Pennsylvania House District 23: Dan B. Frankel

None — Race:

Pennsylvania House District 23

Party: Democrat

Bio: Dan Frankel was elected in 1998 to represent the 23rd Legislative District in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

Frankel graduated from Pennington School in 1974. He earned his bachelor's degree in political science in 1978 from Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. Formerly an insurance executive, Frankel served as vice president of Hilb, Rogal and Hamilton Co., and as vice president of the Frankel Co., a regional insurance brokerage firm.

An active community leader, Frankel is dedicated to promoting youth, environmental, and urban development initiatives. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy and the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy. Dan is secretary of the Pittsburgh Convention and Visitors Bureau, a Commonwealth Trustee for the University of Pittsburgh, a trustee of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation, a delegate for the United Jewish Federation and a former treasurer of the Urban Redevelopment Authority of the City of Pittsburgh.

He served as president of the Jewish Family and Children's Service from 1997-99 and remains a board member of the organization, as well as serving on the boards of the K-12 literacy organization Beginning with Books, the Forward Housing Corp, and WQED Multimedia.

He has been recognized for his community service through numerous awards including the Greenfield Organization Special Recognition Award, the Squirrel Hill Urban Coalition Citizen of the Year Award, Zionist Organization of America's Natalie Novick Community Service Award, the Stark Leadership Award from the United Jewish Federation, the Dr. Howard A. Mermelstein Leadership Award from Jewish Family and Children's Services, and the Levinson Community Relations Award from the United Jewish Federation. In the state House, Frankel serves as Democratic Vice-Chair of the House Insurance and Judiciary committees, and serves on the House Appropriations and Democratic Policy committees.

He is chairman of the Allegheny County Democratic Delegation. He is also a member of the Children's Caucus, the Autism Caucus, Alternative Energy Caucus, Renewable Energy Caucus, Alzheimer's Caucus, the Democratic Steel Caucus, the Pennsylvania Legislative Coal Caucus, Chairman of the Democratic Task Force on Emerging Technologies, and Vice Chairman of the Pennsylvania New Democrat Coalition.

Frankel is a strong proponent of gun safety, working to create safer neighborhoods throughout his district and around the state. To fulfill that goal, he has sponsored numerous pieces of legislation and continues to participate in hearings and legislative events around the state. He serves as chairman of the House Common Sense Firearms Safety Caucus, a group charged with exploring sensible approaches toward the safe and lawful use of firearms.

Frankel believes that the state must do more to ensure the health of women and their families. He has been working diligently on promoting health-care funding for low income women, access to breast and cervical cancer screenings for the uninsured and underinsured, and legal access to pharmaceuticals as well as stem cell research.

He has proven his commitment to equity in the health-care system by making mental health parity one of his legislative priorities. Since he took office, he has been working to ensure that insurance companies offer equal coverage for mental health, and to educate the public about mental health issues.

Frankel and his wife, Debra, have three children: Aaron, Erica, and Mark.

Website: PaHouse.com/Frankel

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