Jan. 8—HARRISBURG — Business in the Pennsylvania State Capitol ramped up Tuesday with the swearing-in of legislators in the House and Senate, but for Rep. David Rowe, the House Republicans’ new Policy Committee chair, the 2025-26 Legislative Session will demand focus far beyond Harrisburg.
The role is that of a standard-bearer for the House GOP — take what’s being discussed in Harrisburg, share it through a conservative lens with constituents across the commonwealth, return to the Capitol with taxpayer input on wide-ranging issues.
The policy committee chair is a leadership position within either House caucus. Its importance might be heightened for House Republicans, who are again in a minority position in the 203-member lower chamber.
The majority split is temporarily tied at 101-101 after a western Pennsylvania Democrat fell ill and was unable to be sworn into office this week, however, based on last session’s rules, Democrats presumably hold the majority since the caucus won 102 seats in the November election.
With the majority comes the power to dictate the legislative rules and agenda throughout the session in committees and on the chamber floor.
A Policy Committee is a respite for the minority party, one legislative Republicans are only recently familiar with since they’ve been the majority in the House for 24 of the past 31 years and also in the Senate each year since 1994.
Members organize meetings, often outside Harrisburg, and coordinate testimony and talking points that might otherwise be brushed aside in venues where the majority is in control.
Expect an emphasis this session on energy production — Pennsylvania trails only Texas in this respect — as well as workforce development, spending and taxes, public education, school choice and student safety.
“I’m excited to take the Policy Committee, go to every corner of the state, and hear from as many constituents as we can,” Rowe told CNHI Pennsylvania. “Then, our job is to take their stories, go back to Harrisburg, craft legislation and pursue an agenda that will objectively make their lives better.”
Rowe, 33, has represented the 85th Legislative District since winning a special election in August 2019. The district includes all of Snyder County along with portions of Union, Juniata and Mifflin counties. The 2025-26 session marks his third full term and fourth overall.
Rowe’s political career didn’t start long before he joined the House. In March 2018, he was appointed to fill a vacancy on the East Buffalo Township Board of Supervisors, his first time serving public office.
Char Gray cast one of the votes to appoint Rowe to the board of supervisors. Matt Schumacher cast the other. Both are now former supervisors themselves.
Gray said she appreciated how Rowe behaved respectfully when challenged with a differing opinion but didn’t crater under the weight of public scrutiny. She also said his personality and willingness to seek others’ opinions would mesh well with a position like a caucus policy chair.
Schumacher said he’d never met Rowe before the two got together to talk about the board vacancy. The two hit it off, he said, over a shared desire to “minimize taxes and maximize freedom.” Taxes were lowered three times and held flat three others during Schumacher’s single six-year term. Rowe was involved in adopting one township budget during his brief tenure on the municipal board.
“Since he’s won (state office) he’s dedicated everything to his constituents,” Schumacher said. “I don’t think he’s changed. … Everything I read that he’s done and is doing is just at a higher level than what he’d done in East Buffalo Township.”
Rowe, a member of Pennsylvania’s Freedom Caucus, is staunchly conservative, influenced by his rural upbringing and Christian faith. He’s pro-business, anti-abortion, supports gun rights and is ardent in support of personal freedoms.
He’s also shown a willingness to work beyond Capitol partisanship to pass legislation he believes in.
He worked with some of the House’s more liberal Democrats on a failed proposal to end state taxpayer subsidies for large corporate interests, such as Walmart or Amazon, which pit states against one another to leverage greater public resources toward private economic interests.
He said he’s committed to working with Democrats again this session on a bill seeking greater transparency in hospital billing.
Rowe said the art of deal-making isn’t one in which personal convictions and principles are compromised.
“I don’t see it that way,” Rowe said. “I see politics as an opportunity to capitalize on the convictions and principles on which people agree with you. That’s how you get things done without ever compromising your values.”
Bob Garrett, president and CEO of the Greater Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce, said Rowe has proven accessible. He said the two met recently to discuss the state of child care, namely the lack of such which is oft-cited as a barrier to employment. He hopes that as the session progresses the topic will be the center of a House GOP Policy Committee hearing.
“If I ever had reservations, is this guy going to represent all of us, I don’t have them anymore,” Garrett said. “He’s very, very responsive.”
The now former House Republican policy chair, Rep. Josh Kail, who serves parts of Beaver and Washington counties, said Rowe’s energy, legislative creativity and moral “north star” are the right fit for the role.
Kail recalled meeting Rowe on the latter’s first day in the House. Kail himself had less than a year in office at the time. Republicans were in the majority then and during what Kail initially perceived to be a mundane issue before the House Children & Youth Committee, Rowe spoke up in contrast to leadership’s position on the matter. It didn’t go unnoticed and wasn’t particularly appreciated by some of the more tenured caucus members, Kail said.
Though he can’t recall the specific topic, Kail said Rowe’s opinion convinced several Republicans including himself to rethink the legislation as written. Kail said the bill was later amended to address concerns first raised by Rowe.
“The best part about David, he’s one of those guys I don’t think quite realizes how good he is at this. He is a natural leader. He’ll grow into this role and I think we’ll watch him blossom,” Kail said. “He has convictions. He’s not afraid to stand alone. You saw all of that on display his very first day in office.”
Andrew Lewis is a former two-term state representative who now leads the conservative think tank, Commonwealth Foundation. He’s a self-professed “homeschool kid” like Rowe, who was raised in Mifflinburg but was taught at home.
The two met as kids within the tight-knit homeschool community, having water gun battles before ever conceiving they’d serve public office together. They were assigned seats on the House floor side-by-side on Rowe’s first day. Lewis said it was clear from the outset that Rowe was attentive, prepared and articulate.
“I think it’s a perfect fit,” Lewis said of Rowe’s leadership position. “Anyone who has a policy opinion on anything has to be able to explain why the policy you believe in will help make your life better. Dave is someone who can connect those dots.”