Alois: Why I Want to Be Your State Representative

I am Beth Alois, the Democratic Candidate for State Representative in the 168th District.  These are the reasons I want to go to Harrisburg to represent you.

Our Public Schools 

We must stop the cuts in State funding for the money the school districts use to actually teach our children.  These funds have been cut in the last two budgets. There are four very good school districts in the 168th: Rose Tree Media, Wallingford-Swarthmore, Marple Newtown and West Chester.  Keeping these schools well-funded not only ensures quality educations to prepare our children for the future, it also keeps our property values high and the need for increased property taxes low.

The trend toward charter schools controlled by for-profit businesses is a threat to solid school districts.  These charter schools will drain money and resources from our public schools.

Our local public institutions of higher education, DCCC, Cheyney University and Penn State Brandywine, should receive adequate funding from the State to provide the education Pennsylvanians need for the jobs of the 21st Century. 

Women’s Health Care Rights and Protection of Access to Health Care for All Pennsylvanians 

Women should be able to make choices about their reproductive health care without the interference of Harrisburg. Governor Corbett’s comment that, “you just have to close your eyes” was an embarrassment for the State and showed a total lack of respect for women’s ability to make their own choices. The State Legislature should stop wasting time on dozens of bills introduced to stop women’s access to birth control, health care testing, education and counseling at Planned Parenthood.

State funding cuts for access to health care and social services should be restored.  Many poor Pennsylvanians lost their AdultBasic health care coverage and 88,000 children lost Medicaid support recently.  These uninsured and underinsured citizens will eventually need medical assistance, usually at the most expensive source, the emergency room.  If we have an adequately insured populace, many problems will be dealt with at least expensive source, a family practitioner or a local health clinic.  This will stop the drain on expensive emergency room resources which the Middle Class pays for through higher insurance fees. 

Our Economy 

The State should focus on creation of small business tax incentives that reward job creation and retention.  We must encourage the research and development of technologies that bring more jobs to Pennsylvania. The unreasonably low impact fees on the Marcellus Shale natural gas extraction in Act 13 have resulted in the loss of millions of dollars in revenue which could have been used for education, transportation infrastructure and environmental protection. These in turn could have created thousands of jobs for Pennsylvanians. We should encourage an increase in the 7 percent of the State GDP that comes from exports by strengthening the State programs that help companies capture business overseas.

My opponent Tom Killion is consistently supporting Governor Corbett’s extremely conservative agenda including cuts to public schools and health care, favoring charter schools over public schools, the Mandatory Invasive Ultrasound Bill, and Act 13.

My positions are the better reflection of the interests of the citizens of the 168th District. I am asking for your vote on November 6 to be your Representative in Harrisburg. 

Beth Alois is the Democratic Candidate for State Representative in the 168th District.  She has been endorsed by the Delaware County Daily Times. She is a local Realtor; formerly she was a Librarian and a Community Liaison Officer for the US Department of State. She is Vice-chairwoman of the Thornbury Township Democratic Committee and a member of the Board of Directors of the Chadds Ford Business Association.

The 168th District includes parts of Delaware County (Media, Middletown, Edgmont, Thornbury, Rose Valley, and parts of Upper Providence, Nether Providence, and Newtown) and Westtown Township in Chester County.