The Senate and House committee meeting schedules and floor Calendars are listed here--

Session Schedule

Here is the House and Senate fall voting schedule—

House

September 22, 23, and 24

October 6, 7, and 8

November 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 24, and 25

Senate

September 22, 23, 24

October 6, 7, 8

November 20-21 (tribute to retiring members, certain nominations)

You can watch the Senate Floor Session and House Floor Session live online.

Calendars/Committees

The Senate and House committee meeting schedules and floor Calendars as they left them for summer recess--

Calendars

House (September 22): House Bill 934 (Scavello-R-Monroe) authorizing counties to impose up to a $4/ton solid waste management fee to support local recycling, anti-litter programs; House Bill 44 (Rubley-R-Chester) banning the sale, installation and unsafe disposal of mercury thermostats; House Resolution 546 (George-D-Clearfield) urging Congress to investigate gas and energy prices;; House Resolution 712 (Hutchinson-R-Venango) re-establishing the Forestry Task Force; House Resolution 719 (George-D-Clearfield) endorsing request for federal funding for PA river basin commissions.

Special Session House Bill 13 (Bennington-R-Mifflin) amends the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards Act to provide for increased use of energy efficiency, extends the compliance period from 15 to 21 years and provides additional milestones for the use of alternative energy; Special Session House Bill 17 (McIlvaine Smith-D-Montgomery) excluding purchase price of hybrid electric vehicles from sales and use tax; Special Session House Resolution 6 (Thomas-D-Philadelphia) designating November 15 as “Pennsylvania GIS Day” and the week of November 11-17 as “National Geography Awareness Week.”

Senate (September 22): House Bill 420 (Hickernell-R-Lancaster) providing for downtown reinvestment area grants under the Main Street Program; House Bill 2233 (Freeman-D-Lehigh) extending the Elm Street Program; House Bill 1742 (Pashinski-D-Luzerne) providing penalties for the theft of scrap metals.

And on the Special Energy Session Calendar: Special Session House Bill 36 (George-D-Clearfield) establishing a State Energy Office to promote energy development and conservation.

Committees

House: the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee meets to consider House Bill 2480 (DeWeese-D-Greene) providing for the adoption of the Mid-Atlantic Area National Electric Transmission Corridor Compact, Special Session House Bill 55 (Brooks-R-Crawford) providing incentives for using switchgrass and other biofuels feedstock to reclaim abandoned mine lands, Special Session House Resolution 107 (not yet online), House Resolution 883 (Harper-R-Montgomery) directing the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to review how grants are funded under the Growing Greener II program; Senate Bill 1330 (D.White-R-Indiana) establishing the Coal Methane Review Board, Senate Bill 1062 (Wonderling-R-Montgomery) reimbursing brownfield developers for certain costs, Senate Bill 1050 (Baker-R-Luzerne) establishing the Used Tire Pile Remediation Account and making an appropriation; and the House Republican Policy Committee holds a hearing on electric rate cap mitigation.

Senate: the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee holds an informational meeting on DCNR’s carbon sequestration plan and a separate meeting to consider Senate Bill 1573 (Musto-D-Luzerne) making a correction to the Water Facilities Bond language, Senate Resolution 375 (Dinniman-D-Chester) urging Congress to oppose certain federal rules governing the regulation of interstate transportation of natural gas, House Bill 44 (Rubley-R-Chester) banning the sale of thermostats containing mercury; the Game and Fisheries Committee holds a hearing on powers and duties of deputy wildlife conservation officers with the Game Commission; the Urban Affairs and Housing Committee meets to consider Senate Bill 1291 (Rhoades-R-Schuylkill) providing additional authority for blight reclamation projects.

Other: the Joint Legislative Budget and Finance Committee meets on Senate Resolution 195 (Brubaker-R-Lancaster) related to a review of the Agricultural Conservation Easement Purchase Program; the Environmental Issues Forum will hear a presentation by U.S.G.S on emerging contaminants in PA Streams, sponsored by the Joint Conservation Committee.

Bills Introduced

This bill of interest was introduced this week—

Water Bond Issue Fix: Senate Bill 1573 (Musto-D-Luzerne) amends the Water and Sewer Systems Assistance Bond Fund language to fix provisions related to the $400 million bond issue referendum.

Stony Creek Scenic River: Senate Bill 1582 (Piccola-R-Dauphin) prohibiting the exchange of property by the Game Commission or the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources within the Stony Creek Wild and Scenic River corridor.

Long-Term Leases: House Bill 1276 (Stern-R-Blair) authorizing the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to enter into certain long-term leases of up to 50 years for rights-of-way..

Regulating Heating Oil: House Bill 1944 (King-D-Montgomery) authorizing the Public Utility Commission to regulating heating oil distribution.

Alternative Natural Gas: House Bill 2300 (Turzai-R-Allegheny) providing for any person distributing natural gas produced from alternative sources not be included within the definition of public utility.

Access to Wells: House Bill 2533 (George-D-Clearfield) providing notice of surface use by oil and gas well operators and use compensation agreements.

Recycling Light Bulbs: House Bill 2740 (Quinn-R-Bucks) adding fluorescent light bulbs to the choices for curbside recycling programs.

Low-Income Heating Assistance: House Bill 2769 (Quinn-R-Bucks) creating a Home Energy Assistance Act providing the Department of Public Welfare to match funds based on contributions by stockholders, employees and ratepayers.

Waste Facility Health Impacts: House Bill 2769 (Quin-R-Bucks) requiring consultant with the Department of Health regarding public health impacts of waste facilities.

9/19/2008