PA state rep. wants to force the York State Fair to change its name

Will the York State Fair have to change its name?

State Rep. Catherine Wallen of the 193rd House District, which stretches from Shippensburg to New Oxford, plans to introduce legislation that would prohibit fairs from using the title “state fair” in their name or advertising.

She noted that “a wave of a few fairs” recently has started using the word “state” in their name. There isn’t a statute that allows the use of a “state fair” title in Pennsylvania.

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“This legislation would change that to keep all fairs across the state on the same level and not allude that they are recognized as the Official State fair of Pennsylvania,” Wallen wrote. “The only event that truly has claim to that title is the Pennsylvania Farm Show that is held annually in Harrisburg.”

The annual agricultural fair in York County, formerly known as the York Fair, added the word “state” to its name in 2020. The event, which was set to move to July that year, had to be canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Agricultural Society Board of Directors voted in 2019 to change the name to join other large fairs across the country that include “state” in the name, according to a news release at the time.

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“We are as big as many state fairs across the country in terms of attendance, entries, entertainment, amusement rides, facilities, staffing and budget so the question became why not recognize ourselves as a state fair level event by calling ourselves the York State Fair,” then-CEO Bryan Blair said in the release at the time.

Patrick Ball, the fair’s current CEO, said fair officials are trying to learn more about the proposed legislation.

Teresa Boeckel is a reporter for the York Daily Record, part of the USA TODAY NETWORK. Contact her at tboeckel@ydr.com.