Recent legislative
activity by PA House Democrats
June 11, 2010
Adam Ravenstahl sworn in
as state representative
State Rep. Adam
Ravenstahl, D-Allegheny, took
the oath of office Wednesday as a member of the Pennsylvania House of
Representatives serving the 20th Legislative District. The lawmaker said his
legislative priorities include creating jobs, improving the education system,
campaign transparency and public safety.
"I want to thank the people of the 20th
District for the opportunity to serve them, and I promise to work hard to
represent their needs and concerns in the General Assembly," Ravenstahl
said. "Our region needs results from Harrisburg on many issues, and I am
ready to work hard to bring change to improve our region and the state."
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PASSED THE HOUSE
House passes Galloway
bills to curb illegal employment
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives this week passed state Rep. John Galloway's bills that
would address the hiring of illegal workers in the construction trade. House
Bills 1502
and 1503,
which passed with overwhelming bipartisan support and now move to the state
Senate for consideration, would require contractors and subcontractors doing
business in Pennsylvania to verify the employment eligibility of their
employees. New employees would be verified through the E-Verify Program;
existing employees would be verified through the Social Security Number
Verification Service. Contractors who violate these rules could be barred from
state projects or, in the case of private construction work, face forfeiture of
state licenses or certifications. The bills also would offer protection for
whistle-blowers who report construction sites hiring illegal workers.
"These bills target contractors who cheat, who use
and abuse a cheap illegal workforce for profit and push hard-working
Pennsylvanians off the payrolls and on to the unemployment rolls," said
Galloway, D-Bucks. "The overwhelming bipartisan support shown for these
bills indicate that both Democrats and Republicans believe it's time to start
protecting jobs and standing up for the decent, hard-working Pennsylvanians who
play by the rules and are begging us for help."
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for more information.
Taylor Megan's Law bill
advances to Senate
The House of Representatives this week unanimously passed
legislation authored by state Rep. Rick
Taylor, D-Montgomery, that would require convicted sex offenders who are
homeless to register with state police under Megan's Law The legislation (H.B.
1926) would also require Megan's Law registrants that cease to have a
residence to report in person to the Pennsylvania State Police on a weekly
basis until they again establish a residence.
"While the General Assembly has successfully
strengthened Pennsylvania's Megan's law since it first was enacted in 1996, our
work is not done," Taylor said. "Court rulings often reveal
discrepancies in laws we have on the books and if sex offenders are able to
evade the law because they are between apartments, we need to fix it. In terms
of public safety and trust, one sex offender unaccounted for is one too many in
our communities. My bill would require offenders who are displaced from a
current residence, or without one, to register -- no exceptions."
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for more information.
House passes Briggs foster
care sibling placement measure
State Rep. Tim Briggs,
D-Montgomery, said the state House has unanimously passed his legislation aimed
at improving the lives of hundreds of children in the Pennsylvania foster care
system. The measure (H.B.
2258) would require county children and youth agencies to make every
reasonable effort to place siblings together in foster care, unless doing so is
contrary to the safety and well-being of any sibling.
"Keeping siblings together when they enter foster
homes is extremely important for their well-being," Briggs said.
"Many studies show that keeping siblings together in foster care can boost
the children's self-esteem and allow them to create a great support system for
each other."
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House OKs Murphy bill to
let schoolchildren observe elections
The state House of Representatives has passed legislation
sponsored by Rep. Kevin Murphy that
would allow groups of schoolchildren to observe polling places on Election Day.
Murphy's bill (H.B.
2504) would establish the Voting Observation for Children Act to clarify
that classroom observance is permitted during off-peak voting hours and for a
limited time period.
"By passing my measure, we continue to encourage
young people to participate and take an interest in the democratic process and
to become better citizens," said Murphy, D-Lackawanna.
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for more information.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Legislation
to raise alternative energy standards advances
State Rep. Eugene
DePasquale, D-York, said that his bill to strengthen Pennsylvania's Clean
Energy Act today was reported out of the House Environmental Resources and
Energy Committee, with a bipartisan vote of 17-9. DePasquale said his legislation,
H.B.
2405, would significantly boost the amount of energy in Pennsylvania
derived from cleaner, alternative energy sources. This shift would help create
manufacturing jobs in the Commonwealth and provide enough clean energy to power
2.1 million homes.
"The bipartisan support shown for this bill today
proves the value placed in maintaining and improving our alternative energy
standards," DePasquale said. "We must reinforce our position as an
alternative energy leader in order to maintain competitiveness in terms of job
growth and investments in this field."
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House Insurance Committee
approves health-care consumer bill
The House Insurance Committee has approved legislation introduced
by state Rep. Tony DeLuca,
D-Allegheny, that would require health-care providers to give patients,
insurers or other third-party payers information about the cost of off-site
pathology services. The legislation (H.B.
2521) would require a health-care provider to include on a bill presented
to a patient or insurer information about pathology services that are not
directly performed or supervised by the attending doctor. That information
would include the name and address of the lab providing biopsies, Pap tests and
other pathology services, along with the amount to be paid for each of these
services.
"My bill would provide people with medical
disclosure information and how much the service would cost so consumers would
know how much they or their insurance companies were billed," DeLuca said.
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information.
House Judiciary Committee
approves Caltagirone truancy bill
State Rep. Tom
Caltagirone, D-Berks, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said the
committee has approved legislation he introduced that would allow driving
privileges to be restored for some students convicted of truancy, sending it to
the full House of Representatives for consideration. Under Caltagirone's bill (H.B.
2175), students convicted of truancy would not have their licenses
suspended provided he or she: obtains a GED or completes 50 hours of community
service; has otherwise satisfied all court costs; and notifies PennDOT with an
official notification that the criteria have been met.
"Currently, children who are old enough to drive
that are convicted of truancy automatically have their driving privileges
revoked for six months," Caltagirone said. "My bill instead offers
alternatives for that revocation so long as students meet certain requirements."
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information.
Lawmaker's bill to crack
down on nuisance bars advances
Legislation (H.B.
1547) introduced by state Rep.
Ronald Waters, D-Phila./Delaware, that would stiffen penalties for nuisance
bars has been approved by the House Liquor Control Committee. The bill would
prohibit courts from overturning decisions by the state Liquor Control Board to
revoke a bar owner's license unless there is evidence of abuse of discretion by
the LCB, violation of an owner's constitutional rights, or an error of the law.
Additionally, in cases where the LCB decides not to renew a bar's license and
the licensee appeals, the licensee would not automatically be guaranteed the
right to continue to operate while the case is being appealed.
"Pennsylvania neighborhoods have enough to deal
with. They do not need to add nuisance bars to the list," Waters said.
"That is why we need this bill."
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for more information.
Costa's long-term
insurance bill advances in state Senate
Legislation sponsored by state Rep. Dom Costa that would assure
senior citizens of an avenue to appeal long-term insurance claims denied by an
insurance company was approved by the state Senate Banking and Finance
Committee on Tuesday. Under H.B.
1251, if an insurance company denies a long-term care claim filed by a
senior citizen, the individual would be guaranteed the right to appeal the
decision to a third party. In addition, should the third party deny the claim,
the senior would still be able to make an appeal to the state Insurance or
Health departments.
"I am pleased my bill is moving forward in the state
Senate as it would ensure that long-term care insurance policies actually
provide the coverage that consumers expected when they purchased this type of
insurance," said Costa, D-Allegheny.
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for more information.
Roebuck bill to increase
student achievement in STEM fields sent to full House
A bill introduced by state Rep. James Roebuck designed to increase
student achievement in the subjects of math and science was reported out of
committee this week. Roebuck's bill (H.B.
2460) would establish a Mathematics, Engineering and Science Achievement
program within the Pennsylvania Department of Education. The MESA initiative
would work with existing Education Department programs to motivate and
encourage students and increase their exposure to science, technology,
engineering and math education with the goal of giving more students the
ability to compete for these types of jobs in the global market.
"Advances in science and engineering are important
to our economic growth," said Roebuck, chairman of the House Education
Committee. "The demand for scientists and engineers is expected to
increase more dramatically than for other occupations in the coming years, but
today's students are not performing well in math and science, and that
translates into fewer students pursuing degrees in these fields."
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for more information.
Murphy bill would correct
disparity in corrections officers' pay scale
The House Labor Relations Committee this week approved
legislation sponsored by Rep. Kevin
Murphy that would correct an inequity in the salaries of management-level
corrections officers within the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. Specifically,
the measure (H.B.
2432) would place managers and officers within DOC on a consolidated pay
scale that includes pay rates based on management rank and ensures that
salaries of managers are not surpassed by subordinate officers.
"This disparity and inequity creates low morale
among managers and makes it difficult to attract qualified employees into
management positions, not to mention a threat to public safety if qualified
individuals aren't filling these positions," said Murphy, D-Lackawanna.
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for more information.
House Commerce Committee
approves Daley's dual-licensing elimination legislation
A bill (H.B.
2547) sponsored by state Rep. Peter
J. Daley, D-Fayette/Washington, that would eliminate a dual-licensing
requirement for manufactured housing has been advanced by the House Commerce
Committee to the full House for a vote. The MVSFA, which has been in place
since 1947, licenses entities such as manufactured housing retailers who engage
in activities that involve the financing of titled property. But new and
expansive definitional changes to the Mortgage Licensing Act now require
companies that finance manufactured housing and mobile homes to hold dual licenses.
"This is duplicitous, costly and unfair," said
Daley. "My proposed legislation would eliminate the dual-licensing
requirement, allowing business licenses to be retained under the MVSFA.
Individual licenses, where employees are engaging in Mortgage-Licensing-Act-regulated
activity, will be maintained under the act, keeping Pennsylvania in compliance
with the SAFE Act."
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for more information.
Gaming committee clears
bill to ban greyhound racing simulcasts
The state House Gaming Oversight Committee has approved
legislation (S.B.
214) that would make it illegal to simulcast greyhound races in
Pennsylvania, according to Rep. Dante
Santoni, D-Berks. In 2004 the General Assembly enacted legislation
prohibiting greyhound racing in Pennsylvania. Senate Bill 214 would prohibit
simulcasting races from other states. Even though live greyhound racing is
illegal in eight states, simulcasting is illegal in only five of them. Santoni,
who is chairman of the House Gaming Oversight Committee, said tracks with live
racing profit from simulcasting their races to other tracks, casinos and
off-track betting parlors around the nation.
"New greyhounds are continually being bred to replace
others due to injury, age or poor performance," Santoni said. "And
the industry continues to destroy an average of 9,000 dogs a year because they
are not profitable to them, including 'retirees' that aren't rescued or puppies
that don't make the grade. We outlawed greyhound racing in 2004 because of the
poor treatment of these dogs. We now need to close the loopholes in the law so
that we can continue to protect them."
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for more information.
Longietti legislation on
school libraries study advances
State Rep. Mark
Longietti's resolution calling for a statewide study of public school
library resources and services, broken down by school and school district, was
unanimously approved this week by the House Education Committee. Longietti said
library resources vary widely by school and school district, but the state does
not have any data on those resources. The resolution (H.R.
720) would require the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee, with
assistance from the Department of Education, to do the study and report its
findings to the legislature with recommendations on how to improve school
library resources and services.
"A 1999 study showed that there is a direct and
significant correlation between reading test scores and schools with quality
school library programs and staffing," said Longietti, D-Mercer. "Yet
not all public school students attend a school that has a school library. Also,
access to and instruction by a certified school librarian is limited, or even
non-existent, in many public schools."
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for more information.
