May 8, 2015

Weekly Recap:

It was all hands on deck this week, with two bills to amend the Tax Reform Code on the House voting schedule. These bills, if called up, would have been perfect vehicles for Gov. Tom Wolf’s proposed changes to the Commonwealth’s tax laws, as laid out in his budget address. With dozens of amendments posted, this could have been the week for tax reform. However, the bills were never called up for a vote, the amendments were never debated and the fate of the governor’s proposals, as well as counter proposals by the House Republicans, lies in the balance. It could be political maneuvering or the need to hash out the tax plan that kept those bills at bay; no matter, though, since – believe it or not – it’s still very early in the budget season.

That’s not to say this was the only action on the House floor this week. After much debate, the House finally passed H.B. 153 (Knowles, R- Berks) and H.B. 384 (Keller, F., R-Cumberland), which are proposed constitutional amendments to shirk the size of the Pennsylvania House and Senate. Also on the floor, the House gave H.B. 389 (Oberlander, R-Armstrong) its second vote. This bill would establish the office of the Chief Nursing Officer in the Department of Health.

Across the hall on the Senate side, legislation to legalize the use of medical marijuana made it one step closer to the finish line, when it was reported from the Appropriations Committee and sent to the Senate floor for a vote. The bill now only needs one more vote in the Senate before it’s shipped to the House for action there. Also, S.B. 330 (Ward, R-Westmoreland) to address the issue of blight was passed by the Senate and is now in position to be sent to the House for action.

Meanwhile, standing committees in both the House and Senate had a busy week. On the House side on Monday, the House Education Committee reported out H.B. 752 (Christiana, R- Beaver), which would increase the limits for tax credits under the Education Improvement Tax Credit and the Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit. The House Liquor Control Committee sent H.B.657 (English, R-Allegheny) to the floor, too, which would amend the Liquor Code to include ski resorts as “public venues”. The House State Government Committee also met this week to discuss the Commonwealth’s municipal funding crisis.

There was water, water everywhere on the Senate side, with two notable hearings. The Senate Republican Policy Committee held a hearing on S.B. 724 (Vogel, R-Beaver). This bill would allow the Commonwealth to procure nutrient reductions needed to comply with the EPA’s mandate to clean up the Chesapeake Bay. Also, the Senate Finance Committee held a public hearing on tax credits for waterfront development projects. The tax credits would encourage investment in waterfront property, stimulating economic development and environmental improvements around those waterways. A bill has been introduced by Sen. Vulakovich (R-Allegheny) and Sen. Costa (D-Allegheny) to establish these tax credits.

However, a lot of Senate committee action had to do with executive nominations this week. The Senate State Government Committee moved the nomination of Curt Topper as Secretary of DGS to the full floor for a vote; the Senate Veterans’ Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee sent the nomination of James Joseph as Adjutant General of DMVA; the Senate Community, Economic & Recreational Development Committee sent the nomination of Dennis Davin as Secretary of DCED; and finally, the Senate Public Health & Welfare Committee sent the nomination of Gary Tennis as Secretary of Drug & Alcohol Programs to the floor. The four nominations will now go before the full Senate for a vote.

Also in the world of appointments and nominations, we’d be remiss not to note that Gov. Wolf appointed a new Chair of the Public Utility Commission this week. Commissioner Gladys Brown will replace current Commissioner Rob Powelson in that post.

For more about Brown, go to:

http://wallaby.telicon.com/PA/library/2015/2015050765.HTM

A Look Ahead:

Expect a heavy committee agenda again this week. On Monday, the House Insurance Committee will meet to consider S.B. 293 (Eichelberger, R-Blair), which would regulate health care navigators. Tuesday, the House Consumer Affairs Committee will hold a public hearing on H.B. 48 (Godshall, R-Montgomery), which would establish statewide water well standards. The Senate Aging & Youth Committee will hold a voting meeting on H.B. 753 (Culver, R-Northumberland), which would establish the PA Long-Term Care Council.

For more on S.B. 293, go to: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/billInfo.cfm?sYear=2015&sInd=0&body=S&type=B&bn=0293

For more on H.B. 48, go to: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/billInfo.cfm?sYear=2015&sInd=0&body=H&type=B&bn=0048

For more on H.B. 753, go to: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/billInfo.cfm?sYear=2015&sInd=0&body=H&type=B&bn=0753

The Senate also plans to hold additional confirmation hearings for nominees to serve in Gov. Wolf’s cabinet. On Tuesday, the Senate Labor & Industry Committee will meet to consider the nomination of Kathy Manderino as Secretary of Labor & Industry; the Senate Aging & Youth Committee will meet to consider the nomination of Teresa Osborne as Secretary of Aging; the Senate State Government Committee will meet to consider the nomination of Pedro Cortes as Secretary of State; and the Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee will meet to consider the nomination of Russell Redding as Secretary of Agriculture. There will be additional nomination hearings on Wednesday: the Senate Environmental Resources & Energy Committee will meet to consider Cindy Dunn as Secretary of the Department of Conservation & Natural Resources, and the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee will meet to consider the nomination of Robin Wiessmann as Secretary of the Department of Banking & Securities.

Finally, there’s been a lot of speculation about when the Senate will begin their debate on an overhaul of the state pension system. This week, Sen. Republican Leader Jake Corman and the Senate Republican leadership team put out a co-sponsorship memo to solicit support for S.B. 1, which is their comprehensive pension overhaul proposal. It’s too soon to say when debate will start, but the introduction of this bill is a pretty good indication that the Senate means business when it comes to fixing the state pension system.

For the full committee agenda, go to: www.legis.state.pa.us

To see what’s happening on the floor in the House, check out the Week Ahead: http://wallaby.telicon.com/PA/library/2015/2015050749.PDF

To see what’s happening on the Senate floor, check the Senate calendar:

http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/SC/0/RC/CAL.HTM

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