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Welcome to Wellsboro, Nessmuk’s!
Congratulations to Nessmuk's Sporting Goods on its official grand opening in Wellsboro! Already a popular spot in Morris, Nessmuk’s offers unique heirloom quality outdoor goods, restored vintage items and gear of their own design. The new store is located at 91 Main St. in Wellsboro. The Morris location is at 1803 Route 287. Learn more about the stores at www.nessmuks.com.
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FEMA Disaster Assistance Related to Tropical Storm Debby
It’s been nearly two months since the devastating flooding from Tropical Storm Debby struck our region. Here are a couple updates of note.
Friday Last Day for Emergency Stream Clearing Permits
Please note, this Friday, Oct. 11, is the final day to be issued an “Emergency Permit” from the Department of Environmental Protection if you want to preform work in streams and creeks to clean up damage caused by Tropical Storm Debby. After that, permitting will go back to the usual process with an associated fee and the requirement for an engineer to be involved.
Per our county commissioners, conversations are ongoing with state and federal officials in building a plan to conduct meaningful cleanup work throughout the region on a larger scale.
FEMA Individual Assistance
If you have not yet applied for assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), you have until Nov. 12 to do so.
If you have already applied for disaster assistance, you may track your application in a couple ways:
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Create an online account at DisasterAssistance.gov. Click on “Check Status” to create an account. You will need the email address you registered with. |
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Track your application through the FEMA app. |
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Call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. |
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Visit a Disaster Recovery Center. Just a reminder, the center for Tioga County is now located at Valley Christian Church, 146 Maple St. in Westfield. |
For more information and additional steps for those who have applied for disaster assistance, please click here.
Additionally, FEMA provided a fact sheet for the public to help discern fact from fiction when it comes to disaster help, as rumors and misunderstandings can spread quickly. That is available here.
For FEMA’s website dedicated to the Tropical Storm Debby disaster in PA, click here.
Assistance for Farm Recovery
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) is now accepting applications for the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) in Potter and Tioga counties to address flooding damages from Hurricane Debby. ECP signup will begin on Monday, Oct. 7, and continue through Dec. 6.
ECP helps with the cost to restore farmland to pre-disaster conditions. It covers up to 75% of the cost of approved restoration activity. Limited resource, socially disadvantaged and beginning farmers and ranchers may receive up to 90% cost-share. The payment limitation for ECP is $500,000 per disaster, and the funds are limited to activities to return the land to the relative pre-disaster condition.
The application for assistance must be made prior to beginning reconstructive work. For more information on ECP, contact either the Potter County USDA Service Center at 814-274-8522, the Tioga County USDA Service Center at 570-724-4812, or visit farmers.gov/recover.
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ICYMI: New Stream Clearing Bills Introduced
In last week’s Community Connection, I shared two new pieces of legislation I’ve introduced to give our communities the funding and freedom necessary to better maintain creeks and streams to reduce flood risk. Check out this great reporting on the bills by WENY.
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Focusing on the Future
Develop Tioga, in conjunction with the Tioga County Commissioners, hosted the county’s annual Economic Summit last week.
The agenda was packed with updates from the commissioners, as well as economic development leaders at the state, regional and local levels. We received an update from the county’s housing task force, as well as officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) regarding flood recovery. Finally, we heard from the Manufactured Housing Association, as well as Bradford County and Lycoming County United Way officials who talked about ALICE, which refers to “asset limited, income constrained, employed” residents.
Thank you to all who took part in this important conversation about Tioga County’s present and future. We are blessed with outstanding leaders in our community!
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Policy Committee Hosts Hearing on PA’s Energy Crisis
What if you flipped the light switch and nothing happened? The House Republican Policy Committee held a hearing at the state Capitol this week highlighting the looming energy crisis facing the Commonwealth and the nation.
The hearing, titled “Fighting to Keep the Lights On in PA,” featured testimony from Stephen Bennett, senior manager of regulatory and legislative affairs at PJM Interconnection.
Supplying electricity to more than 65 million people in 13 states and Washington, D.C., PJM has been outlining reliability concerns if we are unable to meet the growing demand for electricity. PJM’s latest capacity auction revealed a severe spike in capacity prices, which is indicative of an increase in demand and a reduction in supply.
House Republicans continue to fight for policies to capitalize on the Commonwealth’s vast energy resources, while House Democrat policies aim to squash long-time reliable energy sources, such as coal, oil and natural gas, in favor of subsidizing far less reliable solar and wind energy development. Consumers need and deserve reliable and affordable energy.
Watch the hearing here.
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Are You Registered to Vote?
The 2024 General Election is just a few weeks away. It’s always a good idea to check your registration status to make sure all your details are up to date before you try to cast your ballot. You can do that online here.
Recently moved? Changed your name? Want to change your party affiliation? You can update your voter registration online here.
If you are not already registered to vote, the deadline to do so is Monday, Oct. 21. You can register in person at your county elections office, by mail or by visiting the state’s online voter registration website.
On Tuesday, Nov. 5 (or sooner if you choose to vote by mail), voters across the Commonwealth will have the opportunity to elect the next president and vice president; members of the U.S. House and Senate; members of the state House and state Senate (in odd-numbered senatorial districts); and state row offices, including attorney general, auditor general and treasurer.
For more information about voting in the Commonwealth, visit www.vote.pa.gov.
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PennDOT Announces ‘Innovations Challenge’ for PA High School Students
Pennsylvania High school students are invited to participate in the eighth annual PennDOT Innovations Challenge, which encourages students in grades 9-12 to present their solutions to real-world transportation challenges in a statewide competition.
For this year’s challenge, students will be asked to develop a cost-effective, innovative solution that can help more effectively increase awareness of seat belt safety and change behavior to improve roadway safety. According to PennDOT, Pennsylvania averages more than 350 unrestrained fatalities on its roadways each year.
Regional Innovations Challenge winners will be selected and invited to present their solutions to the PennDOT secretary and a panel of judges, who will determine the statewide winner. You may remember a team from Wellsboro Area School District was the PennDOT District 3 winner in last year’s competition, giving students Carter Knowlton, Natalie Cleveland and Ian Hoose, along with advisor Francis Novak, the opportunity to make their presentation in Harrisburg!
For this year’s challenge, four different organizations are providing a combined award of $6,000 to the statewide winning team. For complete details, click here. The submission deadline is Jan. 31.
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October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month
To honor those who have fought breast cancer or who are fighting it now, the fountain at the Pennsylvania State Capitol’s East Wing has been dyed pink again this year in recognition of October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women in the United States. It is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, second only to lung cancer.
The pink fountain is also a reminder to all women of the importance of mammograms and early detection. People with low to moderate income who are uninsured or underinsured and meet certain age requirements may qualify for testing through the Pennsylvania Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. To learn about the program and eligibility, click here.
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