The 198th Session Snapshot
As we say goodbye to 2014, we also say goodbye to the 2013-2014 legislative session. And while we’re looking forward…
Transition Committee Members
Governor-elect Tom Wolf recently announced the members of his transition teams. These teams will work with the outgoing administration to…
Pennsylvania Society
There’s a lot of scuttlebutt this week in political circles about Pennsylvania Society weekend. Who’s hosting events? Who’s going to…
General Assembly Leadership Profiles
House Republicans Speaker of the House Elect: Rep. Mike Turzai (R, HD-28) – Allegheny Representative Mike Turzai was first elected…
Leadership Elections to be held on Wednesday
Members of the House and Senate will return to Harrisburg for one last session day on Wednesday and plan to…
Hot Races and New Faces
Given the number of retirements that had been announced, it’s not exactly a surprise that there will be a number…
Now What?
Even though candidates’ election night fatigue has barely set in, the question on everyone’s mind now is “what’s next?” What’s…
The Word on Wolf
Pennsylvania will have a new governor come January. Democrat Tom Wolf defeated incumbent Republican Governor Tom Corbett in last night’s…
2014 Election Bulletin
This Election Day was a busy one in Pennsylvania. Voters hit the polls to decide on the contests for governor,…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap – Week of October 13, 2014
As expected, this week blew through the Columbus Day holiday and into a flurry of legislative activity. Dozens of bills…
From Second and State: Legislative Preview – October 13-17, 2014
After taking the Columbus Day holiday off, members return to Harrisburg tomorrow for their last voting session days before November’s…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap – Week of October 6, 2014
In honor of Columbus Day, the House and Senate are in recess and will reconvene on Tuesday, October 14 at…
From Second and State: Legislative Preview for the Week of October 6-10, 2014
Both the House and Senate will return to Harrisburg this week for the first of two weeks of voting session…
Countdown to Election 2014 – Voter Registration Deadline Approaching Fast
As the legislators return to Harrisburg for the remaining fall session days, one date will continue to be on the…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap – Week of September 22, 2014
The House and Senate are in recess and will reconvene on Monday, October 6 at 1 p.m. Here is what…
From Second and State: Legislative Preview — September 22-26, 2014
The legislature returns to Harrisburg next week for three of the remaining nine days of the 2013-2014 legislative session. While…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap — Week of September 15, 2014
The House and Senate will reconvene on Monday, September 22, 2014. Here’s what happened in Harrisburg this week: Session Returns…
Capital Project Bills to Reduce Spending and Debt Head to House Floor
A bill that would curb spending increases for certain capital projects, and another to reduce borrowing, may be voted on…
Fall Legislative Session Preview
With fall in the air, the General Assembly returns to Harrisburg on Monday, September 15 after a two-month summer break.…
General Assembly Retirement Review: Rep. Stern
As you know, we’ve been plugging away the last month taking a look at who is retiring from the legislature…
General Assembly Retirement Review: Rep. Mundy, Ross and Scavello
Today, we bring to you our next installment in our series taking a look at members of the Senate and…
General Assembly Retirement Review: Rep. Clymer, Haluska and Miller
As we continue our series salute to the members of the legislature who will retire from their seats at the…
They’re Back…Former Members Try to Reclaim Their Seats
No doubt, this election cycle is shaping up to be a hot one. We’ve got an exciting governor’s race that…
General Assembly Retirement Review: Rep. Swanger and Rock
If you have been following us this summer, you know that we are taking some time out to reflect on…
General Assembly Retirement Review: Rep. Miranda and Molchany
The legislature is not in session right now, but we are busy getting ready for the fall session, which starts…
The Expanding Ash Heap of History
By Andrew J. Giorgione, Esq. and Matthew Fine This year marks the 60th anniversary of the historic United States Supreme…
General Assembly Retirement Review: Rep. Haggerty and Kula
While the legislature is not in session, we are taking time during these quieter days to reflect upon the careers…
General Assembly Retirement Review: Rep. Clay and Denlinger
Throughout the month of August, we are taking a closer look at the members of the House and Senate who…
General Assembly Retirement Review: Rep. Aument and Brooks
Retirements are always plentiful at the end of a legislative session. Come the end of 2014, both the House and…
Secretary of the Commonwealth Issues Notice of Three Proposed Constitutional Amendments
WE, the people of Pennsylvania, have been governed by five different iterations of the state constitution since December 12, 1787,…
Budget Season: It’s over, but not…
The General Appropriations bill was passed on time, with the fiscal code bill quickly following in early July. However, in…
#NARUCSummer Kicks Off
The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) kicks off its Summer Committee meeting this morning in Dallas, Texas. NARUC is…
Update: Last Night’s Senate Action
Last night, the Senate took much anticipated action on H.B. 278 (Rep. Baker, R-Bradford/Tioga), amending the Fiscal Code, and H.B.…
The Senate’s Sticky Situation
Last week, the Senate passed an amended version of H.B. 278, amending the Fiscal Code, which provides the implementation language…
That’s a wrap – sort of…
Let freedom ring! There has been lots of drama in Harrisburg this week as the legislature and the governor wrangle…
The Lay of the Land – July 2, 2014
While the governor has the general appropriations bill on his desk and is considering his options for signature or veto,…
Governor Corbett’s Next Move
We have a state budget – sort of. Just a few hours shy of the last night’s midnight deadline, the…
From Second and State: Week of June 30 – July 4, 2014
This may be a “Week Ahead” edition, but it is really all about the hours leading up until midnight tonight.…
72 Hours to Spend Billions of Dollars
The June 30th budget deadline is just over 72 hours away. It might seem that three days isn’t very much…
What’s all the Fuss about the Fiscal Code?
As of the last few years, if you’ve been following the enactment of the state budget, you’ve likely noticed that the…
Budget Buzz
With only a few days left until the end of the commonwealth’s fiscal year, all eyes in Harrisburg are on…
Pension Reform Update
As June 30 approaches, the likelihood of an on-time balanced budget remains a question. And while there are many factors…
#HealthyPA Takes the Next Step
By: Tim Costa The governor’s recent announcement that 9 commercial insurers successfully applied to participate in Healthy PA is another…
From Second and State: The Week Ahead – June 23-27, 2014
We’ve turned the corner of the final 10 days before the June 30 budget deadline, so you can expect us…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap – Week of June 16, 2014
The House and Senate will reconvene on Monday, June 23, 2014. Here is what happened in Harrisburg this week: Budget…
P3 Infrastructure Forum
By: Andrew Giorgione My partner Bob Shuster and I recently attended the annual P3 Infrastructure Forum in NYC. Organized by InfraAmericas,…
Governor Isn’t Ruling Out Severance Tax; Budget Bill Introduced in Senate
It might not seem like a lot is happening outwardly to advance the budget right now, but the ball is…
From Second and State: The Week Ahead – June 16-20, 2014
The House and Senate will be back in session Monday, June 16 at 1:00 p.m. As June – otherwise dubbed…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap – Week of June 9
The House and Senate will reconvene on Monday, June 16, 2014. Here is what happened in Harrisburg this week: In…
From Second and State: The Week Ahead – June 9-13, 2014
Both the House and Senate will convene at 1:00 p.m. Monday. If comments made earlier this week by House Appropriations…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap – Week of June 2
The House and Senate will reconvene on Monday, June 9, 2014. Here is what happened in Harrisburg this week: Not…
From Second and State: Session Preview
June 2-6, 2014 After a three-week break for the primary election and the Memorial Day holiday, the House and Senate…
Worth Another Look: Write-In Campaigns
Lauren Orazi | Most candidates for public office in Pennsylvania secure their place on the ballot by following the traditional…
IRRC Approves PUC’s Final-Omitted Regulations Addressing Variable Price Contracts
By Karen Moury | On May 22, 2014, the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (“IRRC”) approved by a 5-0 vote the…
IRRC Approves PUC’s Final-Omitted Regulations Designed to Accelerate Switching
By Karen Moury | On May 22, 2014, the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (“IRRC”) approved by a 5-0 vote the…
Congressional Primary Results
U.S. Congressional Races Eight of Pennsylvania’s 18Congressional races had contested primaries that challenged either the incumbent’s party nomination or the…
Legislative Primary Results
Republicans stick with Corbett/Cawley ticket. Incumbent Governor Tom Corbett and Lieutenant Governor Jim Cawley both ran unopposed in the Republican…
Governor’s Race: A Democratic Primary Primer
Pennsylvania’s primary election will be held on Tuesday, May 20. Gov. Tom Corbett is running unopposed on the Republican ticket.…
Legislative Primary Preview
“Run hard or unopposed” is a common campaign motto. And with the Pennsylvania primary election just days away, it’s worth a…
State Issues Healthy PA Program RFA to Insure 500,000+
The Corbett administration’s efforts on the Healthy PA initiative continue to move forward. Late last week, the Department of Public…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap – Week of May 5
The House and Senate will reconvene on Monday, June 2, 2014. Here is what happened in Harrisburg this week: House…
From Second and State: Session Preview May 5-7, 2014
The House and Senate will be in session Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, May 5-7. They will then break after Wednesday’s…
From Second and State: Capitol Wrap: Week of April 28
The House and Senate will reconvene on Monday, May 5, 2014. This will be the last session week until after…
From Second and State: Session Preview
The House and Senate return to Harrisburg this week following the Passover/Easter break. They will be in session Monday, Tuesday…
FROM SECOND AND STATE: PA Political Update
Candidates Report Fundraising Efforts March 31marked the end of the campaign finance reporting cycle covering the period from January 1…
Home Healthcare Advocates Honor Secretary of Aging Brian Duke, Senator Pat Vance, and Representative Marguerite Quinn; Twitter Adds to Advocacy Efforts
BAYADA Home Health Care presented their first-ever Champion awards, marking this year’s BAYADA Day in Harrisburg. This new award recognizes…
Capital Wrap-Up for the Week of April 7, 2014
This was the last session week for the General Assembly before the Passover/Easter recess. The House and Senate will return…
PUC Adopts Final-Omitted Regulations to Accelerate Switching Process
On April 3, 2014, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (“PUC”) adopted a final rulemaking order to revise its switching regulations…
PUC Adopts Final-Omitted Regulations Addressing Variable Price Contracts
On April 3, 2014, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (“PUC”) adopted a final rulemaking order to revise its customer information…
Corbett Signs Additional Child Protection Bills
Governor Tom Corbett recently signed into law three bills that would strengthen Pennsylvania’s efforts to protect its children–Senate Bill 24,…
Harrisburg Highlights from Second and State – The Week of April 7
Both the House and Senate will convene for voting sessions Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week. On Tuesday, be prepared…
Capital Wrap-Up for the Week of March 31
Scott Wagner Sworn-In The Senate’s newest member, Scott Wagner was sworn in on Wednesday. Wagner won the March 18 special…
Pennsylvania Bio State Official of the Year
Rep. Warren Kampf (R-Chester) has been named State Official of the Year by Pennsylvania Bio. The award recognizes an official…
Harrisburg Highlights from Second and State – The Week of March 31
Session for the House and Senate resumes this Monday. The House will start the week off Monday morning with a…
PUC Chair Powelson Confirmed for Second Term
This week, the Senate unanimously confirmed the re-nomination of Chairman Robert F. Powelson to a second five-year term as a…
PUC Creates Critical Infrastructure Interdependency Working Group
Recently, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) established a Critical Infrastructure Interdependency Working Group. The announcement came in conjunction with…
Next Steps: A Budget Process Primer
Last week Governor Tom Corbett presented his proposed 2014-15 budget to the General Assembly. The $29.4 billion proposal includes the…
2014-15 Budget Proposal Review
Governor Tom Corbett unveiled his $29.4 billion budget proposal today, marking the beginning of the 2014-2015 budget process. The proposal…
PA Bulletin Notices for 2/1/14
Unconventional Gas Well Fees Increase for 2013 Per the requirements of Act 13, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) has…
Governor Corbett Releases Pennsylvania’s First State Energy Plan
Governor Corbett today released Pennsylvania’s first state energy plan. The plan, entitled Energy=Jobs, strategically outlines the governor’s plan to embrace…
Washington Office Welcomes Congressman Tom Price, M.D., for a Health Care Policy Briefing
On Wednesday, January 15, the Federal Government Relations group hosted the latest installment in its Speaker Series with a health…