Profile
In
March 2003, John Pippy was sworn in as the Pennsylvania Senator for the
37th District serving constituents in Allegheny County and a
portion of Washington County. Senator Pippy was a member of the State
House of Representatives for the 44th District for 7 years
prior to his election to the senate.
Senator Pippy is Chairman of the Senate Urban Affairs and Housing
Committee, which examines policies and legislation affecting
Pennsylvania communities and the fiscal health of its cities. He also
chairs the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee which carries out a
wide range of research activities pertaining to the operation and
performance of state-funded programs and agencies. In addition, he is
Vice Chairman of the Law and Justice Committee and a member of the
following Senate Committees: Appropriations, Banking and Insurance,
Transportation, and Game and Fisheries committees.
As Senator he has introduced numerous bills that have been signed into
law, among them:
·
Providing additional information on sex offenders on the Megan's Law web
site for Pennsylvania. The site was criticized for not providing enough
data to parents and communities regarding sexual offenders living
nearby.
·
Preventing windfall tax hikes with Act 71 by requiring municipalities
and school districts in Allegheny County to establish revenue-neutral
millage rates in the tax year immediately following the reassessment.
·
Establishing a comprehensive list of ethical safeguards to
Pennsylvania’s gaming law and the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.
·
Preserving the pension benefits for spouses and children of deceased
Pittsburgh police officers. Pittsburgh was the only municipality in
Pennsylvania in which police benefits are cut off when the spouse of a
deceased officer remarries.
·
Limiting
the scope of protests at funerals and memorial services by establishing
a buffer zone to protect grieving family members from the abusive chants
targeting Pennsylvania military funerals.
Among his other legislative accomplishments, Senator Pippy authored a
bill to reduce the size and the costs of the General Assembly. Under
this initiative the Legislature would be reduced from 50 to 40
senatorial districts and from 203 to 161 representative districts. The
result would be a 20 percent reduction in the size of both chambers.
In addition, Senator Pippy continues to promote economic development and
job creation, he introduced Senate Bill 1190 to encourage and reward
employers who hire qualified former welfare recipients. He is also a
proponent of reducing the Capital Stock and Franchise Tax in order to
relieve the tax burden placed on businesses that limits their ability to
expand, hire staff, and provide quality, high-paying jobs. Senator Pippy
has received The Guardian of Small Business Award which is presented by
National Federation of Independent Businesses to legislators who voted
favorably on key small business issues.
Senator Pippy has been a long time advocate of early childhood education
programs and special education funding initiatives. He has championed
the effort to provide valuable services and funding to Pennsylvania's
facilities servicing special needs children. He also serves on the
Autism Caucus.
He is a
member of the Joint Legislative Air and Water Pollution Control and
Conservation Committee which focuses on air and water pollution laws,
mining practices, and land reclamation. He is an advocate of
legislation aimed at increasing the number of environmentally friendly
“green” buildings in Pennsylvania by providing tax credits for buildings
that meet specific environmental and energy standards, and requiring
that state-funded construction also meets those standards.
Senator Pippy is also a Major in the Pennsylvania National Guard. He
served with the Army Reserve on active duty in Iraq and Kuwait.
He also chairs the
American Legislative Exchange Council’s Homeland Security Task Force.
Born in Ubon, Thailand, Senator Pippy received an appointment to the
United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. He graduated with a
Bachelor of Science degree in environmental engineering and served on
active duty, assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas.
Prior to entering the General Assembly, Senator Pippy worked at the
U.S. Steel Clairton Works.
He is a member of
the Advisory Boards for Penn State-Beaver and the University of
Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. He serves on the Board of Directors for the
Greater Pittsburgh Council/Boy Scouts of America and The Heinz History
Center. He is an alumni member of the American Council of Young
Political Leaders. He is a Board Fellow for the University of
Pittsburgh's Institute of Politics and serves on the Boards of
Leadership Pittsburgh and The Botanic Gardens. Senator Pippy is a Knight
of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem and a member
of the Knights of Equity. Senator Pippy and his wife Katherine and their
two children, Sean and Katelyn, live in Moon Township and are members of
St. James Catholic Church in Sewickley
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06/2008
