much needed funding for schools and other critical state programs.

Click To Watch

]]> Thu, 17 Mar 2016 02:09:00 EST House Republican lawmakers from northern Pennsylvania are speaking out in opposition to Gov. Tom Wolf’s demand for massive tax increases, including an increase to the Personal Income Tax as part of his annual budget proposal. That 11 percent tax increase would be retroactive to Jan. 1, 2016 and amount to an annual tax hike of $2.7 billion. Speaking at a small business in Clearfield County on Thursday, legislators said Wolf’s proposal for extensive tax hikes is being opposed by a large majority of Pennsylvanians – working families, senior citizens and small business owners. House Republicans also called on Wolf to release education funds to prevent the closure of public schools in the state. Wolf cut $3 billion in basic education funding as part of his partial veto of the House-passed budget. The lawmakers said the governor should work with the Legislature to develop solutions that keep the state operating without resorting to broad-based tax increases.

Click To Watch

]]> Thu, 10 Mar 2016 22:51:00 EST House lawmakers joined dozens of Penn State Ag Council members and 4-H members Wednesday in the state capitol to call for the restoration of more than $50 million in funding for the university’s agriculture research and extension programs. A failure to restore the funding vetoed in December by Governor Wolf would force Penn State University to begin shutting down its agriculture operations and outreach by May 1st, putting at risk an estimated 1,100 jobs within Penn State Extension and research. In addition to the impact on jobs, eliminating the $50 million investment could cause an economic loss for the state of more than $260 million. And it would also mean an end to Penn State’s 4-H program, which helps to prepare future leaders in the state’s agriculture community. Rep. Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre & Mifflin) attended the event and commented on the effort to restore this crucial funding.

Click To Watch

]]> Wed, 09 Mar 2016 21:59:00 EST The House Majority Policy Committee today launched PennSAVE, a Republican-led effort to find ways to save taxpayer dollars by cutting government waste and inefficiencies. The PennSAVE acronym stands for: savings, accountability, value and efficiency. The special task force will be run by a subcommittee of the House Majority Policy Committee and will research several potential cost-saving measures across state government, including state agency and program consolidations; unaddressed audit findings; reform of government procurement policies and “corporate welfare” programs, as well as overall waste, fraud and abuse in the system. Comments are now available from House Majority Policy Committee Chairman Rep. Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre & Mifflin) on this new cost saving initiative.

Click To Watch

]]> Mon, 22 Feb 2016 22:16:00 EST House lawmakers offered their reactions to Gov. Tom Wolf’s spending proposal for fiscal year 2016-17, which he announced today in an address before a joint session of the General Assembly. The governor’s budget plan would increase taxes on working Pennsylvanians and employers by $3.6 billion and spending by 10 percent, or $3 billion, and calls for $33.3 billion in total spending. To support his proposed spending plan the governor has proposed 15 new tax increases, including a retroactive increase in the Personal Income Tax on Pennsylvania workers.

Click To Watch

]]> Tue, 09 Feb 2016 23:33:00 EST