I received a blast email from Rep Evankovich about his upcoming public forum. Questions received from constituents will be addressed b y a panel of other elected officials from both sides of the aisle. This is a perfect opportunity to pose some questions about HB 300, the state-wide non-discrimination protections, as well as other issues of importance to Pennsylvania’s LGBTQ community.  At the bottom is a link to his website where a form exists to submit questions. Please join me in using this public opportunity to create dialogue about LGBTQ issues.

I want to let you know that I am hosting a bipartisan legislative forum on the Penn State-New Kensington campus on Thursday, Aug. 18. The event will be held in the Forum Theatre from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

I have invited other state and federal legislators to take part in the panel discussion, which will focus on questions submitted by members of the audience. Lawmakers who are scheduled to participate include Congressman Tim Murphy (R-18th District), Congressman Jason Altmire (D-4th District), State Sen. Kim Ward (R-39th District) and State Sen. Jim Brewster (D-45th District). Prior to the forum, elected officials will hold a private meeting with community leaders to discuss local issues.

Even though we may sit on different sides of the aisle, all of us who represent western Pennsylvania in Harrisburg and Washington, D.C. have many common goals. I am looking forward to sharing ideas with my colleagues and hearing from constituents about their concerns. Events like this help to make us more aware of the major issues in the communities we were elected to serve.

Some municipalities in our area are represented by more than one state or federal legislator. For that reason, we need to be on the same page. Given the current divisive political climate, it is important to show the public that their local elected officials, both Republican and Democrat, can work together to move our region forward.

Members of the public who plan to attend are asked to fill out a brief form that can be found on my website, RepEvankovich.com. The Penn State-New Kensington campus is located at 3550 Seventh Street Road, New Kensington.