Josh Shapiro on Government Reform

	Josh Shapiro on Government Reform

Need to cut the red tape; move at the speed of business

We need to invest more in economic opportunity, cut through the red tape, and move at the speed of business. I created the Office of Transformation and Opportunity--a one-stop shop for businesses, to connect the dots and give them the support they need to grow and thrive. Already, our Chief Transformation Officer has met with dozens of business leaders, identifying bottlenecks companies face when they want to work with the Commonwealth and coming up with a plan to streamline those processes. Source: 2023 State of the State Address to Pennsylvania legislature , Mar 7, 2023

Expand early voting; implement same-day voter registration

He'll veto any efforts to restrict mail-in voting, expand early voting, and set up automatic voter registration -- making it easier than ever for legal voters to participate in our democracy. He'll appoint a pro-democracy Secretary of State to run our elections, expand pre-registration opportunities for young people, and implement same-day voter registration through Election Day. Source: 2022 Pennsylvania Governor campaign website JoshShapiro.org , May 18, 2022

Filibuster has rendered Senate unable to solve problems

If you`re telling me that the inaction that is causing the loss of life every single day in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania can be fixed by doing away with the filibuster, then, hell, yes, do away with the filibuster. It`s a vestige of a Senate from yesteryear that has rendered it unable to solve the big, pressing problems of the day. Source: PennLive.com on 2022 Pennsylvania Gubernatorial race , Nov 10, 2021

Defend 2020 election results all the way to Supreme Court

During the 2020 presidential election, Josh protected the right to vote and defended Pennsylvania's election result, winning in court dozens of times before and after Election Day. He continues to call out the dangerous lies that undermine our democracy and provide steady, strong, and competent leadership to protect voting rights in Pennsylvania.

The former president tried to undermine our democracy and overturn our election dozens of times in court--but Josh defended Pennsylvania voters, and won. He argued all the way up to the Supreme Court, ensuring all legal votes were counted and the result of our safe, secure election was certified.

Source: 2021 PA Gubernatorial campaign website JoshShapiro.org , Oct 15, 2021

Worked on some of the toughest ethics laws in state history

As Representative, Josh helped write and pass some of the toughest ethics laws in state history. His work earned him a reputation as a rare public servant willing to take on the status quo--"a blast of oxygen in the smoke-choked back rooms of quid-pro-quo Harrisburg." Source: 2021 PA Gubernatorial campaign website JoshShapiro.org , Oct 15, 2021

Opposes tinkering with photo ID voter requirements

Excerpts from legislation:

If a voter has a religious objection to being photographed [such as Amish populations], a valid-without-photo ID card will serve as photo ID
ID documents must be unexpired or within one year after their expiration date, except for military ID's, which do not designate an expiration date.
The Commonwealth shall disseminate information to the public regarding the ID requirements, including the availability of ID cards other than driver licenses.

OnTheIssues Analysis: This bill tinkers with the rules for photo ID requirements without changing the underlying requirement itself. Therefore, we interpret support of this bill as support of photo ID for voting, and opposition to this bill as supporting more open voting.

Legislative outcome:State Rep. Josh Shapiro voted NAY; bill passed House, 108-88-7 on June 23, 2011; bill passed Senate, 26-23-1, on March 7, 2012; signed by Governor Tom Corbett on March 14, 2012

Source: Pennsylvania legislative voting records: HB 934 , Jun 23, 2011

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