Rep. Danielle Friel Otten

05/28/2026

𝑰𝑪𝒀𝑴𝑰 📰 𝑷𝒆𝒏𝒏𝒔𝒚𝒍𝒗𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒂 𝑪𝒂𝒑𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍-𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓: 𝑷𝑨 𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒌𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒕𝒐𝒎 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒅𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒘𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒈𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄 𝒈𝒓𝒊𝒅

🗣️: “𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐏𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐄𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭’𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭, 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟔, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝟒𝟕𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝, 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐞𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐝.”

🗣️: “𝐀𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐰𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐬𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐬𝐲𝐥𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐚 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝, 𝐨𝐫 𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒, 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞’𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝟑𝟓 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭.”

One thing the recent PennEnvironment report has made abundantly clear: our Commonwealth is falling behind in implementing renewable energy sources to the grid. While solar installations have doubled in the last two years, our overall growth remains far too slow for the needs of families, businesses, schools, and municipalities already facing rising electric costs.

For two decades, Pennsylvania’s Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards (APES) helped promote new and innovative forms of energy generation. But those standards are now outdated, and we are falling behind as energy demand surges and the tech economy continues to grow.

That is exactly why I introduced PRESS. This legislation will modernize and expand our energy portfolio by adding nuclear power and next generation technologies while incentivizing lower emissions for gas-fired power plants. Not only will this legislation diversify our energy portfolio, but it will deliver tens of thousands of jobs and position Pennsylvania as a leader in the energy arena for the next twenty years.

We cannot sit around and do nothing while other states pass us by in the race to diversify our energy sources and create clean, reliable, and affordable energy.

Pennsylvania only gets about 5 percent of its electricity from renewable sources, according to federal data.

05/28/2026

📢 Arizona Learned the Hard Way. Pennsylvania Still Has Time. 📢

Arizona spent years allowing large commercial users to pump groundwater from rural aquifers with no tracking and no limits. By the time the state closed the loophole, aquifer levels had already dropped in measurable and permanent ways. What happened there is a clear example of virtual water trade, where water leaves a community not through a pipeline but through the products created with it.

In Part 6 of my seven part series on water rights in Pennsylvania, I look at how the same dynamic can play out here. Data centers can draw millions of gallons from local aquifers, use that water for cooling, and send the economic value elsewhere while communities are left with the loss. I also examine how other states have strengthened protections around critical water infrastructure and why Pennsylvania’s current laws do not yet address these risks.

Pennsylvania is water rich, but so was the Southwest before a century of unmanaged extraction took its toll. We have the advantage of time, a constitutional right to pure water, and a planning framework that only needs to be finished. Now is the moment to build the protections that will keep our water secure for the long term.

Read my full post on Substack to learn how Arizona’s experience can guide Pennsylvania’s next steps and what we can do now to safeguard our aquifers and communities.

Your Water, Your Bill, Your Rights: Part 6 of 7

05/27/2026

Today, staff from our district office will be at the Downingtown Library for a mobile office. This is a great opportunity to learn about state services and to ask questions about issues that concern you.

Our staff can help you with SEPTA Key Senior ID Card sign ups (must be age 65+/bring your ID), Unclaimed Property searches, Property Tax/Rent Rebate forms, PA Yellow Dot Program, information on Real ID and other state related services.

Stop in to say hello and find out how we can help you! We look forward to meeting you!

05/26/2026

Families across Pennsylvania are feeling the strain of rising electricity prices, and I hear it every day here in central Chester County as a working mom and as your state representative.

Many of our neighbors are struggling with higher utility bills, and across Pennsylvania there are 2.1 million people who are either below the poverty line or classified as ALICE, working individuals and families who earn above the poverty level but still cannot keep up with the high cost of living. For many, rising utility bills mean choosing between keeping the lights on or paying for groceries and needed medication.

Higher energy costs also mean families are facing tough decisions. When bills go up, parents start weighing things like sports fees or the activities that keep their kids active and connected to their communities. These are the kinds of choices no family wants to make, but more and more people are being pushed into them.

And it is not just households feeling the pressure. School boards and municipal governments across our region are dealing with the same rising costs, and they are being pushed into difficult decisions about whether to cut services or raise taxes, decisions that cannot easily be taken back. Local businesses are feeling it too, facing higher energy costs that make it harder to plan, invest, and manage day to day expenses.

All of this is happening while utility companies continue to report record profits.

One of the most important steps we can take to help Pennsylvania consumers is ensuring that PJM updates its rules so renewable energy projects can connect to the grid more quickly. Getting affordable, clean energy online faster increases competition and helps bring down costs for families, schools, and businesses across our region.

PJM needs to do its job. Families across Pennsylvania cannot wait for a slow process to catch up to a crisis that is already here.

PJM, the regional grid operator whose 67 million electricity consumers include Lehigh Valley utility customers, held a recent annual meeting at which affordability was the word of the week, which could spell positive news for residents…

05/26/2026

Best of luck to Yohaan Damani from Downingtown Middle School who is competing this week at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C. 🐝💛📖

Follow along here ➡️ https://buff.ly/bjbabZT

Congratulations again to 7th grader Yohaan Damani from Downingtown Middle School for his first-place finish in the Chester County Spelling Bee this past February! As our regional C-H-A-M-P-I-O-N, Yohaan will represent Chester County in the annual Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.

Tune in or cheer on Yohaan...

Tuesday, May 26, at 8 a.m. ET, rounds one and two for the spellers will begin.
Preliminary rounds will be streamed live on spellingbee.com and the Scripps Sports Network.

Wednesday, May 27, beginning at 8 am ET, the quarterfinals will be live on spellingbee.com and the Scripps Sports Network. This will be followed by the Semifinals beginning at 2:30 p.m ET. A special condensed version of the semifinals will broadcast on ION at 8 p.m. ET.

This all leads up to the Finals, live on Thursday, May 28, at 8 p.m. ET. You will be able to view ION and all of our Scripps Networks. 🐝

05/25/2026

On Memorial Day, we pause to honor the service members who gave their lives in defense of our country. We remember their courage, we honor the families who carry their memory, and we reflect on the cost of the freedoms we enjoy. May their sacrifice guide us in how we serve our communities and care for one another.

05/22/2026

During the Memorial Day weekend, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) will be offering the first of two Fish-for-Free Days 🎣 in 2026.

On Sunday, May 24, the PFBC will waive its license requirement, allowing anglers to fish within public waterways across the Commonwealth without possessing a fishing license.

The second Fish-for-Free Day will happen on Independence Day – Saturday, July 4.

05/22/2026

Our district office will be closed on Friday, May 22 and Monday, May 25 in observance of Memorial Day. We will reopen at 9 AM on Tuesday, May 26 to assist you with any state-related services.

05/21/2026

The Pennsylvania hospitals listed as at-risk are near Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and in Erie and Clinton County. Some hospitals dispute the analysis.

05/21/2026

A new study from researchers at Harvard, Stanford, and Dartmouth highlights several Philly-area school districts that are making real progress in recovering from the academic setbacks caused by the pandemic. While Pennsylvania has its work cut out, ranking 21st in math recovery among 38 states studied and 27th in reading recovery among 35 states studied, two of our local districts were singled out as examples of schools on the rise. Students in the Coatesville Area School District are ahead of the nationwide curve, showing meaningful improvements in reading, while the Downingtown Area School District is outperforming similar districts in its post-pandemic math scores.

According to the report, which was led by the Educational Opportunity Project at Stanford University, Coatesville students are learning 1.09 grade levels per year, which places the district in the 78th percentile nationwide for learning growth. That means Coatesville students are gaining more ground each year than students in comparable districts across the country. The report also shows that this growth is consistent across income levels within the district, with both low-income and non-low-income students learning at rates above the national benchmark. And while chronic absenteeism has risen sharply across Pennsylvania, Coatesville is one of the few districts where absenteeism has improved, dropping by 4.8 percentage points even as statewide rates increased.

Coatesville’s successes underscore the importance of targeted, intentional, student-centered funding and the ability for funding to drive meaningful, measurable improvements in student outcomes.

This is exactly what was at stake in the landmark Pennsylvania school funding lawsuit decided in 2023, when the Commonwealth Court found our state's school funding system to be unconstitutional and discriminatory. Coatesville's progress shows what becomes possible when we stop underfunding our kids.

If this is what Coatesville can accomplish in just a few short years after decades of underfunding, imagine what becomes possible as Pennsylvania continues making historic investments in our public schools. Continued support will allow Coatesville, Downingtown, and school districts around the state to maintain this momentum, strengthen academic outcomes, and ensure that every student has the opportunity to thrive.

There is much work to be done, but this is a moment to celebrate and a call to keep fighting for the resources every student deserves.

Years after the COVID-19 pandemic, learning loss has left Pennsylvania schools lagging behind much of the country.