JOHNSTOWN —
When the Legislative Reapportionment Commission recently redrew state Senate and House district maps, the reshuffling left one Cambria County legislator without a district.
The boundary changes put state Rep. Frank Burns, D-East Taylor Township, in a position where he likely will have to run against a sitting representative. He may even have to change the location where he lives.
“They completely shuffled things around, and that’s how it goes,” said Burns, who was first elected to the House in November 2008 to fill the seat vacated by Tom Yewcic.
In attempting to reallocate the districts, the committee moved the 74th district, long held by Rep. Camille “Bud” George, a Democrat from Houtzdale, Clearfield County, to eastern Pennsylvania.
It then renumbered some of the districts in Cambria County.
“The 74th district is the one that grew legs and moved,” said Bill Patton of the House Democratic Caucus. “The population numbers shifted over the past decade.”
What is now the 74th district in Clearfield County will become the 73rd district, stretching from Nanty Glo to Clearfield. It is a seat being sought by two Clearfield County residents.
What is now the 73rd district, represented by Gary Haluska, D-Patton, and running from Portage to the Clearfield County line, will become the 72nd district. It has been significantly reconfigured.
The 71st district now held by Bryan Barbin, D-Johnstown, will remain under the same designation with few changes in the municipalities it includes.
Reapportioned districts do not go into effect until 2014, giving everyone impacted two years to consider their next steps, Haluska said.
He has maintained a stronghold on the northern end of Cambria County for the past two decades.
While Haluska’s new district continues to include his hometown of Patton, the changes, if they stand, move Burns’ home in East Taylor Township into what will be the 72nd district.
“Frank and I will be up for re-election in the 2014 election, and he will be living in my district,” Haluska said. “We could run against each other, or he could move to Nanty Glo.”
If Burns moves into what will be the new 73rd district, he would run against the winner in the 2012 elections. The Democratic candidate is Clearfield County Commissioner Mark McCracken, who will face off against Republican Thomas R. Sankey III.
The new 73rd district seat may be difficult for a Cambria County resident to capture, given the geographic split. It will be 75 percent Clearfield County and 25 percent Cambria County.
“It all depends on how everything works out and where Frank wants to run,” Haluska said.
“There’s a lot of moving parts on this.”
Burns views the new House map as less than ideal, but far better than the one unveiled in January. That map was rejected by the state Supreme Court because it split too many municipalities.
The original map divided the northern part of Cambria County and much of Clearfield County between Burns and Haluska.
“This one makes the most sense for the people of Cambria County,” Burns said. “It’s the best of a bad situation.”
Meanwhile, Burns is not rushing into any decisions.
“These maps aren’t even official yet,” he said. “I’m going to wait to see what happens, then I’ll make my decision.”
Changes in the 35th Senatorial District in the original reapportioned map released earlier this year remained largely unchanged in the newly approved map.
The district now represented by State Sen. John Wozniak, D-Westmont, would include all of Cambria and Bedford counties and much of Clearfield County with the exception of five municipalities in the northwest.
The maps were approved June 6 by the five-member Reapportionment Commission. Officials and the public had 30 days to file challenges.
The reshuffling is done every decade and is prompted by population changes tracked by the Census.
A number of challenges are anticipated. The challenges involve the whole map and not just a specific district or municipality.
Local News
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Frank Burns File Photo
Discussion
State rep burned by reapportionment
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