An update of recent legislative activity by Pennsylvania House Democrats

Sept. 28, 2007

PASSED THE HOUSE

Harhai's consumer protection bill approved in House

 

The state House of Representatives has passed a bill introduced by Rep. Ted Harhai, D-Westmoreland/Fayette, that would require consumers to be notified if a "black box" is installed in their vehicle. The bill (H.B. 487) would require sellers and leasing agencies to disclose whether a vehicle is equipped with an event data recorder and, if it is, to provide a description of the kind of data the EDR is able to record.

 

"EDRs have helped manufacturers build safer cars and are a necessary part of automobile technology," Harhai said. "But most people don’t even know that these devices are in their cars and that the information they store could be used against them. This legislation is intended only to provide that disclosure."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

REPORTED OUT OF COMMITTEE

Committee OKs Pallone bill to include county police in training program

 

Legislation introduced by state Rep. John Pallone, D-Westmoreland/Armstrong, that would reimburse county park police officers for training they receive through the Municipal Police Officers' Education and Training program was voted out of the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday and now awaits a vote in the full House. Pallone's legislation (H.B. 1563) would add county park police to the list of officers subject to Municipal Police Officers Training and Education Commission standards, which would allow them to be reimbursed for attending the Municipal Police Officers' Education and Training program.

 

"I want to thank the members of the House Judiciary Committee for giving their 'thumbs up' to this important piece of legislation and moving it swiftly to the full House for consideration," Pallone said. "This legislation is the final component in granting full police and arrest powers to county park officers by enabling them to receive MPOETC numbers and receive updated training and recertification."

 

-- Click here to read more.

McGeehan: one step closer to cleaning up Philadelphia's roadways

 

The House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee has reported out legislation introduced by Rep. Michael McGeehan, D-Phila., that would prohibit the posting of signs along state roadways in Philadelphia. The measure (H.B. 1519) would impose a $25 fine on individuals who post a sign on state property in the city. Funds generated from the fine would be designated to the TreeVitalize program to encourage tree planting programs in Philadelphia, which is sponsored by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

 

"Benefits such as boosting traffic safety and aesthetics along Roosevelt Boulevard will certainly go a long way in demonstrating Philadelphia's commitment to cleaning up the roadways of unwanted trash and debris," McGeehan said. "The legislation is aimed at the seemingly unlimited scattering of political signs on state roads, bridges and buildings in Philadelphia. Too many of our political aspirants have neither the strength nor willingness to police themselves in cleaning up what they've created and we should no longer have to witness our roadways being disrespected and treated like dumpsters."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

BILL INTRODUCTIONS

Mann introduces legislation to improve safety of home health-care services

 

Rep. Jennifer Mann, D-Lehigh, has introduced legislation (H.B. 1426) that would help protect patients by requiring home health-care workers to wear photo identification tags when they are working in a client's home. Home-care workers include community nurses and dieticians. Mann said most home health-care agencies already require their employees to wear identification, but some do not or their employees don't comply with the requirement. Currently, Pennsylvania does not have any formal identification policy for home health-care workers when they visit a patient’s home.

 

"A photo I.D. would improve security by helping patients identify who is coming into their home and, in the event of any negligence or treatment errors, the home health-care worker could be properly identified," Mann said. "We must give our most vulnerable citizens the protections necessary to ensure that people who are coming into their home are coming in for a good reason."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Wansacz introduces flood prevention proposal

 

Concerned by recurrent flooding in northeast Pennsylvania, Rep. Jim Wansacz is introducing a plan to generate and provide funding for flood mitigation projects across the state. The goal of the fund would be two-fold. First, the program would provide money for flood prevention projects -- for example, to dredge river and creek beds, and to construct, maintain or improve dams, reservoirs and levees. Second, the fund would provide assistance to residents and businesses, as well as municipalities that sustain damage as a result of a flood. Wansacz said his plan would fund the program through an annual $1 surcharge on all homeowners’ insurance and business owners' property insurance policies.

"With the small investment of $1 per year, we can support innovative projects to mitigate flood damage before it occurs and to help those whose property is damaged or destroyed as a result of floodwaters," Wansacz said. "Flood damage is a recurring problem across the state and we need to examine potential solutions before another flood strikes."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Preston introduces hybrid vehicle legislation

 

Rep. Joseph Preston, D-Allegheny, has reintroduced legislation that would provide valuable incentives for consumers to purchase hybrid vehicles in Pennsylvania. Preston said his bill (Special Session H.B. 6; previously introduced in March as H.B. 563) would provide a sales tax exemption for people who purchase hybrid electric vehicles, electric vehicles and zero-emission vehicles. The sales tax exemption would be in effect for five years following the bill's enactment.

 

"Hybrid vehicles and other environmentally friendly vehicles present a great opportunity for both reducing pollution and improving fuel economy to reduce our dependence on oil from the Middle East," Preston said. "My proposal would benefit consumers across the state by providing tax incentives and helping to curb vehicle pollution."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Smith introduces legislation in Special Session on Energy

 

Rep. Matt Smith, D-Allegheny, is introducing legislation (Special Session H.B. 5) that would provide tax credits to residential owners or tenants and commercial owners or tenants for either constructing of a "green" building or rehabilitating a structure to make it more environmentally friendly and energy efficient. In order to qualify for a tax credit, buildings would have to meet certain size restrictions and meet or exceed the environmental standards developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. Certification recognizes performance in five areas: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.

 

"To make Pennsylvania a leader in conservation and green economic development efforts, we need to provide incentives for home and business owners to make these changes to their buildings," Smith said. "And tax breaks on new buildings make it more attractive to build green during construction, particularly when you understand how these up-front investments save money down the road."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Surra bill would create state health benefits system for Pa. school workers

 

Rep. Dan Surra, D-Elk/Clearfield, will introduce legislation that would create a single state health benefit plan for school workers. Surra said his legislation would require all school districts except Philadelphia to participate. Once in place, the state health plan would provide benefits for about 230,000 teachers and other school workers. A 12-member board comprised of state officials, school employees and school board members would run the health benefits program. The state would also provide funding to cover up to half of the annual increase in the cost of providing health benefits under the system.

"A single health insurance system for school employees would greatly expand purchasing power and spread risk, resulting in lower costs," Surra said. "A state plan would also reduce administrative costs for individual school districts and allow them to put more tax money into educating students."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Bennington launches '25 by 25' energy plan

 

As the legislature officially kicked off its Special Session on Energy, Rep. Lisa Bennington was among the first to introduce a proposal aimed at expanding the use of alternative energy. Bennington, D-Allegheny, said her bill would update the Alternative Energy Portfolio Act of 2004, which was designed to increase the amount of energy generated from renewable and environmentally beneficial sources by setting timelines to meet specific goals. Bennington's legislation (S.S.H.B. 13), referred to as "25 by '25," would require 25 percent of energy sold in Pennsylvania to be alternative energy by the year 2025. In addition, the bill would boost the solar energy requirement to 1.5 percent in 2025.

 

"These are lofty goals, but our state's future is dependent on our ability to produce energy from renewable sources. It is time to update the Alternative Energy Portfolio Act of 2004 with more meaningful standards," Bennington said. "These goals will be challenging, but I am confident that technology is moving in a direction that will make this goal easier as time goes on. At the same time, reliance on Middle East oil is becoming more risky for our economy and our national security -- the price of crude oil recently hit an all-time high of more than $80 per barrel."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Cohen unveils proposal to establish state college in Philadelphia

 

Rep. Mark Cohen, D-Phila., has unveiled a proposal promoting the establishment of a State System of Higher Education-affiliated college in Philadelphia. The city is home to many nationally renowned institutions of higher learning, Cohen said. However, he added, policymakers often wrongfully equate the wealth of top-ranked educational facilities as a wealth of opportunity for Philadelphians.

 

"Many of the city's renowned private universities are out of reach of the average Philadelphia high school graduate, either due to their high admission standards or high tuition costs," Cohen said. "Establishing a public university of the State System of Higher Education in Philadelphia would provide an affordable and accessible college option for students of working families."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Taylor introduces plan to keep hazardous-site cleanups funded

 

Rep. Rick Taylor, D-Montgomery has introduced a bill that would provide $30 million for the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Fund to keep removing pollutants from old industrial sites. The HSCA had been funded by the Capital Stock and Franchise Tax, which is being phased out, and the available money will dry up at the end of this year. Under the bill (H.B. 1810), HSCA would receive revenue from money slated to be transferred to the Rainy Day Fund to keep it available through the end of the 2007-08 fiscal year in June and give the General Assembly time to provide a new, stable source of funding for the cleanup program.

 

"The Hazardous Site Cleanup Fund gives Pennsylvania the versatility to respond without delay to incidents where hazardous materials or toxic chemicals endanger public health and safety," said Taylor. "Its other critically important facets include funding for investigation of illegal hazardous waste dumping and dangerous methamphetamine labs, along with cleaning and recycling contaminated industrial land known as brownfields."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Belfanti to introduce legislation protecting custodial parents on active duty

 

Rep. Robert E. Belfanti, D-Northumberland/Montour/Columbia, said he is preparing to introduce legislation that would protect soldiers in Pennsylvania who are called to active duty from losing custody of their children while they are away. Belfanti's legislation would change Pennsylvania's Domestic Relations Law to expressly prohibit state courts from issuing permanent custody change orders while one parent is serving on active military duty. In cases where temporary custody has been given to the other parent while a custodial parent is serving in the military, the bill would require the courts to reinstate the custody order that was in place prior to the custodial parent's deployment. In addition, the legislation would prohibit courts from considering custodial parents' active duty service in future custody determinations.

"These parents spend months and even years fighting for their country and to make the world safer for their children, only to return home and find themselves fighting for custody of those children," he said. "This is extremely unfair. Parents should not be penalized for serving their country by losing their custody rights."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

DePasquale introduces consumer safety measure for recalled products

 

Rep. Eugene DePasquale, D-York, has introduced legislation that would strengthen Pennsylvania's consumer protection laws by targeting the sale and distribution of recalled and unsafe products. Specifically, DePasquale's bill would require the attorney general to establish and maintain a Web page that would provide links to lists of all national agencies that deal with consumer product safety and product recalls. The products identified by any of these lists would be restricted from sale or commerce within Pennsylvania. The legislation would be enforced by the attorney general or county district attorneys.

 

"As a father of two children, I would want to know which products have been recalled and that a store where I am shopping is not allowed to sell these items," DePasquale said. "And as a lawmaker, I would want to know that we have a clear and concise law that protects our consumers from those products that are identified as unsafe."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Taylor introduces bill to strengthen Megan’s Law in Pa.

 

Rep. Rick Taylor, D-Montgomery, has introduced a bill that would toughen Pennsylvania's Megan's Law and close a loophole that has allowed some child sexual predators to avoid its application in their cases. Under Taylor's legislation (H.B. 1803), sexually violent predators would be prohibited from living within 2,500 feet of a public, private or parochial elementary school; a licensed day-care center; or a public park, playground or swimming pool. Additionally, Taylor's bill would require a person convicted of a sexual offense against a minor to wear a 24-hour-a-day electronic monitor when on probation or supervised release; allow the district attorney of the county where a released child sexual offender plans to live to testify in the offender's parole board hearing; and empower state police to run twice-annual random verification of the addresses of sexually violent predators and confirm their compliance with counseling requirements. The random checks would supplement quarterly scheduled appointments.

"I am working to get this measure handled expeditiously in the House," said Taylor. "Every day without these safeguards, especially the closing of the solicitation loophole, leaves our children especially vulnerable, and there is no reason why that loophole should be allowed to remain even one more day."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Mundy introduces bill to fully utilize family caregiver program

 

Rep. Phyllis Mundy, D-Luzerne, says the Pennsylvania Family Caregiver Support Program isn't being fully utilized, and has introduced legislation (H.B. 1830) that would make more caregivers eligible for financial aid and increase monthly reimbursements and the amount of one-time home modification and assistive devices grants. Mundy's legislation would expand program eligibility by removing the relationship and residency requirements. The bill would also increase monthly reimbursements from $200 to $500 and one-time grants from $2,000 to $6,000. This change would not have any impact on the state budget because the department would run the program within existing state appropriations.

"Current state law requires that caregivers must be related to the patient, but many older Pennsylvanians are cared for by family friends or neighbors who at this point don't qualify for this financial assistance," Mundy said. "I want to ensure that we are fully utilizing state funding that's already available for this program. These caregivers serve a specific niche in the health-care system by allowing older residents to age in place and by providing care that is less costly than nursing home care."

-- Click here to read more.

 

Yudichak introducing bill to create immigrant policy commission

 

Rep. John Yudichak, D-Luzerne, will introduce legislation to create a commission charged with formulating statewide policies on immigration. The Statewide Select Commission on Immigrant Policy would study immigration in Pennsylvania and make recommendations for legislative action to the General Assembly. The commission would be comprised of people from various backgrounds with different perspectives on the immigration issue.

 

"The recent litigation and public debate over immigration shows that the people of Pennsylvania and the rest of the country are deeply divided," Yudichak said. "We won’t find any real solutions until we begin logically, responsibly and thoroughly examining all aspects of this issue, and pay more attention to the facts than to rhetoric."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Shimkus working to prevent fraud in home construction industry

 

Spurred by the example of a home builder with a criminal record who's under investigation in Lackawanna County, Rep. Frank Andrews Shimkus is working to prevent fraudulent home builders from victimizing Pennsylvanians. Shimkus, D-Lackawanna, has introduced the New Home Construction Consumer Protection bill (H.B. 1821), which would require all home builders to register with the Pennsylvania Bureau of Consumer Protection. Home builders would pay a biannual fee to register. The money would be put into a fund to reimburse a consumer if a builder has been deemed fraudulent after an investigation by the bureau or the state Attorney General's Office, Shimkus said.

"Should a new home builder have any judgments against him, he would not be able to register," Shimkus said. "The bureau would be required to operate a toll-free number and Internet Web site so consumers could check to see if builders are registered."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Solobay introduces legislation to aid motorcyclists with disabilities

 

Rep. Timothy Solobay, D-Washington, is working to give disabled motorcyclists a helping hand. He's introduced legislation (H.B. 1828) that would allow bikers to apply for a motorcycle disability plate.

 

"Currently motorcyclists with disabilities may obtain a handicap decal to put on their license plates, but those decals are not always seen as actual proof that a cyclist does in fact have a right to use disability parking zones," Solobay said. "A disability license plate would clear up any confusion and ensure that our disabled bikers have the same rights as all other disabled motorists in Pennsylvania."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Cohen to introduce House version of bill on pharmacy audits

 

Rep. Mark Cohen, D-Phila., is introducing legislation that would establish minimum standards and procedures for auditing pharmacy records in Pennsylvania. Cohen said his bill would create the Pharmacy Audit Integrity Act, and would specify procedures for auditing pharmacy records by nonprofit hospitals, managed-care and insurance companies, pharmacy benefit managers and other health-care groups. Under the plan, audits would have to be conducted by a licensed pharmacist. Extrapolation audits, which project final results based on sampling, would be prohibited.

 

"This legislation would save neighborhood and corner pharmacies from potentially being left with a hefty bill from the federal government," Cohen said. "Repayments on good-faith prescriptions would be an enormous burden on small pharmacies that local residents have used for years and count on for service."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Cohen introduces bill to protect religious, political freedoms

 

Rep. Mark Cohen, D-Phila., has introduced legislation that would make it illegal for employers to require their workers to attend a political or religious meeting. Under Cohen's bill, if an employee was terminated for refusing to participate in a religious or political meeting, he or she would be legally protected and could bring a civil action.

 

"Our political and religious beliefs are protected under the auspices of our nation's core documents," Cohen said. "It seems like common sense that your boss should not be permitted to force feed a specific belief on you by requiring attendance at political or religious meetings."

 

-- Click here to read more.

 

Payton wants state to 'REACH' out to successful students

Rep. Tony Payton, D-Phila., is introducing legislation that would provide Pennsylvania students who have demonstrated academic excellence the opportunity to attend college. Payton's legislation would create Reliable Educational Assistance for College Hopefuls, to be referred to as REACH, a statewide merit-based scholarship program for all students in Pennsylvania who maintain at least a 3.0 grade-point average and a 90 percent attendance record. The program would ensure those students would receive a scholarship covering all tuition and fees to any university in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.

"I believe that all responsible students who exhibit a passion for learning in high school should be given the opportunity to continue their intellectual development," Payton said. "The REACH program would do that by providing a full scholarship, covering tuition and fees, to all qualified high school students, regardless of economic background, gender, race and/or religious affiliation. Every public, private and parochial school student who meets the base criteria would be eligible for a scholarship."

 

-- Click here to read more.