The trees are trimmed, the stockings are filled, and the presents are wrapped and ready for the holiday season. After an unprecedented year and legislative session, the end of December brings a season of much-needed relaxation for our activists across the commonwealth. In the new year, members will head back to Harrisburg to begin the 2025-26 legislative session. As we reflect on this special holiday season with family and friends, we can’t help but craft our policy wish list for the coming session.
Despite the challenges of divided government, the 2025-26 legislative session holds the potential for meaningful bipartisan reform. With housing costs on the rise, those looking to buy their first home, or even those looking to sell, currently have a bleak outlook on the market. According to the National Association of Realtors’ Profile of Homebuyers and Sellers report, the median age of a first-time homebuyer is 38 years old. To put that into perspective: the median age of homebuyers in the 80s was 29 years old. Pennsylvanians are struggling to purchase homes because supply is down. Fortunately, efforts from both sides of the aisle and in both chambers have worked to address this issue by fighting for zoning reforms that would increase the supply of houses available, ultimately driving down costs for first-time and repeat home buyers. Next session, atop our list of policy goals will be for House and Senate leadership to quickly move legislation to allow for duplex, triplex, & fourplex units while also addressing zoning issues that prevent multi-family housing from being developed.
Energy is the keystone of our commonwealth. The energy industry should be encouraged to innovate—not be stifled by burdensome regulation. Recent efforts by the Shapiro administration to cap and tax the energy sector through executive order do nothing but increase energy costs for Pennsylvania ratepayers. In the new year, Americans for Prosperity calls upon the legislature to promote sound policy that would give you, through your representation in Harrisburg, greater oversight over new energy taxes. You deserve a greater voice in policy that impacts you and your pocketbook—House Democrats should get to work to ensure that the authority to implement energy taxes falls within the General Assembly, not the Governor’s mansion.
Finally, atop our list is policy that enjoys bipartisan support: regulatory reform. Governor Shapiro has signaled his support for reform, even acting through executive order to create transparency in the permitting process. Americans for Prosperity enthusiastically agrees that this is important: now, House Democrats should act swiftly to make it less burdensome to live, work, and thrive here in the commonwealth. Legislation such as the REINS Act would give the legislature authority to approve economically significant regulations, giving you more of a voice when it comes to burdensome regulations that impact your day-to-day life. Comprehensive Regulatory Reform, introduced by Senator Kristin Phillips-Hill, would also require the review of existing regulations before the introduction of new ones, amongst other taxpayer protections. In the new year, we must work to make Pennsylvania a place where one can live the American Dream and embrace their entrepreneurial spirit, as opposed to stifling good ideas in the name of government control.
Before the new session begins, our team at Americans for Prosperity Pennsylvania is taking time to reflect on the past year and the incredible wins that our tens of thousands of activists have achieved in the name of freedom. On behalf of our AFP family, we wish you a very blessed holiday season and a happy new year, and we look forward to all that 2025 will bring!
This is Emily Greene, State Director with Americans for Prosperity-PA.