SENATE ADVANCES HB 911

 Counties' top priority, 911 services system reform, continues to move through the legislative process, with several amendments adopted in Senate committee and on the Senate floor to HB 911 the week of June 8.

After being re-committed to the Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee for further review, that committee adopted two additional amendments before reporting HB 911 back to the full Senate. The first amendment, sponsored by committee chair Sen. Randy Vulakovich (R-Allegheny), contained various technical changes to the bill and reinstated the hold-harmless for PSAPs operated by Allentown and Bethlehem that had been removed in previous versions of the legislation. The other amendment was offered by Sen. Bob Mensch (R-Montgomery) and permits (but does not require) counties to impose a fee per occupied housing unit of up to $52 annually, coupled with a sliding scale per-employee fee assessed against businesses; this fee would be in addition to the statewide surcharge already included in the bill.

Later, the Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously reported HB 911 with a further technical amendment, and two amendments were then adopted on the Senate floor clarifying that the optional county fee must be levied on both residences and businesses if adopted, and changing the line count methodology that will clarify and increase the number of lines subject to the fee.

The Senate final passage vote may occur the week of June 15 and, because it was amended in that chamber, it will have to go back to the House for a concurrence vote.

BUDGET DEBATE CONTINUES

The state House of Representatives returned to the Capitol on June 1, and began procedural steps to move a budget to the Governor's desk before the start of the FY 2015-2016 fiscal year. In mid-May, House Appropriations Committee chair Rep. Bill Adolph (R-Delaware) filed HB 1192 as a vehicle, essentially the enacted FY 2014-2015 budget with a few additions to restore funding that was shifted to special funds in the current fiscal year, and not reflecting any legislative budget proposal at this time. Several House members filed amendments for debate; while none of the amendments contained a comprehensive alternative, they offered an opportunity for legislators to discuss specific line items of individual concern. 

SENATE CONFIRMS AGENCY HEADS 

The state Senate continues its process of review and consent of those individuals nominated by Gov. Wolf to head state agencies in his administration. Recently, the Senate unanimously confirmed Ted Dallas as secretary of the Department of Human Services and Cindy Dunn as secretary of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. John Wetzel, secretary of the Department of Corrections in the prior administration, was unanimously reappointed to his position as well.

SENATE PANELS HOLD HEARING ON RAIL SAFETY FOR CRUDE OIL 

The Senate Transportation and Environmental Resources and Energy Committees held a joint hearing on June 9 on the safe transportation of crude oil by rail, during which Lancaster County commissioner Scott Martin and county emergency management director Randy Gockley offered their experiences with planning, training and response to a hazardous material release, including crude oil unit train incidents.

HOUSE COMMITTEE APPROVES CHANGES TO CHILD PROTECTION LAWS 

The House Children and Youth Committee recently voted 24-2 to report a bill that would make several corrective changes to the Child Protective Services Law updates that were enacted in 2013 and took effect in early 2015.

As HB 1276 went to the House floor, Gov. Wolf announced on June 10 that fees for background checks and child abuse clearances for volunteers working with children will be waived, and that fees for all other applicants will be reduced from $10 to $8, effective July 25. The House subsequently adopted an amendment to HB 1276 offered by Rep. Dan Moul (R-Adams) to further assure that all volunteers required to obtain these clearances will be able to do so once every 36 months.

RETSL BILLS MOVE FORWARD 

The House Local Government Committee recently approved two bills making changes to the Real Estate Tax Sale Law, both sponsored by Rep. Chris Ross (R-Chester). The first bill, HB 909, would allow county tax claim bureaus to recover at upset sale costs incurred by the county for property rehabilitation and maintenance. Recovery would be prior to other distributions under the law. The change would assist counties in addressing safety and maintenance of the property, or other improvements reasonably necessary to improve the property's sale-ability.