Schuylkill County Redistricting Map
My name is Barron L. "Boots" Hetherington". I reside at 129 Strawberry Lane in Union Township in the Northwest corner of Schuylkill County. I am currently serving as the Chairperson of the Schuylkill County Board of Commissioners. I would like to voice several concerns with the proposed PA General Assembly map as it reflects on Schuylkill County. 1. It was my understanding that the recent attempts to conduct redistricting would not split municipalities, school districts, and counties. The plan should make the map and representation simpler. However, the current plan increases Schuylkill County from three legislative districts to four. As a commissioner I would have to deal with four and not the current three representatives in our delegation. 2. As a resident of Union Township I will no longer be in the 124th Legislative District. I have been in the 124th all of my life. Instead I will now be part of the 116th district which will be a 90% Luzerne County legislative district. The Townships of Union, East Union, North Union, Kline along with the Borough of Ringtown and McAdoo will move to the 116th District. We will not longer be associated with a district with similar demographics. 3. The aforementioned Townships and Boroughs of the 124th that are being move to the 116th district result in a shift of the 124 to include a much larger portion of Berks County. Rep. Jerome Knowles and his predecessor Rep. David Argall (now Senator Argall) have spent many years developing partnerships with my township and neighboring townships and boroughs only to have these networks eliminated and forcing Rep. Knowles to close offices, lay off staff, and start new offices in Berks County. This does not meet the intent of making the district simpler. 4. Rep. Joe Kerwin was elected in 2020 in the 125th Legislative District which now includes upper Dauphin County and Western Schuylkill Counties. Rep. Kerwin is fantastic fit for this district. He was an FFA Member at Upper Dauphin High School, Penn State and Dickenson Law Graduate, as well as an ARMY ROTC graduate. He is currently a Captain in the National Guard. He is also an avid hunter and fisherman. Rep. Kerwin was able to get assigned to the Ag and Rural Affairs Committee and the Game and Fisheries Committee as a freshman legislator. He is a perfect fit for farmers, military veterans, hunters, and fisherman who reside in Upper Dauphin and Western Schuylkill Counties. Changing Rep. Kerwin's 125th District containing more than 80% new constituents in urban Dauphin might make sense from a geographic standpoint, but it fails miserably from a demographic standpoint. The Upper Dauphin and Western Schuylkill County region has a strong rural and agricultural bond. This region has been a community of common interest for generations. It s my understanding that this proposed change will split Lower Paxton Township a municipality of over 53,000 residents into two separate legislative districts. This does not support the purposed principals of redistricting. I would like to thank your committee for giving myself and all other Pennsylvanians the opportunity to share our opinions on this important process. Decisions that are made at the end of this process will affect us our representation for the next ten years. Sincerely, Schuylkill County Commissioner Barron L. "Boots" Hetherington