Dick Stevenson

Dick Stevenson
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
from the 8th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 02, 2001[1]
Preceded by Howard L. Fargo
Personal details
Born February 11, 1945
Mercer, Pennsylvania
Political party Republican
Residence Grove City, Pennsylvania
Alma mater St. Francis College (NY)
Suffolk University (MA)
Military service
Allegiance  United States
Service/branch United States Air Force
Years of service 19681972

Richard R. "Dick" Stevenson (born February 11, 1945) is a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, elected in 2000 to represent the 8th District.

In the current legislative session, Stevenson serves on the House Appropriations, Judiciary and Professional Licensure Committees.[2]

Career

Stevenson served for eight years on the borough council of Grove City, Pennsylvania from 1985 to 1993, including five years as the council president. In 1996, Stevenson joined the Mercer County Board of Commissioners and was elected chairman.

Stevenson was first elected to the House in 2000 to replace Howard Fargo. That year, he defeated the Armstrong County district attorney, George Kepple, in the Republican primary election[3] with 55% of the vote. In the general election, Stevenson defeated James Coulter, taking over 63%.

Stevenson has won re-election to each succeeding session of the House. Since 2004, he has run unopposed in the primary and general elections.

Controversy

On March 14, 2011, Rep. Stevenson was featured in a report by Pittsburgh's WTAE Channel 4 news.[4] The station found that the state legislature had spent large amounts of money on new chairs—up to $1000 each. Stevenson was specifically mentioned and shown in the video segment. "...following the November election, Rep. Richard Stevenson, the Republican Caucus Administrator, bought 12 executive vinyl chairs for newly elected members at $600 per chair. (Channel 4 reporter Jim) Parsons reported that Team 4 did some online shopping and found the same chairs for half the price." The news segment concluded by saying that a representative for Stevenson told Channel 4 "that a newly-elected member receiving a new chair has been a long-standing practice."

Personal

Stevenson served in the United States Air Force from 1968 to 1972. He served as Korean Language Specialist with the USAF Security Service. Stevenson received a Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Francis College in New York and a Master of Business Administration from Suffolk University in Massachusetts. He and his wife have two children, Sarah Hatfield and Emily Vallozzi, and five grandchildren.

References

  1. "SESSION OF 2001 - 185TH OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY - No. 1" (PDF). Legislative Journal. Pennsylvania House of Representatives. 2001-01-02.
  2. "Profile". Dick Stevenson. Retrieved 2009-03-04.
  3. "The Week That Was". The Herald, Sharon, Pennsylvania. 2000-04-09. Retrieved 2008-09-12.
  4. "State Lawmakers Sitting Comfy in Expensive Seats". WTAE.com. 2011-03-14. Retrieved 2011-03-31.

External links

Media related to Dick Stevenson at Wikimedia Commons