Today, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed legislation sponsored by state Rep. Morgan Cephas, D-Phila., that would protect Pennsylvania homeowners from signing away their home and generational wealth to unscrupulous realty agents. Read more
“In observance of Maternal Health Awareness Day, we will continue our work to address Black maternal morbidity and mortality in Pennsylvania by reducing barriers and increasing access to quality and equitable care across the state,” Cephas said. “To do so, we will work to pass the PA MOMNIBUS, which will aim to decrease racial disparities in health care and address the social determinants of health. Through House Resolution 278, we begin our work to address the maternal health care crisis in Pennsylvania.” Read more
Today, the PA House Judiciary Committee approved a measure sponsored by state Reps. Morgan Cephas and Malcolm Kenyatta, both D-Phila., aimed at ending the proliferation of “ghost guns” in Pennsylvania Read more
PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 12 – Members of the Philadelphia House Delegation today expressed their satisfaction for the appointment of Pedro Rosario, a 29-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department who will serve as deputy commissioner of the department’s Kensington Initiative. “Winds of change keep blowing in Philadelphia and we cannot be more excited about the outcome,” said Rep. Morgan Cephas, chairwoman of the delegation. “Mayor Cherelle Parker started strong. She is not only vowing to fight the overdose crisis and the drug market in Kensington; Parker is taking the bull by the horns. The designation of Rosario to work on specific duties in Kensington is a bold action that has our wholehearted support,” she added. Rep. Jose Giral, who represents the180 th Legislative District in the Kensington area, is confident that Rosario will be an effective commissioner, based on Rosario’s expertise and solid credentials. Giral witnessed his work firsthand while Rosario was assigned to the 24 th Police District. “I have known Pedro Rosario for a long time. I met him while I was a member of the Police Advisory Commission and this conferred me the opportunity to work hand in hand with him and the 24 th Police District,” Giral said. “Rosario is boots on the ground from day one because he knows exactly all the particulars of the issues impacting our Read more
Every Pennsylvanian has the right to be protected from the environmental and health harms caused by pollution, especially people in historically marginalized neighborhoods who have suffered under years of environmental injustice and where air quality is a significant health concern. I am delighted to see the state investing in cleaner energy and directing money where it is needed so that the city can build cleaner infrastructure and we all can breathe cleaner air. Read more
Today, leaders of the Philadelphia House Delegation expressed their excitement for the inauguration of Cherelle Parker as the first woman and 100th Philadelphian to serve as mayor of Philadelphia. Read more
State House Speaker Joanna McClinton (D-191st Dist.) and Philadelphia House Delegation Chair Rep. Morgan Cephas (D- are applauding $225,000 in state funds being awarded to Achieveability, a neighborhood revitalization organization that has served West Philadelphia for more than 40 years. Read more
State House Speaker Joanna McClinton and Philadelphia House Delegation Chair Rep. Morgan Cephas are applauding $225,000 in state funds being awarded to Achieveability, a neighborhood revitalization organization that has served west Philadelphia for more than 40 years. Read more
Delegation Chair state Rep. Morgan Cephas, D-Phila., said that the tragedy is felt across the region.“Our love and sympathy is sent to the families of the crew and to the 6abc family. News staff are part of the fabric of our communities and seen everywhere in the region,” Cephas said. “The sudden and tragic loss of the pilot and videographer in the line of service is heartbreaking for everyone, especially so close to the holidays.” Read more
Delegation Chairwoman, Rep. Morgan Cephas, D-Phila., said these grants will solidify the foundation of city water and sewer utilities to be better prepared in the case of an emergency. Read more
HARRISBURG, Dec. 14 – State Rep. Morgan Cephas, D-Phila., today announced that Gov. Josh Shapiro will sign her legislation ( H.B. 1478 ) , which facilitates more dental screenings in schools, into law. This is the second bill introduced by Cephas that will have been signed into law in the 2023-24 legislative session. “I’m excited this is becoming a reality for our students. Aside from when they first enter school and in third and seventh grades, many students go unchecked for years,” Cephas said. “This legislation relaxes current law and will allow school districts flexibility to get more students checked and catch potential dental problems while also preventing future issues down the road.” Once signed, H.B. 1478 will allow a public dental hygiene practitioner to perform basic dental screenings in public schools. Currently, a dental exam must be performed by a dentist in Pennsylvania. Poor oral health in children can: Lead to painful infections and cavities. Result in missing more school and lower grades, directly impacting their educational journey. Affect their overall development, speech and eating habits. “Children with poor oral health status were nearly three times more likely than were their counterparts to miss school as a result of dental pain, which further creates an urgency to fill the gaps in our overall dental system,” Cephas Read more
The bill creates important protections, including restricting shackling and solitary confinement; providing trauma informed care training of corrections officers interacting with pregnant and postpartum women; and providing up to three days of post-delivery bonding time between a mother and newborn child, among other protections. No one should be deprived of respect or be forced to risk their health or the health of their child. Read more
The bill proposes an amendment to the Pennsylvania Constitution that would reaffirm and protect every individual’s right of reproductive liberty with respect to personal, sexual, and reproductive healthcare decisions, including the right to choose or refuse an abortion, the right to choose or refuse contraceptives, and the right to choose or refuse fertility care, without discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, or relationship status. Read more
HARRISBURG, Dec. 11 – Today, two bills introduced by Philadelphia House Delegation Chair, state Rep. Morgan Cephas, D-Phila., were approved by Senate committees and moved to the full Senate for consideration. Both bills passed the House earlier this year. These two bills include: House Bill 900 , known as the Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act, was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee with unanimous support. The bill would create important protections for pregnancy and postpartum people who are incarcerated in Pennsylvania helping to restore dignity and codifying a number of current policies and practices that are already in place in the Department of Corrections and at the federal level . Along with Cephas, State Reps. Tina Davis, D-Bucks, and Mike Jones, R-York, and a series of stakeholders including Ardella’s House, Dream.org and the American Conservative Union, championed the bill. House Bill 1478 , which would amend the Public School Code allowing school districts to utilize a Public Health Dental Hygiene Practitioner to fulfill requirements of Section 1403 of the Public School Code relating to dental screenings and dental hygiene. This legislation would provide school districts more flexibility regarding fulfilling the requirements of Section 1403. This bill was approved by the Education Committee. “The health and well-being of Pennsylvanians is of the utmost Read more
Members of the Philadelphia House Delegation today praised Mayor-elect Cherelle Parker for announcing Kevin Bethel as her pick for the city’s next police commissioner. Read more
The bill now heads to the Senate for concurrence. Read more
A new law will provide key data to improve outcomes for women, especially Black women, who have high rates of maternal morbidity across the state. Read more
Shapiro thanked the Women’s Health Caucus as well as Rep. Cephas and Sen. Schwank for their work on the issue, calling it an “important day” for the Commonwealth. Read more
HARRISBURG, Nov. 2 – This week, legislation ( H.B. 287 ) introduced by state Rep. Rick Krajewski, D-Phila., to make commonsense eviction reforms in Philadlephia was approved by the House Housing and Community Development Committee on a 14-11 vote. Six Philadelphia House Delegation members, including Krajewski and delegation Chairwoman state Rep. Morgan Cephas, D-Phila. sit on the committee. All six voted to approve the legislation. The bill would require eviction in Philadelphia to (1) be carried out by a public entity, (2) receive oversight from a review board, and (3) involve accompanying behavioral health professionals. Krajewski’s introduction of H.B. 287 comes after three shootings during evictions carried out by Philadelphia’s Landlord-Tenant Officer this summer. Following those incidents, in August, the Philadelphia House Delegation co-hosted a public hearing on the issue at Philadelphia City Hall with the state House Housing and Community Development Committee. “Evictions are the worst day in someone’s life, and we need to do everything we can to make sure they’re carried out safely and with compassion,” Krajewski said. “Philadelphia's violent, for-profit eviction system is an outlier statewide and desperately needs to be replaced. No one should fear for their life because they can’t make rent.” Cephas celebrated advancement of the bill, she said Read more
HARRISBURG, Oct. 31 – State Rep. Morgan Cephas, co-chair of the Black Maternal Health Caucus , participated today in the ceremonial bill signing of Act 5 of 2023 into law, which adds “severe maternal morbidity: to the list of reportable events within the Pennsylvania Department of Health. “I am still beyond excited about seeing Act 5 signed into law by Governor Josh Shapiro,” said Cephas, who also is a former chair of the Women’s Health Caucus and who has championed the issue for years. “This a collective effort to prevent maternal morbidity in the commonwealth. Act 5 will help reduce the growing and alarming number of maternal deaths,” Cephas added. “I praise the efforts of Senator Judy Schwank who is leading this remarkable win. The collected data on maternal morbidity will facilitate a better understanding of risk factors and key patterns linked to this issue,” Cephas said. Senate Bill 262 , who has Schwank as its prime sponsor, is part of a package of bills aimed at addressing maternal morbidity and mirrors legislation authored by Cephas (H.B. 1362 ) in the past two legislative sessions and is a key part of her efforts to reduce Black maternal mortality and improve Black maternal health in Pennsylvania. Read more
HARRISBURG, Oct. 30 – State Rep. Morgan Cephas, co-chair of the Black Maternal Health Caucus , announced today that she will join the ceremonial signing of Act 5 into law by Gov. Josh Shapiro. The package of bills would help create better reporting of maternal morbidity data. Senate Bill 262 , sponsored by state Sen. Judy Schwank, is part of a package of bills aimed at addressing maternal morbidity and mirrors legislation (H.B. 1362 ) authored in the state House by Cephas in the past two legislative sessions. WHAT : Ceremonial bill signing of Act 5 . WHO : Gov. Josh Shapiro, State Rep. Morgan Cephas , and state Sen. Judy Schwank . WHEN : 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31. WHERE : Governor’s Reception Room, PA Capitol. Media coverage is invited. Read more
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