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Pennsylvania's 12th Legislative District: |
"I will continue to be a servant of the people...." |
         In The News: |
Policy Changes; Pittsburgh Police Can't Question Immigration StatusUpdated: 6:35 pm EDT July 27, 2010
PITTSBURGH -- A new law in Arizona gives police broad sweeping powers to question a person’s immigration status, but it's a question Pittsburgh police are not allowed to ask. Channel 11 News reporter Rick Earle talked to several Pittsburgh police officers, who expressed concern about the new regulation. The officers didn't want to go on camera, but they said they believe the new policy will limit their ability to do their job. And they have the support of state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, who's introduced legislation similar to Arizona's. “The policies that are being put in place to discourage local law enforcement from doing their job, from enforcing the law, enforcing federal law, that already exists,” said Metcalfe. “Illegal aliens are here illegally. That's why they're called illegal aliens.” Metcalfe also said what's even more disturbing about the new Pittsburgh policy is the time limit officers have to hold illegal immigrants. If federal authorities don't pick them up in four hours, police must release them. “They have a known criminal in their hands, somebody who's broken federal law, invaded our company and now they are going to release them to possibly do additional crimes against their fellow citizens,” said Metcalfe. “That's not right.” Metcalfe said he believes there are 140,000 illegal immigrants in Pennsylvania, costing taxpayers more than $700 million every year. He also contends that the federal government has failed to enforce immigration law. But others argue that local police don't have the resources and expertise to do it. And the American Civil Liberties Union said it will ultimately hamper police. View video...
Is Republican Leadership Herding Cats?Most Republicans don't follow leaders' budget voteJULY 1, 2010 | by JIM PANYARD
A funny thing happened in the House Republican caucus on the way to the passage of the state's $28 billion General Fund budget Wednesday. All the Republican leadership voted for the bill, while 80 percent of the rank-and-file members did not.
The controversial measure, relying on more than $1 billion in unsecured funding, passed by a vote of 117-84. One hundred one of 104 Democrats voted for the measure, along with 16 Republicans, including all seven members of the House Republican leadership. Leaders are elected by the members of the caucus.
Eighty-two rank-and-file Republicans voted against the measure.
...Less delicate in his remarks was state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler), who said, "I think the leadership sat down in their behind closed doors meetings and they said they didn't like the negative PR from the late budget last year. They decided they needed to minimize the public relations impact from not getting the budget passed on time.
"I think many of us were blindsided when (appropriations chair Bill) Adolph stood on the floor and announced his support of the budget last night. We weren't aware of the agreement they had made with the Democrat leadership to support the budget," Mr. Metcalfe said.
In the caucus meeting before the final vote, Mr. Metcalfe said leadership, "...took us up to caucus and our leadership explained the decision to support the budget. They said it gave them a seat at the table for the negotiations.
"I think the voters have to hold every rank-and-file member accountable for election of a leader who goes against the majority opinion of the caucus," Mr. Metcalfe said.
"I think ultimately we have to see some or all or these leaders challenged. Ideally it would be nice to replace all the leaders who make such irresponsible decisions," Mr. Metcalfe added. Read more....
Associated PressDems pull Pa. House vote on natural gas taxBy MARK SCOLFORO , 06.16.10, 08:12 AM EDT 
HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Democrats abruptly yanked a bill to tax natural gas extraction and tobacco products from the Pennsylvania House floor Tuesday after a spirited debate that exposed internal divisions over what would constitute an integral piece of the state budget puzzle.
The setback for House Democratic leaders concerned their proposal to raise $142 million from Marcellus shale natural gas drilling and use 80 percent of it for the state's general fund.
Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler, said voters want to see taxes cut, not increased.
"Any increase in the tax burden hurts every taxpayer, because it increases the appetite of the monster in Harrisburg that keeps devouring tax dollars," Metcalfe said. Read more....
Metcalfe finishes 3rd in Republican lt. governor race
Published: May 19, 2010
For state
Rep.
Tuesday's election set
stage for hard-fought fall campaigns Published:
May 20, 2010 ….From the
.
Daryl Metcalfe interview on FOX's "Strategy Room" on Tuesday, May 11, discussing the illegal alien invasion.
Daryl Metcalfe on FOX's "Neil Cavuto" on Monday, May 10, discussing the illegal alien invasion.
Daryl Metcalfe on FOX's "Fox and Friends" on Saturday, May 8, discussing the illegal alien invasion.
Daryl Metcalfe announces legislation to address the illegal alien invasion.
Recognized by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as the Pennsylvania General Assembly’s “No. 1 Conservative” and a multiple-time, highest-ranking lawmaker on the Pennsylvania Liberty Index, Metcalfe’s uncompromising record of protecting taxpayers and family values, includes:
► Signing the Americans for Tax Reform pledge and never voting for a tax increase during more than 11 years in office. ► Spearheading the successful repeal of the
unconstitutional 2005
state government pay raise. ► Working to reduce the waste, inefficiency and
cost of welfare. ► Preserving
Second Amendment liberty and organizing
► Standing up for
state’s rights and founding a national coalition of state legislators dedicated
to ending
► Fighting to stop state tax dollars from going to Planned Parenthood, the world’s largest abortion provider. ► Defending marriage between one man and one
woman. ► Restoring parental control over a child’s
education. ► Outlawing teacher strikes and compulsory
unionism.
Lt. gov. candidate says he'd hold governor accountable
Bucks County Courier Times
Last week, state House Rep. Daryl Metcalfe introduced House Bill 2479, described as an Arizona-style immigration law that would give police new, wide-reaching power to enforce immigration laws.
GOP lieutenant governor candidate Daryl Metcalfe is running on a simple platform: the governor should do what the Butler County state lawmaker believes Pennsylvania residents want - or else.
And, what Metcalfe, 47, believes Pennsylvanians want is the person running the state to protect their pocketbooks and personal freedoms.
If the next governor doesn't, Metcalfe promises he'll "publicly expose" him and, if necessary, launch a challenge in the next primary.
"It's very sad we expect politicians to lie. I will be there to hold him accountable," Metcalfe told about 50 people at a campaign stop at the American Legion Post in Yardley Tuesday. "We get our liberties from God, not the government."
Metcalf, who calls himself "the" leading conservative state House lawmaker, has served in the state legislature since 1998. He is an opponent of labor unions and teacher strikes, who is against gay marriage and abortion.
Last week the Cranberry Township resident introduced House Bill 2479, described as an Arizona-style immigration law that would give state and local police new, wide-reaching power to enforce immigration laws.
The bill would provide state and local law enforcement with full authority to arrest illegal aliens for any public offense which would warrant removal from the United States, as well require law enforcement officers to attempt to verify the immigration status of suspected illegal aliens.
A whopping nine Republicans are competing in Tuesday's primary for the job as the state's second in command, a position that pays $146,926 this year with full state benefits, including state police protection, but requires few job duties, unless the governor cannot lead.
Bucks County Commissioner James Cawley is the endorsed GOP candidate for lieutenant governor. In his stump speech, Metcalfe talked about the corruption in Harrisburg, much of it he blamed on union power, saying he has spent his tenure fighting labor unions, particularly the teacher unions. He portrayed himself as a political outsider reviled by the old-boy network.
On other political issues, Metcalfe told the crowd:
Teacher strikes/unions
Pennsylvania "needs to be the 38th" state to outlaw teacher strikes, calling teachers unions an "archaic system." He talked about the money that unions lavish on legislators to buy influence. He warned of the major tax increases that will be necessary to cover unfunded pension liabilities the legislature adopted in 2001 for the Public School Employee Retirement System and the State Employee Retirement System, which covers state employees including lawmakers.
Illegal immigration
"We have an invasion occurring," he said, adding that illegal aliens are committing crimes because the nation hasn't secured the border. He says laws that cut off benefits and access to employment will lead to "self deportation."
Gun laws
Again, described himself as "the" strongest advocate of the second amendment of the U.S. Constitution in the state legislature. "It is the foundation for all other rights," he said.
Term limits
He opposes them. "We have term limits, if people would vote," he said. Metcalfe is also running a simultaneous re-election campaign to keep his state House seat. May 12, 2010 03:03 AM
 Other states taking cue from Arizona lawLegislators call feds 'AWOL' on 'invaders'May 10, 2010 A controversial law passed in Arizona giving state and local police the right to arrest anyone reasonably suspected of being an illegal immigrant is catching on nationwide, with lawmakers and others in several states considering similar legislation.
Concerned about the federal government's failure to secure the nation's borders, legislators and political candidates from Georgia to Colorado have introduced bills to beef up local immigration enforcement, have promised to do so or said they would support such legislation if offered.
"With the federal government currently AWOL in fulfilling its constitutional responsibilities to protect American lives, property and jobs against the clear and present dangers of illegal-alien invaders, state lawmakers … are left with no choice but to take individual action to address this critical economic and national security epidemic," said Pennsylvania state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe.
Mr. Metcalfe, a Republican who introduced legislation last week modeled on the Arizona law, said his bill would give "every illegal alien residing in Pennsylvania two options: Leave immediately or go to jail." His bill would, among other things, give state and local law enforcement officials full authority to apprehend Pennsylvania's estimated 140,000 illegal immigrants and require law enforcement officers to attempt to verify the immigration status of suspected illegal immigrants. It also would make it a criminal offense for illegal immigrants to fail to register as foreigners or to have proof that they did.
South Carolina state Rep. Eric Bedingfield, a Republican, has sponsored a bill in that state allowing the verification of a person's immigration status and providing for the "warrantless arrest of persons suspected of being present in the United States unlawfully."
Mr. Bedingfield's bill also would target illegal immigrants who fail to complete or carry legal registration documents and would criminalize "hiring and picking up workers at different locations while impeding traffic." He said his constituents are concerned about illegal immigration and that he had received numerous communications from constituents asking when South Carolina would take the additional step as lawmakers did in Arizona. The bill, he said, has 20 to 30 co-sponsors and is pending in the House, but it might be difficult to get it to the Senate floor before the end of the session June 1.
In Oklahoma, state Rep. Randy Terrill said he and some other lawmakers still hope to pass a bill similar to Arizona's new law this session and "go beyond it." Mr. Terrill, a longtime advocate for tougher immigration laws, said his group also would like the legislation to include tougher penalties for illegal immigrants caught with firearms.
Mr. Terrill, a Republican, said Oklahoma used to have the toughest laws against illegal immigrants but that Arizona is now No. 1.
 The Metcalfe proposal: The time has comeFriday, May 7, 2010
Pennsylvania shares the problems that the federal government's failure to enforce immigration laws creates for states that border Mexico. Thus, it's fitting that Pennsylvania share Arizona's solution for those problems.
State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, deserves praise for introducing a reasonable, practical bill -- modeled on Arizona's new anti-illegal-aliens measure -- that deserves to become law. It would give state and local police authority to detain anyone who can't prove legal residency when stopped for another, "primary" offense, such as a traffic violation.
Despite that provision, politically motivated opponents are squawking about "racial profiling!" -- and Democrat Gov. Ed Rendell is threatening a veto. But state Rep. Harry Readshaw, D-Carrick, stood with Rep. Metcalfe as he announced the bill, so this isn't simply a party-line issue.
State taxpayers of all political persuasions no doubt would like to stop spending what the Federation for American Immigration Reform pegs at $728 million annually to educate, incarcerate and provide medical care for an estimated 144,000 illegals.
Arizona's law has immense public support. Hopefully, so will Metcalfe's bill, helping to convince Harrisburg to do what's right for Americans in Pennsylvania. |
|
By
Brad Bumsted and Jim Ritchie |
"I don't trust this
administration and this governor to have the long-term interests of taxpayers in
mind," Metcalfe said. The turnpike "is the foundation of our infrastructure,
paid for over decades by taxpayers and drivers of
HARRISBURG -- Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld Indiana's law requiring voters to present photo identification, state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe wants to enact the same kind of law in Pennsylvania.
The Cranberry Republican has introduced House Bill 2519, which would require anyone wishing to vote to show one of several forms of photo ID when arriving at a polling place: a valid driver's license issued by PennDOT; a valid state or federal government employee ID; a valid employee ID card issued by an employer; a valid U.S. passport, student ID or armed forces ID; a voter ID card issued by a county registration commission.
Currently in Pennsylvania, only first-time voters have to present a photo ID. Some critics said a photo ID shouldn't be required because some people, especially retired senior citizens who don't drive, may not have a photo ID and thus would be deprived of the right to vote.
But Mr. Metcalfe said his bill is needed "in order to bar corrupt politicians, special interests and any other integrity-deficient individuals from executing unfair, criminal influence at the ballot box." He said requiring a photo ID would prevent illegal aliens, among others, from voting......
By Brad Bumsted Tuesday, April 8, 2008 |
….When a gun is lost or stolen "the victim should not get punished," said Larry Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners of America.
Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, told gun owners to carry a message to the 75 House members who voted for the [Levdansky gun] amendment. It's time to "educate those folks," said Metcalfe, who was backed by about 40 lawmakers of both parties at the rally.
"A truly safe and liberty-advancing society is an armed society," Metcalfe said....
Legislators react to Rendell budget
By
Tom Yera
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Local Democratic and Republican state legislators may not agree on what's good and bad in Gov. Ed Rendell's proposed budget, but they agree on one thing: when it's approved, the governor may not recognize it.
"[The governor] basically wants to give a bonus to taxpayers who don't pay as much into the personal income, and it's on the backs of the hard working men and women of Pennsylvania who do pay more in," said state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry. "If they want to give money back to anyone in the state, they ought to decrease the (personal income tax), which they raised a few years ago, to give money back to all the hard working men and women of Pennsylvania."
Bill Aims to Help States Catch Criminal Aliens
By Kevin Mooney
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
October 25, 2007
(CNSNews.com) - Rape, kidnapping, drug smuggling, assault, burglary,
murder and fraud convictions have been imposed on illegal aliens found to be
residing throughout Pennsylvania in both rural and urban settings over the past
few years, a new report shows.
The state is now experiencing an "invasion" of illegal immigration
interconnected with heightened criminal activity and rising costs imposed on
taxpayers, Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, a Republican state representative from the 12th
district in Butler County, told Cybercast News Service. In cooperation
with other Republican lawmakers, Metcalfe recently issued a report entitled
"Invasion PA."
"When you look at the cost to our education system, our health care system and
incarceration costs, you are looking at hundreds of millions of dollars being
spent on illegal aliens that could otherwise be spent to improve the lives of
our citizens and reduce taxes," he said.
"We are seeing a wide range of crimes being committed by people who should not
be on our soil," Metcalfe added.
The
report was put together to promote pending state legislation that would
"shut off the economic faucet that attracts illegals into Pennsylvania" and
provide local law enforcement with additional tools, Metcalfe said.
One of the policy changes Metcalfe has called for is greater participation in
the 287g program. As Cybercast News Service previously
reported, the program allows for state law enforcement officials to be
trained in federal immigration law.
Over 3,000 "illegal alien invaders" have been involved in criminal activity,
according to the report. But the actual number of incidents is probably much
higher, Metcalfe pointed out, since a number of crimes go unreported.
The human trafficking operations now at work in Philadelphia are particularly
disconcerting, Metcalfe said. The city has been identified as an emerging
gateway for this type of criminal activity by the Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA), the report states.
The nexus between illegal immigration and organized crime has caught the
attention of some lawmakers on Capitol Hill who now favor increased
federal-state cooperation where criminal aliens are concerned.
To this end, Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) has introduced the Clear Act (HR
3494), which would give local officials the authority to apprehend and
detain criminal aliens, so they can be turned over to federal agents in an
expedited fashion. Blackburn's bill would also allow for local law enforcement
to have access to federal crime-tracking databases.
"We have narrowly drawn the legislation so that it just addresses the criminal
aliens and absconders," she said. "We are talking about individuals who are
known lawbreakers. The Clear Act would close off existing loopholes so that it
becomes more difficult for a criminal alien to remain in the country."
The Clear Act would also help local officials who encounter illegal aliens
involved with gang activity and drug trafficking operations, Blackburn
explained. "The databases can be a real help because there are repeat offenders
who use aliases and this information can be compiled and shared with local
officials," she suggested.
But not everyone is keen on the idea of giving state agents greater latitude in
the realm of immigration law.
The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), a Hispanic civil rights group, is
ardently opposed to the Clear Act. Once state and local police officers become
identified with the enforcement of federal immigration law, their relationship
will sour with the Latino community, NCLR has argued on its
Web
site.
"We have grave concerns that are shared by local law enforcement across the
country," Lisa Navarrete, an NCLR spokeswoman said.
"The involvement of state and local officials with immigration law takes away
from their primary job, which is to ensure public safety. We believe it [the
Clear Act] compromises public safety because the police are being asked to do
something they are not trained to do," she said.
The Clear Act has the advantage of "attacking the lowest hanging fruit" in the
form of criminal aliens, Steve Camarota, director of research for the Center for
Immigration Studies (CIS), told Cybercast News Service in an interview.
Although House Democratic leadership is inclined to sidestep the issue for now,
some of the more conservative Democratic members have expressed support,
Camarota observed. For this reason alone the Clear Act is likely to resurface in
the not too distant future, even if it does not get a fair hearing in the
current congressional session, he added.
For those of you who think there are no longer any patriots among American office holders, I offer Daryl Metcalfe, a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, as Exhibit 1.
What does a lowly state representative from Butler County have to do with you? He is a modern-day Paul Revere and just may be the last great hope for those of us who want our borders secured and our immigration laws enforced.
Instead of a borrowed horse, Metcalfe and his small but dedicated staff ride the phone lines and the Internet into the night in the effort to warn state representatives in all 50 states of the impending danger and urge them to join the effort to protect the American people against this foreign invasion that is undermining our national security and draining our resources. The legislators who have joined him have pledged to get the job done at the state and local level by cutting off all economic incentives to these invaders. Presently, lawmakers from 25 state legislatures have signed on as pioneer members of State Legislators for Legal Immigration
It's not only a time-consuming task, but there is absolutely no economic incentive for Metcalfe. Imagine that! Metcalfe is an Army veteran who spent two years defending the border between East and West Germany during the Cold War, and he is appalled that the federal government will not defend our borders against invaders armed with little more than the clothes on their backs. To say we cannot defend our borders is disingenuous at the very least.
Through the efforts of Rep. Metcalfe and others, the Pennsylvania Legislature passed a joint concurrent resolution calling on President George W. Bush and the United States Congress to secure our borders and protect American citizens from the dangers of unlawful invasion and illegal immigration. Late last year, it was sent to members of the Pennsylvania delegation in Washington and to the White House. What was the result? It was completely ignored!
Metcalfe and his legislative colleagues then redoubled their efforts. In March, they introduced the National Security Begins at Home package, which contains five new bills designed to shut off employment access and other economic faucets that have been luring illegal aliens to their state.
While the president and members of Congress missed the message voters were trying to send in the 2006 election, state legislators got that message loud and clear. In 2007, 1,169 illegal-immigration reform bills and resolutions have been introduced in the 50 states, more than double the number for all of last year. Fifty-seven of those reform measures already have been enacted.
Metcalfe's counterpart in the Arizona Legislature is Rep. Russell Pearce, a charter member of State Legislators for Legal Immigration. The actions of Sen. Kyl left him perplexed and caused dozens of Republicans in his state to change their party affiliation in disgust.
Ironically, any meaningful reform legislation Pearce could get through his state legislature would be vetoed by Democrat Gov. Janet Napolitano. Therefore, he has worked tirelessly to get a series of reform measures on the ballot, which have been overwhelmingly approved by voters. More are in progress.
Kyl was re-elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006 as a staunch conservative and a strong advocate for border security and true immigration reform. During that campaign, Kyl was asked for his definition of amnesty. It was this: "Any bill that allows those who enter this country illegally to remain in the U.S." The bill Kyl just brokered would do just that.
Want to know why Kyl and his comrades have named their new visa for illegals the "Z" visa? "It's as far away from the 'A' word as they can get," Pearce quipped. "I call it 'zamnesty.'"
It's no secret why the president went after Kyl to broker a compromise, but why did Kyl acquiesce? Was he promised a Supreme Court nomination should another vacancy occur? What about the attorney general's post? We will have to wait and see.
Yes, there are many things that can turn the heads of powerful U.S. senators but state representatives are much closer to voters and much more likely to feel your pain. State Legislator for Legal Immigration has identified the problems and offered real solutions. It represents a 21st century Declaration of Independence. Go to statelegislatorsforlegalimmigration.com to see if your state legislators have signed on.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
By Tracie Mauriello, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
HARRISBURG - Take away jobs and public assistance and illegal immigrants will go back where they came from. That's what four House members are hoping as they introduce a package of bills aimed at protecting Pennsylvania from what they called "an illegal immigrant invasion."
Illegal immigrants sap public resources, disrespect laws, drain tax dollars and engage in violent crime, said the foursome led by state Rep. Darryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry.
Mr. Metcalfe and Reps. Mark Mustio, R-Moon; Tom Creighton, R-Lancaster County and Scott Perry, R-York County, explained their bills during a press conference today.
The bills would:
Require employers to verify Social Security numbers of job applicants or risk losing business licenses or permits.
Call for an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice authorizing state police to enforce federal immigration and customs laws.
Require law enforcement officers to report citizenship status of people they arrest.
Revoke professional licenses of nursing home administrators, landscape architects and others who knowingly employ illegal immigrants.
Eliminate public benefits for illegal aliens, except in medical emergencies.
Representative Daryl Metcalfe Presents House Resolution Honoring President Reagan to President's son, Michael Reagan
Representative
Daryl Metcalfe presents Michael Reagan with an official copy of the PA House
Resolution declaring February 6, 2007 as Ronald Reagan Day in
Pennsylvania. The presentation was made during the first annual Center for
Vision and Values Ronald Reagan Lecture Series at Grove City College.
For five consecutive years, Representative Daryl Metcalfe has passed his resolution honoring America's 40th President, and promoting Ronald Reagan's legacy of liberty and freedom.
GOP rips Rendell's tax plan
Budget
proposal raises sales tax, adds levies
February 8, 2007
Butler County Republicans have ripped Gov. Ed Rendell's proposed budget that calls for a boost in the state sales tax and adds new levies on tobacco and oil companies.
These GOP legislators vowed to fight the governor's $27.3 billion spending plan.
"The governor has once again proposed increased spending and increased debt
that would result in higher taxes," said state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12th.
...Rendell is seeking a new gross-profits tax of more than 6 percent on oil companies' windfall profits. The new revenue would help finance struggling mass transit agencies across Pennsylvania. "This is an old tactic to drum up support by going after businesses that happen to show a profit," Metcalfe said. "But nobody believes that the tax won't be passed on to the consumer at the gas pump."
....Metcalfe said the Republican caucus in the House is unified in its opposition to Rendell's budget. "The only good thing about the governor's proposal is that it's only a proposal," he said, "and not a budget until the General Assembly says it's a budget."
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
,,,,Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, called the plan "the same old story from Gov. Rendell, higher taxes and higher spending." He said the oil company profits tax "is another shell game by the governor. Taxpayers will ultimately bear the costs in higher gasoline prices at the pump."...
Pension
Reforms Pushed
January 23, 2007
….State
Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12th, (stated that) pension limits have to be put on new
state workers. He is concerned with the increasing number
of workers who have qualified for expanded benefits in the past five years.
"We have piecemeal legislation allowing new groups into this expansion …
we can't continue in this direction," he said.
He wants any expansion of benefits to be frozen.
He said the pension increase was originally an attempt to even out the
difference in pension plans between judges and legislators.
“At the time many of legislators were wanting to catch up with the
courts," said Metcalfe.
He said judges in the state qualify for 4 percent of their salary per year of
service.
"So a judge who works for 25 years would have a 100 percent (of their
salary) pension," said Metcalfe.
He said it would have been better to bring the courts pensions down to the
legislature levels, but pensions cannot be reduced once promised.
Metcalfe said what is needed are sweeping changes to the government's retirement
system, and he suggested something more in line with what the private sector
provides.
But such reform would be a mammoth undertaking, he said. After all, it would
affect state, school, county and municipal workers.
"Hopefully, this pending potential for financial disaster will be enough to
wake up some of my colleagues (in the Legislature). The message is there: If you
don't address these problems there could be a real disaster," said
Metcalfe.
...The leader of privatization efforts nationally is Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, who made headlines last summer for completing a $3.8 billion lease deal with a European-Australian partnership for the Indiana Toll Road.
Other opponents are concerned that most of the highway lease deals in North America have been led by overseas consortiums, as was the Indiana deal.
"I don't think it's wise to let foreign-based firms have operational control over any type of public infrastructure like this," said state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler. Metcalfe said he'd be more likely to support a privatization deal if it had American investors.
November 19, 2006
Transit report, tax hike blasted
A state
transportation report released last week recommends tax increases to improve the
state's deteriorating roads, bridges and mass-transit systems, but it is not
popular with officials in Butler County.......
"I will
be opposing any tax increase," said state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12th.
"There's plenty of money in the general fund budget. Pennsylvania state
government taxes us at an excessive rate already. The key to dealing with
infrastructure costs is for our state government to set proper priorities.
That's what every family has to do."
Metcalfe
complained the state spends too much on "museums, parties, grants, pork
barrel type projects" plus professional sports stadiums for Philadelphia
and Pittsburgh.
"People
in Butler County shouldn't have to pay for other peoples' mass transit," he
said.
Metcalfe said raising taxes is counter productive.
"It will continue to drive young people and jobs out of Pennsylvania," he said. "The only way we're going to restore Pennsylvania's economy is reduce the tax rates."
"I think it's very telling this report was released a week after the election," Metcalfe said.
Daryl Metcalfe and Hazelton Mayor Lou Barletta Address Immigration Reform Rally
 |
On October 11th, State
Representative Daryl Metcalfe and Hazelton Mayor Lou Barletta addressed
an Immigration Reform Rally at the Greentree Radisson Hotel near
Pittsburgh.
State Representative Metcalfe is leading the fight against the illegal Immigration problem and has proposed a viable set of solutions These include solutions to secure our border and turn off the "economic faucets" so that current illegal aliens will leave on their own. This last summer, State Representative Metcalfe spearheaded House Republican Committee meetings on Illegal Immigration. |
Gun License for Domestic Violence Victims 'Dangerous,'
Group Says
By Kate Monaghan
CNSNews.com Correspondent
October 06, 2006
(CNSNews.com) - Legislation pending in Pennsylvania
seeks to provide victims of domestic violence with a temporary emergency license
to carry a firearm "to make sure that they're able to defend
themselves," according to State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, sponsor of the bill.
However, a spokeswoman for a state domestic violence coalition called the
measure "dangerous, absolutely dangerous."
Metcalfe (R-Butler) told Cybercast News Service that not only would this
measure aid domestic violence victims in protecting themselves, but overall, it
would decrease violence.
"Giving that person [the victim] the ability to protect themselves is going
to ultimately be a great help to preventing violence," he said.
"Under House Bill 2946, any individual who can demonstrate evidence of
imminent danger to themselves or a member of their family would be entitled to a
temporary emergency license to carry a firearm after passing a computerized
background check of criminal history, juvenile delinquency and mental health
records," Metcalfe noted.
"The temporary license would be good for 90 days to allow sufficient time
to apply for a regular license to carry a firearm and undergo the potential
45-day waiting period under current state law," Metcalfe's office said in a
press release.
According to Metcalfe, this legislation would also protect witnesses to crimes.
"[For] the emergency carry permit, I think the majority of people applying
for it would be people that would be applying for it because they have sought
out protection from abuse or that they potentially may be a witness to a crime
in which the criminal is out on bail making threats against that potential
witness," said Metcalfe.
"My legislation is based on one very simple concept: Lives are saved when
law-abiding citizens are provided with every means necessary to defend
themselves against violent criminals," Metcalfe added.
Read more at:
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=/Nation/archive/200610/NAT20061006a.html
A judicial rolling
Sunday,
October 1, 2006
If it explodes, state judges will be showered with another flurry of dollars. They'd get a second raise, tied to a proposed salary bump for federal judges.
Under the pay-jacking law, the salaries of Common Pleas Court judges first increased from $135,293 to $149,132. The second raise would take them to $173,738. Supreme Court Chief Justice Ralph Cappy's salary would skyrocket to $206,000.
Lawmakers are lining up behind state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, to right this wrong.
Mr. Metcalfe would roll back judicial salaries to pre-July 2005 levels each time a seat is filled by a new judge or a judge wins re-election or retention. The high court ruled that once increased, a judge's salary may not be reduced during his term of office.
But Metcalfe's measure should not be necessary. Not only was the pay-jacking unconstitutional, setting the salaries of state officeholders is a duty of the Legislature. It does not have the constitutional authority to strip itself of that obligation by tying pay to federal scales.
Were fealty to the law the standard, the Supreme Court's record would earn it a pay cut.
Wed, Sep. 27, 2006
The gun owners fired back yesterday.
About 300 of them from around Pennsylvania roamed the Capitol encouraging legislators to oppose any new laws limiting the right to own and bear arms.
They were steadfast: crime is Philadelphia's problem, caused by Philadelphians, and any new laws to restrict the sale of guns won't solve it.
The only solution, they said, is to crack down on criminals, enforce existing laws, and end what one gun supporter called "Philadelphia's catch and release program."
.......Rep. Daryl Metcalfe (R., Butler) issued a statement opposing some of the main proposals being considered by the House Committee of the Whole, including limiting gun sales to one a month, and a ban on semiautomatic firearms. Metcalfe said guns were not the problem.
"This cultural problem is the breakdown of the family and the subsequent absence of positive parental influences and supervision in children's lives," he said. "... Absent fathers, financial hardship and lack of meaningful parental influence and availability in children's lives are a disastrous formula for social unrest and violence." .........
Judge pay irks state lawmakers
By Debra
Erdley and Brad Bumsted
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Pennsylvania lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are moving to blunt the impact of a recent state Supreme Court pay raise ruling amid mounting speculation that state judges could claim two big pay raises this year.
The Supreme Court on Sept. 14 reinstated 11 to 15 percent raises for about 1,100 judges, saying the legislature had no authority to repeal the increases given sitting judges. The ruling also left open the possibility that state judges could get a second raise, because the legislation called for linking state judges' salaries to those in the federal court system, where a 16.5 percent pay raise is pending.
The state pay increase law takes the salary of a Common Pleas court judge from $135,293 to $149,132. If the federal raise is added on top of that, the salary for that judge would go to $173,738 -- a $38,445 jump. The salary of Ralph Cappy, the chief justice of the state Supreme Court, would go to about $206,000.
Lawmakers, who buckled to public outcry last November when they repealed their own raises as well as the judges', were irate.
On Monday, state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, introduced a bill to reduce judicial pay to July 2005 levels -- the $135,293 level for common pleas judges -- every time a judge begins a new term. Nine Democrats were among Metcalfe's 32 initial cosponsors. Republican and Democratic senators also are supporting the bill.
"If this congressional pay raise (for federal judges) goes through and determines compensation of our judges, they will be the highest (paid) in the nation," said Matthew Brouilette, of the Commonwealth Foundation.
Cappy initially sought to link state judicial pay to federal scales, arguing that would eliminate politics.
Now, the Sept. 14 Supreme Court decision, from which Cappy abstained, has thrust the issue back into the political arena.
"Inflating their own wallets at the expense of the Pennsylvania taxpayers and the integrity of the Pennsylvania Constitution, which they have sworn an oath to uphold and defend, is nothing short of tyranny," Metcalfe said............
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
By Tom Barnes, Pittsburgh Post-GazetteHARRISBURG -- State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, isn't giving up the fight to cancel pay raises for judges.
Despite a state Supreme Court ruling last week reinstating the raises for 1,045 state judges, Mr. Metcalfe said today he is seeking co-sponsors for a new bill aimed at repealing the judges' raises, although he admits it will take up to 10 years to do it.
He said his bill would return the salary of each member of the judicial branch to the level it was at on July 1, 2005 -- before Act 44, the pay raise, was enacted on July 7, 2005.
Judges would keep their current higher salaries, as permitted by last week's court decision. However, once a judge was re-elected or retained in a 10-year retention election, that judge's salary would revert to where it was on July 1, 2005.
Mr. Metcalfe said the Legislature isn't allowed to reduce a judge's salary in mid-term, but he contended his new bill doesn't do that.
For example, he said, Supreme Court Justice Thomas Saylor faces a retention election in November 2007. If he wins, his salary would revert to what is was on July 1, 2005, prior to the pay-raise bill being approved.
The pay-raise bill covered all three branches of government, legislators, judges and some members of the executive branch. The raises for all three branches were canceled in November 2005. The Supreme Court last week restored raises for only the judges.
It isn't known yet if the Legislature would vote on Mr. Metcalfe's bill before it adjourns Nov. 30.
September
15, 2006
State Supreme Court
restores judicial raises
Ruling angers some legislators
HARRISBURG — ..... State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12th, said the court's
decision is unconstitutional. His immediate reaction to the news was
"outrage."
"We as legislators are allowed to reduce the salaries of judges if it's a
broad-based reduction," Metcalfe said. "This was across-the-board. I
voted against the original pay raise and led the repeal effort.
"What the judges have done here is a violation of the constitution."
He said the court's decision was a "clear example of a lack of integrity of
the courts where they believe they're above and beyond the reach of the
people."
Friday, September 8, 2006
Representative Metcalfe Takes Lead In Fighting Illegal
Immigration in Comcast Network Debate
On
September 6, State Representative Metcalfe soundly defeated those advocating on behalf of illegal immigrants on the live call in program "It's Your Call" on Comcast's CN8 network. The program, with a viewing area that reaches from Washington DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston and continuing through Maine, was marked with lively debate and a "live" online viewer poll.
Urging that the U.S. secure its borders and turn off the economic faucets that benefit illegal immigrants, Representative Metcalfe presented a plan to solve this huge economic and security threat to our country. While other debate panelists opposed state and local efforts to curb the flow of illegal immigrants, Representative Metcalfe urged that state and local communities do take steps to address this problem.
The "live" online poll taken during the program overwhelmingly showed that the viewing audience agreed with Representative Metcalfe.
State Representative Metcalfe stated that the federal and state government has been AWOL in the fight to enforce our immigration laws. He also slammed Senator Arlen Specter and Senate candidate Bob Casey for supporting an amnesty program for those already here illegally.
State Representative Metcalfe has introduced a series of bills in the PA House to address these issues.
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September 10, 2008 - State Representative Daryl Metcalfe was 
