I will soon be introducing legislation to reform the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, in order to restore public confidence and electoral legitimacy to the body. At present, only seven of the eleven Commissioner positions are filled; moreover, every member of the commission is serving an expired term, with not a single appointment having been made since 2018. By statute, members of the commission are permitted to continue serving until a successor has been confirmed.
 
It is obvious that the current nomination process for this Commission is not functional, if the entire makeup can be simultaneously serving expired terms. As an important regulatory body of the Commonwealth, serving to protect Pennsylvanians from discrimination on the basis of their fundamental traits, the Human Relations Commission should have a representative and democratically legitimate makeup of Commissioners.
 
My proposal will replace the current nomination process to more closely resemble other boards and commissions, with two members of the commission appointed by each of the Leaders of the General Assembly, with an additional member appointed by each the Governor, Attorney General, and Auditor General. Please join me in sponsoring this important legislation.

Statutes/Laws affected:
Printer's No. 1860 (Jun 09, 2025): P.L.744, No.222