Agenda Set for PA House

Here's a roundup of action scheduled at the state House of Representatives this week:

Communities are still dealing with the effects of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee from six months ago. A package of bills will begin moving Monday in the House to help residents and communities ravaged by the storm waters.
 
HB 1912 (Rep. Tina Pickett, R-Bradford/Sullivan/Susquehanna) Flood Relief Act for 2011 – Creates a flood recovery grant program for low income individuals or families whose flood-related damage exceeded federal loans and grants.  The Supplemental Individual Assistance Program would be administered by the Department of Public Welfare (DPW).
 
HB 1913 (Rep. Lynda Culver, R-Northumberland/Snyder) Local Abatement of Real Estate Taxes -- Allows local taxing bodies to abate real estate taxes for properties substantially affected by the flood. Abatement is directly proportionate to damage of property.
 
HB 1915 (Rep. Karen Boback, R-Columbia/Luzerne/Wyoming) Capital Budget Act of 2011 for Flood Damaged Bridges -- Authorizes a county-by-county list of bridges affected by the flood that need rehabilitation and need to be added to the Capital Budget Act.

HB 2245 (Rep. Karen Boback, R-Columbia/Luzerne/Wyoming):  Authorizes state capital money for projects to rehabilitate or replace railroad bridges damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irene and/or Tropical Storm Lee in the summer and fall of 2011.
 
HB 1916 (Rep. Dave Millard, R-Columbia) Flood Control and Hazard Mitigation Itemization Act -- Authorizes a county-by-county list of flood control and hazard mitigation projects that could be funded through the Capital Budget Act. 
 
HB 2077 (Rep. Kurt Masser, R-Columbia/Montour/Northumberland Counties) Small Business Flood Relief Supplementation Act -- Provides additional assistance to certain employers to supplement compensation received from private insurance and the federal government.

The Weekly Schedule

Bill numbers will be used to identify the legislation being considered either in committee or on the House floor. The bills, sponsors and summaries are posted below.
 
Monday, March 26
 
Committee Meetings/Hearings

FINANCE, 10:30 a.m., Room G-50, Irvis Office Building
HB 665 (Rep. Doug Reichley, R-Berks/Lehigh):  Allows a surviving spouse to file a joint return if he or she would have been able to file a joint return had the deceased spouse lived the entire year. If both spouses die, the fiduciary of the estate may file a joint return if the spouses would have been eligible to do so had they survived the entire year.
HB 1333 (Rep. George Dunbar, R-Westmoreland):  Provides an exception from a penalty for failure to make estimated tax payments and adds a special tax provision for poverty within an existing exception.
SB 405 (Sen. Pat Browne, R-Lehigh/Monroe/Northampton):  Limits a local taxing authority's ability to levy a mercantile or business privilege tax to when the privilege of doing business is exercised through a base of operations in the local taxing jurisdiction and specifies that no jurisdiction may charge this tax when the tax is levied by another jurisdiction.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, 12:30 p.m., Room 205, Ryan Office Building
SB 375 (Sen. Dominic Pileggi, R-Chester/Delaware):  Prohibits municipal authorities from making financial expenditures for any purpose other than a service or project directly related to the mission of the authority and establishes a cause of action in the court of common pleas for any ratepayer to the authority.
TRANSPORTATION, Call of the Chair, Room B-31, Main Capitol Building
HB 2242 (Rep. Matt Baker, R-Tioga/Bradford): Itemizes $66.78 million to be expended for highway capital budget projects for flood-damaged highways to be financed from revenue from the Motor License Fund.
HB 2243 (Rep. Scott Hutchinson, R-Venango/Butler):  Road designations: the Venango County Veterans Highway; the Forest County Veterans Highway; and the Warren County Veterans Highway.
SB 1147 (Sen. David Argall, R-Schuylkill/Berks/Carbon/Lehigh/Monroe/Northampton):  Establishes a permit for the movement of eggs, with a maximum vehicle weight not to exceed 95,000 pounds and an annual fee of $400 per vehicle, allows for a permit to transport cryogenic liquid, with a maximum vehicle weight not to exceed 102,000 pounds; and specifies that both egg and cryogenic liquid permits may not be issued for movement upon an interstate highway.
 
Session
On Monday, the House will convene at 1 p.m. for legislative business. The members will vote the uncontested calendar and Rule 35 resolutions.
 
Votes on Second Consideration
HB 1057 (Rep. Dave Reed, R-Indiana): Reduces the safety zone distance for trapping within any waterway, watercourse, marsh, pond, or dam from 150 yards to 50 yards for properly licensed furtakers and maintains the 150-yard safety zone for trapping near a school, daycare, or playground.
HB 1832 (Rep. Curt Sonney, R-Erie):  Allows physician assistants to authenticate additional forms; eliminates the requirement that the State Board of Medicine approve the written agreement between a supervising physician and physician assistant; and establishes that the frequency of physician review of patient records completed by the physician assistant shall be determined by the supervising physician.
HB 1833 (Rep. Curt Sonney):  Allows physician assistants to authenticate additional forms; eliminates the requirement that the State Board of Osteopathic Medicine approve the written agreement between a supervising physician and physician assistant; and establishes that the frequency of physician review of patient records completed by the physician assistant shall be determined by the supervising physician.
HB 1913 (Rep. Lynda Culver, R-Northumberland/Snyder):  Authorizes the abatement of real estate taxes for the tax year 2011 for properties that were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irene or Tropical Storm Lee and allows taxing authorities to exempt from real property taxation the assessed valuation of reconstruction or repairs made to the damaged or destroyed properties.
HB 1915 (Rep. Karen Boback, R-Columbia/Luzerne/Wyoming):  Authorizes capital projects from available revenues to rehabilitate or replace bridges that were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irene and/or Tropical Storm Lee in the summer and fall of 2011.
HB 2245 (Rep. Karen Boback):  Authorizes $2.6 million for capital projects to rehabilitate or replace railroad bridges that were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irene and/or Tropical Storm Lee in the summer and fall of 2011.
SB 304 (Sen. Mary Jo White, R-Clarion/Forest/Venango/Butler/Erie/Warren):  Requires air pollution control implementation plans or revisions developed by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), other state agencies, or local air pollution control agencies to be published and maintained on DEP’s website, or the website of the agency that developed the plan or revision.
SB 743 (Sen. John Rafferty, R-Berks/Chester/Montgomery):  Allows private driver training school instructors to provide the classroom portion of driver education instruction without obtaining a Pennsylvania teacher certification when the available position has been posted on the school’s website for 10 days and a certified candidate has not been found.
HB 1934 (Rep. Fred Keller, R-Union/Snyder):  Excludes the number of individuals residing in a state or federal facility that operates a facility-wide recycling plan when determining the population of a municipality under Pennsylvania’s Recycling Law.
HB 1970 (Rep. Randy Vulakovich, R-Allegheny):  Exempts any portable traffic control signal or device upon a trailer not exceeding 3,000 pounds gross vehicle weight from registration and allows such vehicles to be operated in tandem so long as the combined length of the trailers does not exceed 300 inches.
HB 2158 (Rep. Glen Grell, R-Cumberland):  Bridge designation: the Cpl. Paul Walters Memorial Bridge.
HB 2192 (Rep. Marguerite Quinn, R-Bucks):  Bridge designation: the 1st Lt. Colby J. Umbrell Memorial Bridge.
HB 2246 (Rep. Marguerite Quinn, R-Bucks): Bridge designation: the 1st Lt. Travis Lemma Manion Memorial Bridge.
SB 110 (Sen. Lloyd Smucker, R-Lancaster/York):  Requires PennDOT to establish and maintain a publicly accessible log of executive and passenger flights on all aircraft owned or leased by the Commonwealth for use by Commonwealth agencies and the General Assembly.
SB 560 (Sen. Bob Mensch, R-Bucks/Lehigh/Montgomery/Northampton):  Establishes the State Military College Legislative Appointment Initiative Program, whereby each member of the General Assembly may select an eligible student from his or her legislative district for guaranteed initial enrollment in a state military college.
SB 730 (Sen. John Gordner, R-Columbia/Montour/Northumberland/Snyder/Dauphin/Luzerne):  Permits, under the Second Class Township Code, the transfer of real or personal property to a council of government without advertising and competitive bidding.
SB 815 (Sen. Lisa Baker, R-Pike/Wayne/Wyoming/Luzerne/Monroe/Susquehanna):  Requires Pennsylvania courts to appoint legal counsel for any child appearing without one at any hearing and establishes that counsel for the child cannot be waived.
 
 
Tuesday, March 27
 
Committee Meetings/Hearings
STATE GOVERNMENT, 9 a.m., Room 60, East Wing
SB 354 (Sen. Mike Folmer, R-Lebanon/Berks/Chester/Dauphin/Lancaster):  Prohibits PennDOT or any other Commonwealth agency from participating in either the REAL ID Act of 2005 or any regulations promulgated under the act.
JUDICIARY, 10 a.m., Room 205, Ryan Office Building
HB 311 (Rep. Mauree Gingrich, R-Lebanon):  Allows a judge to extend or accelerate a payment schedule, assign community service, or charge interest on the amount of unpaid restitution when a defendant has defaulted on a payment despite the defendant’s proven financial ability to make the payment.
HB 1954 (Rep. Todd Rock, R-Franklin):  Increases the mandatory restitution amount required after a conviction of theft of timber from two to six times the market value of the timber take; increases the liability in a civil action from three to six times the market value of the timber if the theft was willful, and from two to four times that value if negligently cut down.
COMMERCE, 10:30 a.m., Room B-31, Main Capitol Building
HB 1616 (Rep. Gordon Denlinger, R-Lancaster):  Creates a new corporation class within the Commonwealth, a Benefit Corporation, which redefines the fiduciary duty of a corporation’s directors allowing them to take non-financial interests into consideration when making decisions for the corporation.
 
Session
On Tuesday the House will meet at 11 a.m. for legislative business.
 
Votes on Second Consideration
HB 1602 (Rep. Tom Killion, R-Chester/Delaware):  Amends the Mechanic’s Lien Law to eliminate mechanics’ lien rights for subcontractors who performed work on residential property if the property owner paid the contractor in full and create a “Notice of Commencement” process whereby owners can identify subcontractors working on their project.
SB 473 (Sen. Pat Vance, R-Cumberland/York):  Reduces the active duty service requirement from 180 to 60 consecutive days for reduced-fee fishing licenses.
SB 349 (Sen. Pat Browne, R-Lehigh/Monroe/Northampton):  Establishes the licensure of tanning facilities through the Pennsylvania Department of Health, enumerates licensing procedures and requirements, and establishes penalties for violations.
SB 1228 (Sen. Stewart Greenleaf, R-Bucks/Montgomery):  Provides a time period extension for vehicle manufacturers/dealers to complete repairs, under the Automobile Lemon Law, if the delay in making repairs is due to a catastrophic event.
 
Votes on Third Consideration
HB 1507 (Rep. Dave Reed)
HB 1832 (Rep. Curt Sonney)
HB 1833 (Rep. Curt Sonney)
HB 1913 (Rep. Lynda Culver)
HB 1915 (Rep. Karen Boback)
HB 1934 (Rep. Fred Keller)
HB 1970 (Rep. Randy Vulakovich)
HB 2158 (Rep. Glen Grell)
HB 2192 (Rep. Marguerite Quinn)
HB 2245 (Rep. Karen Boback)
HB 2246 (Rep. Marguerite Quinn)
SB 110 (Sen. Lloyd Smucker)
SB 304 (Sen. Mary Jo White)
SB 560 (Sen. Bob Mensch)
SB 730 (Sen. John Gordner)
SB 743 (Sen. John Rafferty)
SB 815 (Sen. Lisa Baker)
 
 
Wednesday, March 28
 
Committee Meetings/Hearings
AGING AND OLDER ADULT SERVICES, 9:30 a.m., Room 60, East Wing
Informational meeting regarding Alzheimer’s disease.
GAMING OVERSIGHT, 9:30 a.m., Room 39, East Wing
HB 2003 (Rep. Curt Schroder, R-Chester):  Establishes the creation of false records, the presentation of false records, and the intentional destruction of PA Gaming Control Board (PGCB) records by certain persons employed by or appointed to the PGCB as a first-degree misdemeanor with a fine of $75,000-$150,000; subsequent violations will be graded as a second-degree felony, with a fine of $150,000-$300,000.
HB 2015 (Rep. Paul Costa, D-Allegheny):  Allows a major or minor league baseball team’s affiliated non-profit organization to hold 50/50 raffles.
JUDICIARY, 9:30 a.m., Room G-50, Irvis Office Building
Joint public hearing with the Senate Law and Justice Committee regarding funding for the Pennsylvania State Police.
PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE, 9:30 a.m., Room 205, Ryan Office Building
Public hearing on HB 817 (Rep. Seth Grove, R-York):  Requires pharmacists to obtain parental consent in order to administer an injection to an individual under the age of 18 and allows pharmacy interns to administer injections after meeting specific requirements.
EDUCATION, Call of the Chair, Room 205, Ryan Office Building
HB 431 (Rep. Matthew Smith, D-Allegheny):  Requires the training of school employees in diabetes care and treatment as well as allows for the possession and self-administration of diabetes medication by students.
HB 2028 (Rep. Garth Everett, R-Lycoming):  Under the Public School Code, allows work in excess of $10,000 to be done under a single contract, clarifies that the Separations Act will not apply to this section, and states that boards of trustees and contractors of charter schools are also not subject to the requirements of the Separations Act.
 
Session
On Wednesday, the House will meet at 11 a.m. for legislative business.
 
Votes on Third Consideration
HB 1602 (Rep. Tom Killion)
SB 349 (Sen. Pat Browne)
SB 473 (Sen. Pat Vance)
SB 1228 (Sen. Stewart Greenleaf)
 
 
Thursday, March 29
 
Committee Meetings/Hearings
CONSUMER AFFAIRS, 9:30 a.m., Room 60, East Wing
Public hearing on HB 2061 (Rep. Bob Godshall, R-Montgomery):  The Wireless Broadband Collocation Act streamlines the procedures for local governing authorities to review applications for the modification or collocation of wireless communications facilities and wireless support structures within a 90-day period and allows carriers to collocate or upgrade existing towers under the requirements used in the initial tower siting process.
HUMAN SERVICES, 9:30 a.m., Room 140, Main Capitol
Informational meeting on how the funding and payment of the Department of Public Welfare’s Office of Developmental Programs will impact families.

This information was supplied by Republican Majority Leader State Rep. Mike Turzai.