FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 2, 2015

Representative Nick Miccarelli
162nd District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Contact: Derek Staccone – (610) 534-1002

Representative Kevin Boyle
172nd District
Contact: Sean Morrison – (215) 695-1016

Millennial Action Project
Contact: Dan Kessler – (610) 316-1907
[email protected]

MICCARELLI AND BOYLE ANNOUNCE FORMATION OF PENNSYLVANIA FUTURE CAUCUS

State Representatives Nick Miccarelli (R-Delaware) and Kevin Boyle (D-Montgomery/Philadelphia) have joined to form the Pennsylvania Future Caucus. Working with the Millennial Action Project (MAP), the Pennsylvania Future Caucus will seek to form a bipartisan coalition of political contemporaries in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives that are dedicated to finding common ground solutions to the problems facing the Commonwealth.

Representatives Miccarelli and Boyle will co-chair the Pennsylvania Future Caucus and hope to recruit their Millennial Generation colleagues to join them in this new caucus. Both lawmakers have cited the need to bridge the political divide and work towards engendering a spirit of teamwork in the Pennsylvania House as a means to end the partisan gridlock that often stalls legislation in the chamber.

“Many of our millennial cohorts have expressed their dissatisfaction with the perceived inability of government to address the problems facing Pennsylvania,” said Miccarelli. “What is often mistaken as political apathy among millennials is really an expression of frustration at the lack of progress and results. The Future Caucus will help to open a dialogue amongst younger lawmakers that share a desire for progress rather than platitudes.”

“There is a certain lack of trust in government among the younger generations as evidenced by lower voter turnout and involvement,” added Boyle. “By uniting our younger legislators towards a common goal, we hope to set a precedent for how government should work and begin to rebuild that trust. The Future Caucus will seek to create a more transparent and inclusive political discourse that energizes younger citizens to get involved.”

While the Pennsylvania Future Caucus is still in its formative stages, it has already garnered bipartisan support from U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Pat Toomey(R-PA), two of Pennsylvania’s top lawmakers.

“The Pennsylvania Future Caucus is an exciting group that represents our Commonwealth’s next generation of leaders. Efforts like the Future Caucus help lawmakers with different views come together in a bipartisan way around common sense proposals that create jobs and strengthen our state,” said Casey. “I’m excited about the work that the Future Caucus will do in Harrisburg and wish them well as they begin this endeavor.”

Echoing Casey’s sentiments, Toomey offered his endorsement of the Pennsylvania Future Caucus.

“Pennsylvania is home to approximately 3 million millennials.  With this in mind, I am pleased to see a younger generation of Pennsylvanians running for office and organizing a Future Caucus designed to focus on the challenges millennials face,” said Toomey. “I am hopeful that the ideas this Caucus will promote will be innovative and help promote Pennsylvania as an ideal place to live, work, and raise a family.  I am eager to see the progress this group of young legislators are able to make.”

The Pennsylvania Future Caucus is partnered with the Millennial Action Project (MAP), a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization activating young legislators across the country and in Congress to foster cooperative, future-focused leadership. MAP worked with Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) and Congressman Aaron Schock (R-IL) to form the bipartisan Congressional Future Caucus, the first Congressional caucus for younger members.

Dan Kessler, who serves on the Millennial Action Council, worked directly with the representatives to help roll out the caucus in Pennsylvania. He expressed his excitement about the launch of the Pennsylvania Future Caucus.

“We are very lucky to have Reps. Boyle and Miccarelli lead this effort, as I believe they will to help lay the foundation for an environment that will foster collaboration and cooperation amongst leaders on both sides of the aisle,” said Kessler. “Their ideas will be innovative, and my hope is that through their efforts to work together, Millennials will be encouraged and become more engaged.”

MAP Co-Founder and President Steven Olikara applauded the individuals involved in bringing this initiative to Pennsylvania.

“The Pennsylvania Future Caucus represents a new generation of leadership moving beyond partisan divides to create innovative, long-term solutions. We are proud of Representatives Kevin Boyle and Nick Miccarelli for spearheading this effort and grateful to Dan Kessler from our Pennsylvania team for his tireless work to make this vision a reality,” said Olikara.

As the 2015-2016 House Session gets underway, Representatives Miccarelli and Boyle will be seeking out their peers in the State House to join the caucus and begin formulating their legislative priorities. The unique circumstances and makeup of each legislator’s district and varying viewpoints will be an added benefit for the Pennsylvania Future Caucus, as the coalition seeks to develop bipartisan relationships with the goal of encouraging open and honest discussions about how to address the needs of Pennsylvania’s residents.

Representative Miccarelli is currently in his fourth term representing the people of the 162nd District located in Delaware County. He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and serves in Pennsylvania Nation Guard. Representative Boyle is in his third term as State Representative for the 172nd District, which encompasses parts of Montgomery and Philadelphia Counties. He is a graduate of La Salle University and holds a Master’s in Education from Harvard.

For more information about the Millennial Action Project, please visit futurecaucus.org.

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