House and Senate Leaders Announce Committee Chairs for 2019-20 Session
On January 2, 2019, Speaker of the House Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny County) announced the appointments of majority committee chairmen for the 2019-20 Legislative Session. House committees study each bill and determine which proposals will go to the full House. They conduct public hearings on key issues, allowing citizens and interested groups to have a say in the legislative process, and they serve as a resource for members and others.
Committees are outlined in the House Rules that are enacted for each session. On January 7, House Democrat Leader Frank Dermody (D-Allegheny) released the list of Minority Chairs for his caucus. Here are the appointments to Chairs of Committees of interest to PSPE:
Consumer Affairs:
Rep. Brian Ellis, 11th Legislative District, Butler County.
Rep. Rob Matzie, 16th Legislative District, Beaver and Allegheny counties.
Environmental Resources and Energy:
Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, 12th Legislative District, Butler County.
Rep. Greg Vitali, 166th Legislative District, Delaware and Montgomery counties.
Finance:
Rep. Michael Peifer, 139th Legislative District, Pike and Wayne counties.
Rep. Jake Wheatley, 19th Legislative District, Allegheny County
Judiciary:
Rep. Rob Kauffman, 89th Legislative District, Franklin County
Rep. Tim Briggs, 149th Legislative District, Montgomery County
Labor and Industry:
Rep. Jim Cox, 129th Legislative District, Berks and Lancaster counties.
Rep. Patrick Harkins, 1st Legislative District, Erie County
Local Government:
Rep. Dan Moul, 91st Legislative District, Adams County.
Rep. Bob Freeman, 136th Legislative District, Northampton County
Professional Licensure:
Rep. Dave Hickernell, 98th Legislative District, Lancaster and Dauphin counties.
Rep. Harry Readshaw, 36th Legislative District, Allegheny County
State Government:
Rep. Garth Everett, 84th Legislative District, Lycoming and Union counties.
Rep. Kevin Boyle, 172nd Legislative District, Philadelphia and Montgomery counties
Transportation:
Rep. Tim Hennessey, 26th Legislative District, Chester and Montgomery counties.
Rep. Mike Carroll, 118th Legislative District, Luzerne and Lackawanna counties
Urban Affairs:
Rep. Sue Helm, 104th Legislative District, Dauphin and Lebanon counties.
Rep. Thomas Caltagirone, 127th Legislative District, Berks County
The Senate Republican and Democrat leaders released their respective 2019-20 Committee chairs on January 7. Those committee chairs are listed below. Full committee rosters will be available after the committees organize the week of January 15.
Senate Standing Committee Chair Assignments of interest:
Agriculture & Rural Affairs – Senator Elder Vogel, Jr. (R-47); Judy Schwank (D-11)
Appropriations – Senator Pat Browne (R-16); (D-7)
Communications & Technology – Senator Wayne Langerholc, Jr. (R-35); Steve Santarsiero (D-10)
Community, Economic & Recreational Development – Senator Mario Scavello (R-40); Larry Farnese (D-1)
Consumer Protection & Professional Licensure – Senator Robert Tomlinson (R-6); Lisa Boscola (D-18)
Education – Senator Ryan Aument (R-36); Andrew Dinniman (D-19)
Environmental Resources & Energy – Senator Gene Yaw (R-23); John Yudichak (D-14)
Finance – Senator Scott Hutchinson (R-21); John Blake (D-22)
Intergovernmental Operations – Senator Judy Ward (R-30); Wayne Fontana (D-42)
Judiciary – Senator Lisa Baker (R-20); Daylin Leach (D-17)
Labor & Industry – Senator Camera Bartolotta (R-46); Christine Tartaglione (D-2)
Local Government – Senator Scott Martin (R-13); Tim Kearney (D-26)
Rules & Executive Nominations – Senator Jake Corman (R-34); Jay Costa (D-43)
State Government – Senator Mike Folmer (R-48); Anthony H. Williams (D-8)
Transportation – Senator Kim Ward (R-39); John Sabatina, Jr. (D-5)
Urban Affairs & Housing – Senator Tom Killion (R-9); Katie Muth (D-44)
Legislative Activity
No bills of interest to PSPE were acted on by the General Assembly this past month. The 2017-18 legislative session ended officially on November 30. The following co-sponsorship memos for bills to be introduced next session have been circulated thus far.
Bidding / Contracting
SCO 49 (S. Martin) – Provides school districts the option to publish public notices in a more flexible manner such as a district newspaper. Filed, 12/4/2018
SCO 62 (Brooks) – Amends the Construction Code by exempting several types of common home improvement projects. Filed, 12/4/2018
SCO 88 (Scavello) – Authorizes government entities to meet their legal advertising requirements through publication in a community paper of mass dissemination. Filed, 12/4/2018
SCO 108 (Farnese) – Amends Title 62 to place dollar limits on political contributions of bidding contractors and require disclosure of those political contributions. Filed, 12/4/2018
SCO 165 (Laughlin) – Requires a municipality to contract with at least three third party agencies. Filed, 12/6/2018
Budget Related Bills
HCO 63 (Quinn) – Authorizes the expanded use of public-private partnerships for public infrastructure initiatives. Filed, 12/3/2018
HCO 64 (Quinn) – Presents a proposal for $315 million in annual investments for environmental conservation, recreation, and preservation projects across the commonwealth. Filed, 12/3/2018
HCO 68 (Quinn) – Permits manufacturers making capital investments in excess of $50 million to claim a deduction against their taxable income. Filed, 12/3/2018
HCO 70 (Quinn) – Establishes Pennsylvania’s Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program. Filed, 12/3/2018
Environmental Building Standards
HCO 71 (C. Quinn) – Requires the design, construction, and renovation of state-owned or leased buildings to comply with specified building standards. Filed, 12/3/2018
SCO 150 (T. Killion) – Provides the necessary authority for administrative agencies to fund grant programs and projects in support of cost-efficient green infrastructure and nature-based solutions. Filed, 12/5/2018
Sales/Use Tax
HCO 273 (Owlett) – Provides a Sale and Use tax (SUT) exemption for items and/or services purchased by a contractor(s) on behalf of a school district, intermediate unit, area vocational-technical school or charter school that are related to a construction project. Filed, 12/19/2018
Workforce Development
HCO 80 (Cox) – Reforms occupational license requirements to reduce barriers of reentry for former criminal offenders into a profession or trade. Filed, 12/3/2018
HCO 240 (Bizzaro) – Strengthens the Industry Partnerships program. Filed, 12/14/2018
SCO 135 (Langerholc) – Creates the Recovery to Work Pilot Program to connect individuals in recovery with occupations through local workforce development boards. Filed, 12/5/2018
SCO 260 (Boscola) – Provides military spouses greater ease in obtaining the transfer of their professional license. Filed, 12/13/2018
SCO 276 (Blake) – Establishes a Career Readiness Council. Filed, 12/17/2018
Upcoming Meetings of Interest
Some House Committee meetings and session can be viewed online at: http://www.pahousegop.com/
Senate Committee meetings and session can be streamed at: http://www.pasenategop.com/
THURSDAY – 2/14/19
House Appropriations Committee
3:00 p.m., Room 140, Main Capitol
Budget Hearing – Department of Labor and Industry
MONDAY – 2/25/19
Senate Appropriations Committee
10:00 a.m., Hearing Room 1, North Office Building
Budget Hearing – Dept. of Labor & Industry
Senate Appropriations Committee
1:00 p.m., Hearing Room 1, North Office Building
Budget Hearing – Dept. of General Services
TUESDAY – 2/26/19
House Appropriations Committee
3:00 p.m., Room 140, Main Capitol
Budget Hearing – Department of General Services
2019 SENATE SESSION SCHEDULE
January 1, 15, 16, 28, 29, 30
February 4, 5, 6
March 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27
April 8, 9, 10, 29, 30
May 1, 6, 7, 8
June 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28
2019 HOUSE SESSION SCHEDULE
January 1* 15, 16, 28, 29, 30
February 4, 5, 6, 19, 20, 21
March 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27
April 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 29, 30
May 1, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 22, 23
June 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 20, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28
State Registration Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists Meeting Schedule
2019 Meeting Dates (Subject to change): January 9 CANCELLED, March 13, May 8, July 10, September 11, November 13
PUBLIC WELCOME
All Board meetings are held at Penn Center, 2601 N. 3rd Street, Harrisburg, PA, at 9:30 a.m.
Other meeting dates may be scheduled as needed.
Copies of all bills of interest can be accessed online.
