Daylin’s Editorials
GMO Labeling Legislation Would Allow Consumers to Choose
Recently, I introduced legislation that would require food manufacturers to disclose on the labels of their products if those products contained organisms that had been genetically modified. I did so because the American people have repeatedly demonstrated that they are… Continue reading →
Time to Legalize Marijuana
This past November, the people of Washington State and Colorado voted to fully legalize marijuana. Other places, including California, have had de facto legalization for some time. This week, I will introduce legislation which would have Pennsylvania join these other… Continue reading →
Unbefrackinglievable
April 19, 2012 By: Sen. Daylin Leach, D-17 When you go to a doctor, there are times your malady is obvious. Elephantitis, or a goiter shaped like guitar come to mind. However, other times the cause of your symptoms is… Continue reading →
Leach Op-Ed: Speaker Smith’s Lawsuit on 2001 District Lines is Frivolous
KING OF PRUSSIA, Jan. 31, 2012 – Speaker of the House Sam Smith and his Republican colleagues have frequently spoken about the need to end “frivolous lawsuits.” However, this disdain for meritless litigation apparently does not extend to Smith’s attempt… Continue reading →
Leach Op-Ed: An Important Update on Redistricting Changes
As many already know, we as a state are required to redraw the lines of our legislative districts every 10 years to ensure that all of the districts have about the same… Continue reading →
Subject: Voter ID Op-Ed by State Sen. Daylin Leach
Recently, Governor Corbett has endorsed legislation which would require every Pennsylvanian to present photo ID each time they voted, regardless of how long they had been voting at their poll. They could not vote without ID even if the poll… Continue reading →
On Voting by Referendum in Maine
When you follow politics closely, every election night comes with its exhilarating wins and heartbreaking losses. Some years there are more of one than the other, but every year is, to some extent, a mixed bag. This year, the toughest… Continue reading →
Op-Ed: Repealing Joint and Several Liability is Irresponsible
Recently, Governor Corbett called for the repeal of a 100 year old common law doctrine known as “Joint and Several Liability”. Under this doctrine, if a person is injured because of the negligence of 2 or more parties, an injured… Continue reading →
Voucher Proposal Raises Many Questions
Recently, there has been a lot of attention paid to Senate Bill 1, which would for the first time create a system of taxpayer-funded vouchers which parents could allegedly use to “choose” what school their child can go to if… Continue reading →
Response to the “Bonsugate” Grand Jury’s Proposed Legislative Reforms
Recently, the Bonusgate Grand Jury issued a report which has received a great deal of media attention. This report had nothing to do with the criminal charges against specific individuals they investigated. This report was an extremely rare supplemental grand… Continue reading →
Are WAMs Really Bad?
Recently, as the Pennsylvania budget crisis has droned on, there has been a good deal of attention paid to how we, as a state, spend money. One of the programs which is most frequently attacked and ridiculed in the media… Continue reading →
Conservative Case for Abolishing the Death Penalty
Soon, I will be introducing legislation to abolish the Death Penalty in Pennsylvania. New Jersey and New Mexico have recently abolished their Death Penalty laws and other states are contemplating doing the same. Polls show a 15-20% drop in support… Continue reading →
Final Marriage Equality in Pennsylvania
I have recently introduced SB 935, a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage in Pennsylvania. I do so now for several reasons. First, because many other states are moving to consider this issue, including Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Iowa… Continue reading →
“Political Reform”
The concept of “political reform” received a good deal of attention in the recent campaign. Certain reforms are clearly necessary and long-overdue. Campaign finance reform and legislative redistricting reform are two examples. However, some things being touted as reforms could… Continue reading →
Pennsylvanians Oppose new Taxes?? Not so fast.
In my 7 years in the Pennsylvania legislature, I think I’ve learned a few basic truisms, one of which is: If you want to make a constituent mad, raise their taxes, but if you want to make a constituent furious,… Continue reading →
To the Editor: “Sodom in the Nation’s Capital”: Editorial by Star Parker
On November 24th I saw in the Times Herald an editorial by a Star Parker entitled “Sodom in the Nation’s Capital”. Intrigued by the unabashed offensiveness of the title, I read on. The article castigated the Washington DC City Council… Continue reading →
This is not how the Second Amendment works
As a member of the state House Judiciary Committee, I received a lot of e-mails urging me to vote against the gun control bills we considered last month. Many of these e-mails argued, in some form, that the governor’s proposals… Continue reading →
Editorial – Response to See No Dissent, Call It Science By Debra Saunders
Ms. Saunders: I read your editorial this morning entitled “See no Dissent, Call it Science”. I don’t wish to debate the issue of global warming. But I do take some issue with your larger point. As I understand it, you… Continue reading →
Letter to the Editor Times-Herald – Mr. Robert Clifton
In the October 12 edition of the Times-Herald, there was a letter to the editor from a Mr. Robert Clifton attacking me. Obviously, Mr. Clifton has every right to do that, but I thought I’d share my perspective on his… Continue reading →
Property Tax – Main Line Life
After months of debate and deliberation, property tax reform comes to a head in the next few weeks. I and other legislators have to evaluate the various proposals, weigh the good versus bad in each and decide how we plan… Continue reading →
Editorial – Philadelphia Gay News
Since being elected to the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 2002, I have learned that persistent rumor tends, over time, to become reality. One of the persistent rumors I hear these days is that various anti-gay amendments which have previously been… Continue reading →
Editorial Pay Raise
People can be for or against the recent legislative pay raise but the debate should be a fair one. Thus far, the press’s obsession with this issue has seemingly blinded them to their obligation to report the facts fairly and… Continue reading →
TABOR is Not What Taxpayers in Pennsylvania Need or Deserve
As the winds turn bitter off of the Susquehanna and we prepare to conclude perhaps the most desultory legislative session in modern history, there is one piece of proposed legislation that deserves more attention than it has received. I am… Continue reading →
Letter to the Editor: “We Need to Keep these Legislators”
Columnist John Grogan has written many columns on the recently passed governmental pay raise. Much in those columns has been inaccurate, misleading and downright demagogic. However, if Mr. Grogan wants to dedicate the rest of his journalistic career to complaining… Continue reading →
Redistricting Reform
As a Pennsylvania legislator, I am keenly aware of how desperately we need political reform. Pennsylvania has no campaign finance limits, no lobbyist disclosure law, no automatic calendar to assure that all legislators with good ideas can get a vote… Continue reading →
