West Montgomery Times

Veterans Day serves as a reminder of the contributions made by Pennsylvania's veterans. During the 2023-24 legislative session, Senator Tracy Pennycuick and her Republican colleagues in the Senate have taken steps to support military members and the state's more than 700,000 veterans.

Senator Pennycuick, herself a U.S. Army combat veteran, expressed pride in two measures she sponsored aimed at benefiting military families and veterans. One measure focuses on educational support for children of National Guard and Reserve members. Act 82 of 2024 ensures these children receive assistance similar to that provided to active-duty military families through the Military Interstate Children's Compact.

Another initiative led by Senator Pennycuick established the Task Force on Women Veterans’ Health Care. This task force will address healthcare access issues faced by women veterans, who are projected to make up 18% of the nation's veteran population by 2045.

Efforts were also made to raise awareness among veterans about available assistance programs through legislation enhancing the PA VETConnect Program. Additionally, a law was passed to protect veterans' service records from fraud and theft by safeguarding personal information contained within these documents.

To further assist disabled veterans, legislation was enacted exempting their benefit payments from income calculations for any state programs or benefits.