Harrisburg, PA – Yesterday, Governor Josh Shapiro signed Executive Order 2024-02, updating an executive order issued by former Governor Tom Wolf and re-establishing the Pennsylvania Office of Gun Violence Prevention (OGVP) within the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD).
“I’ve spoken to too many Pennsylvanians who’ve lost loved ones to gun violence – that’s why today, my Administration took real action to re-establish and resource Pennsylvania’s Office of Gun Violence Prevention,” said Governor Shapiro. “Under Lieutenant Governor Davis’ leadership at PCCD, we will bring together public safety and public health experts, gun violence survivors and advocates, and leaders from state and local agencies to address and prevent gun violence across the Commonwealth. We’re going to continue to work together to ensure that every Pennsylvanian can be safe and feel safe in their communities – and have the real freedom that comes when you can walk down the street in your community without worrying about gun violence.”
“As I travel across the Commonwealth, I am reminded daily of the devastating impact that gun violence is having across our communities. That’s why I’m proud of the bipartisan state budget, which includes more resources for community-based programs and a new statewide program to fund afterschool programs that can provide kids with learning and enrichment opportunities in a safe, supportive environment,” said Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis. “We’re taking a comprehensive approach to make Pennsylvania communities safer and Governor Shapiro’s Executive Order re-establishing an Office of Gun Violence Prevention at PCCD is one more piece of that puzzle. I look forward to the important work this office will take on, starting with a listening tour in the coming weeks to hear from community members on gun violence-related issues, which will inform the work of the Office.”
Pennsylvania’s investments in public safety, including PCCD’s Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP) grant program for community-based programs to address and prevent gun violence at the local level, have made a significant impact on decreasing homicides across the state in recent years. In 2023, homicides decreased by 16 percent across Pennsylvania compared to 13 percent nationally, and 29 out of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties saw declines in homicides. Additionally, Philadelphia's homicides decreased 23 percent in 2023 compared to the prior year and are down 36 percent so far in 2024.
While progress has been made, too many Pennsylvanians are still impacted by gun violence – more than 1,600 Pennsylvanians die as a result of gun-related injuries in Pennsylvania each year and Pennsylvania’s firearm fatality rate is significantly higher than surrounding states.
Pennsylvania’s OGVP, which was one of the first of its kind when established in 2019, will bring together state agencies working on gun violence prevention to create one comprehensive, coordinated strategy for the Commonwealth to reduce gun deaths, injuries, and crime. The Office, which will be led by a Director reporting to PCCD’s Executive Director, will use evidence-based practices to improve existing state programs and implement new violence prevention initiatives.
Under the Governor’s Executive Order, the OGVP will:
- Convene an advisory group of national, state, and community violence prevention experts, survivors of gun violence, health and behavioral care practitioners, members of law enforcement, and other state agencies;
- Develop a gun violence prevention plan for the Commonwealth; including a multi-faceted approach to address youth gun involvement and gun violence and addressing the intersections of gun violence with domestic violence;
- Partner with the Pennsylvania Departments of Health (DOH) and Human Services (DHS), Pennsylvania State Police (PSP), and other Commonwealth entities to create and maintain a comprehensive online Gun Violence Data Dashboard and resource hub to track gun violence deaths, nonfatal gun-related injuries, and overall trends in crime and violence and serve as a “one-stop-shop” for data and research on gun violence in Pennsylvania;
- Apply for non-state funding to support research, analysis, and implementation of effective gun violence prevention strategies;
- Work with PCCD’s Office of Victims’ Services to improve services and support for gun violence victims, building on the agency’s Resources for Victims of Gun Violence Initiative; and
- Collaborate with DOH’s Division of Violence Prevention, DHS, and other key stakeholders to increase awareness of firearm safety practices like safer storage.
In 2023, the White House’s Safer States Initiative encouraged states to establish a state-level Office of Gun Violence Prevention to coordinate new policies, programs, and resources across state agencies and with local and federal partners. The OGVP will work closely with the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention and other states and local jurisdictions with related offices.
The OGVP builds on the 2024-25 bipartisan budget signed into law by Governor Shapiro, which invested in four new state trooper cadet classes, doubled funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Fund at PCCD, and increased resources for other vital community violence prevention programs, provided funding for more after-school learning opportunities for young people, and increased funding for domestic violence services at DHS and PCCD’s Victim’s Compensation Assistance Program.
These historic investments will help to address and prevent violence in our communities, but there is still more work to be done. During his budget address, Governor Shapiro called on the General Assembly to pass significant gun reform legislation, which passed the Pennsylvania House in a bipartisan manner last year.
Read Executive Order 2024-02, Office of Gun Violence Prevention, here.
###