With nearly 1.6 million Pennsylvanians living below the poverty line, the House Majority Policy Committee recently announced it will continue its efforts to study the barriers individuals face in reaching self-sufficiency in the Commonwealth. The committee has appointed Rep. Rosemary M. Brown (R-Monroe/Pike) to co-chair the "Life Skills 101" section of the initiative's next steps.

The committee, of which Brown is a member, recently released "Beyond Poverty," a preliminary report with information received through its "Empowering Opportunities: Gateways Out of Poverty" initiative. The initiative consisted of several meetings that took place over the last 10 months throughout the state, including a roundtable discussion in Stroudsburg.The committee continued to hear similar themes as they traveled the state, and chose to focus on particular subject areas moving forward. The report suggests a large portion of society struggles with life skills, including financial literacy and budgeting. Brown and Rep. Dan Truitt (R-Chester) have been tasked in working with career readiness and anti-poverty programs to learn the best reinforcement and delivery of these skills in order to help people succeed financially.House Majority Policy Chairman Dave Reed (R-Indiana) says that sometimes, all a person may need to become financially independent is some extra credit counseling, a personal mentor, or a refresher course on interview tactics.For more information, contact Brown's district office located at 696 Seven Bridge Road, Suite 101, in East Stroudsburg, by calling 570-420-8301. Information on current legislation can also be found on

www.RepBrown.com and Facebook.com/RepRosemaryBrown.