A note of progress since the untimely passing of Lacey Gallagher is House Bill 163. House
Bill 163 was first introduced to the Transportation Committee of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives back
in January of 2007 by State Representative, Katharine Watson (Bucks-R).
This bill, if passed, would strengthen teen driving laws by limiting
the number of passengers under the age of 18 who are allowed to drive with an individual operating a motor vehicle
under a junior driver license. This bill would also require 65 hours of driving experience, up from the previous 50 hours,
10 hours of night time driving experience and 5 hours of inclement weather driving experience.
In addition to House Bill 163,
State Representative, John Sabatina Jr. (Philadelphia Co. D) introduced Amendment 702 to the bill which
would require House Bill 163 to be referred to as "Lacey's Law". If House
Bill 163 passes and is signed into law, it will not only make the roads safer for all motorists, it would let the
Gallagher family know their daughter and sister did not die in vain.
Several months ago the Pennsylvania House Transportation Committee
voted unanimously to support House Bill 163 and Amendment 702. This sounds like great news
and it is, but it is only the first hurdle in a series of hurdles we will have to clear in order to make this bill a
reality.
House Bill
163 currently sits in the Pennsylvania House Appropriations Committee, we are hopeful this committee will also
support this bill with a unanimous vote and pass it on to the full House of Representatives(203 members). If House Bill 163
is moved on to the full house, they will discuss, debate and vote of this bill. Hopefully they vote to support this measure
and if so, the bill moves onto the Senate.
If and when House Bill 163 is passed onto the Senate, they will have several options. The senate
can vote to support House Bill 163 in its current state which would mean it would be sent to Governor
Rendell to be signed into law. Or, the Senate can choose to amend the bill which means in would have to be sent back to the
full House of Representatives once again, for their approval. Or, the Senate can let the bill sit until the end of the year
which means the bill would die.
We
can not let this bill fade away, we need to contact our state representatives and senators and urge them to
support House Bill 163. Write letters, make phone calls, send e-mails to your elected officials, to let them
know you support House Bill 163 and the naming of "Lacey's Law" and urge them
to do the same.
Lacey Gallagher was
a beautiful person on the inside as well as the outside, she left an immediate impression upon meeting people and that
is evident by the amount of support the Gallagher family has received from others. Please keep the memory and spirit
of Lacey alive by contacting your Pennsylvania
State lawmakers, to urge them to support House
Bill 163 in memory of our fallen angel, Lacey Gallagher. Please visit the web site at www.thelaceyfund.org. Best regards.
To contact you PA State lawmakers, please visit the following web sites.
www.house.state.pa.us House of Representatives (203 members)
www.pasen.gov Pennsylvania State Senators (50 members)
Respectfully,
Matthew J. McIntyre
