Fred Keller is currently serving his second term in Congress, after being elected in a special election in 2019 to fill the unexpired term of Congressman Tom Marino. Prior to Congress, Fred served five terms in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, where he developed a proven record of working hard to grow Pennsylvania's economy and attract jobs, standing up for taxpayers, promoting agriculture, and tirelessly supporting local families and businesses.
During his 25-year career at Conestoga Wood Specialties, Fred rose to serve as Plant Operations Manager at the company’s Beavertown facility, managing over 230 employees and a $50 million-dollar annual budget. While building his career at Conestoga, Fred started his own successful small business managing properties and serving as a general contractor.
As I’ve long said, government works best when the people define their government, not the other way around. I want those in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District to know that my offices are an open channel for them to express their concerns and make their priorities my priorities. I encourage anyone in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District to get in touch with our office so the PA-12 team knows what you are thinking and what you would like us to work on for you.
Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District is home to some of the most abundant natural gas and energy resources in the entire world. Thanks to home-grown energy resources produced in central and northeastern Pennsylvania, the United States is a net exporter of natural gas and is set to be a net exporter of energy. On top of that, our district has seen significant economic gains as a result of our energy resources. There are also significant national security benefits of the United States being able to supply its own energy and energy to our allies. That’s why it is incumbent upon lawmakers to continue to incentivize the growth of our home-grown energy industry, work with employers to build downstream businesses, and continue the great community partnerships seen across Pennsylvania.
Agriculture is the number one industry in Pennsylvania and is the lifeblood of central and northeastern Pennsylvania. With farmers facing seasonal and trade issues, the agriculture industry needs a strong voice in Congress. With the passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Pennsylvania farmers stand to benefit significantly by increased agriculture exports. Ongoing trade negotiations between the administration and other countries are also geared toward ensuring our agriculture industry becomes strengthened. In addition, I am proud to co-sponsor legislation like the Diary Pride Act and the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, which ensure dairy farmers are protected by truth-in-advertising and school students get the healthy and nutritious milk they need.
Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District is centrally located between some of the most travelled highways in our country and is poised to take economic advantage of our position by major infrastructure projects happening in our district. With projects like expansion of the I-99 corridor and the Central Susquehanna Valley Thruway Project, central and northeastern Pennsylvania will be in a position to be a hub for the transportation of persons and goods up and down the east coast and across the country. In Congress, I will continue to advocate for the transportation and infrastructure needs of Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District.
While our national economy has seen unprecedented prosperity over the last several years, throughout the district I constantly hear about employers having trouble finding good employees to take open positions. While on the House Education and Labor Committee, I have learned about the importance apprenticeships in learning skills while finding a career path. In addition, we should continue to promote employer-led innovation in, and access to, work-based learning experiences, while maintaining the flexibility necessary for businesses. I am a big believer in also incentivizing career-minded students to seek a path to career and technical schools. Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District is home to some of the best trade schools in the country and the economic success opportunities for these students is incredible.
We need to ensure healthcare is accessible and affordable while also protecting those with pre-existing conditions. However, we cannot bankrupt our country while doing so. We need to continue to explore practical ways to reduce the cost of healthcare. I’m proud to support legislation that seek this end by lowering the cost of prescription drugs. In addition, we need to increase insurance competition by allowing consumers to do things like purchase insurance across state lines.
Article 1, section 2 of the Constitution of the United States of America requires a decennial census. The census is taken at the beginning of each new decade and will be occurring throughout 2020. Participating in the census is critical to ensuring proper representation, deployment of federal resources, and understanding of population trends.
Everyone in Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District is encouraged to participate in the 2020 Census.
Beginning on March 12, 2020, households all across America will begin receiving a letter with an Invitation to Respond to the Census.
In addition to the Invitation to Respond, you may also receive:
Census takers play a critical role in the 2020 Census. In May, they will begin visiting homes that haven't responded to the census to help ensure everyone is counted. These census takers are there to help, and they are legally bound to protect your information.
The best way to avoid being visited at home by a census taker, or enumerator, is to complete the 2020 Census online, by phone, or by mail.
The 2020 Census Count will end on July 31, 2020.
It is important to know that:
Should you have any additional questions, please contact one of our offices or reference these helpful materials from the Census Bureau:
The effects of COVID-19 have changed the way every American lives their lives and earns their livelihood. As a result, Congress has taken a number of significant steps to help protect businesses, employees, individuals, and families from economic injury that occurred through no fault of their own and get needed supplies and resources to healthcare providers and frontline fighters of this terrible virus.
That response has thus far come in three phases.
Phase 1 addressed the immediate public health and safety concerns caused by COVID-19. The $8.3 billion legislative package focused on the healthcare aspects of COVID-19 and included money for testing, vaccine development, therapeutics, personal protective equipment, state and local government response efforts, and mitigation of the disease abroad.
Phase 2 is the $2.5 billion stimulus effort that passed Congress in mid-March. The package includes relief for families and individuals who might need to take paid leave from work in order to care for themselves or family members while providing tax credits to small businesses, boosts unemployment compensation funding for those who may be laid off as a result of COVID-19’s economic impacts, increases funding to low-income nutrition assistance programs, and provides flexibility to child nutrition programs.
Phase 3 was the $2.2 trillion relief package that provided direct rebates to Americans, created the Paycheck Protection Program to help keep businesses open, provided needed funding for front-line healthcare providers to acquire needed supplies, and provided significant funding to help with regional response efforts.
While the effects of this legislation are many, I want to make sure you have the state and federal information and resources you need to navigate through these changes and find the help you may need.
Below, find a list of federal and state resources that are important to getting that help at this time, as well as other places you may find additional helpful tools to navigate through this crisis.
Our offices remain open and ready to help you. We ask that you call or email before stopping in the office. The contact information for our offices can be found on this website’s home page.