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On the Senate/House Agenda/Session Schedule/Bills Introduced

The Senate and House return to voting session on March 16.

Session Schedule

Here's the House and Senate session schedule through June 2009--

House

March 16, 17, 18, 23, 24, 25, 30, 31

April 1, 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29

May 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13

June 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29, 20

Senate

March, 16, 17, 18, 23, 24, 25, 30, 31

April 1, 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29

May 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13

June 1, 2 , 3, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29, 30

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

Calendars

House (March 16):  House Bill 263 (Freeman-D-Lehigh) authorizing local governments to use zoning to protect the Appalachian Trail, House Bill 92 (Staback-D-Schuylkill) authorizing up to a $1 fee on purchasers of hunting licenses and stamps through the automated licensing system, House Resolution 127 (Levdansky-D-Allegheny) directing the Legislative Budget and Finance committee to determine the impact of tax credit programs (including the REAP farm conservation tax credit) on the Commonwealth's economy, job market and state and local tax revenues, House Resolution 35 (M.O'Brien-D-Philadelphia) urging the Department of Education to create stimulating ways to implement geography education

Committees

The following Committees have meetings this week--

House: the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee meeting to consider House Bill 43 (Harper-R-Montgomery) establishing a high-performance, green building construction tax credit, House Bill 444 (M.Smith-D-Allegheny) requiring state funded building projects to meet certain green building standards, House Bill 786 (George-D-Clearfield) establishing a State Energy Office within the Department of Environmental Protection.

Senate: the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee meets to consider Senate Bill 84 (Greenleaf-R-Montgomery) extends liability protection to nonprofit corporations in brownfield projects, Senate Bill 205 (Pippy-R-Allegheny) providing funding for private sewer laterals, Senate Bill 232 (Wozniak-D-Cambria) holding Army Corps of Engineers harmless for construction of collapsible dam on Conemaugh River, Senate Bill 235 (Wozniak) amends Flood Control Law to permit use of nonstructural alternatives to address flooding problems, Senate Bill 236 (Woniak) amends Stream Clearance, Rectification and Improvement Act to permit use of nonstructural alternatives to address flooding problems, Senate Bill 275 (D.White-R-Indiana) establishing the Coal Bed Methane Well Dispute Resolution Act, Senate Bill 328 (Eichelberger-R-Blair) increasing the threshold for bidding requirements for flood control projects, Senate Bill 490 (MJ.White-R-Venango) appropriating $174 million from the Oil and Gas Fund to DEP and other agencies to support well permitting, theTransportation Committee holds a hearing with transit agencies on federal stimulus funding.

Bills Introduced

These bills of interest were introduced this week--

Senate

Mandatory Deposit Legislation: Senate Bill 588 (Rafferty-R-Montgomery) requiring a mandatory deposit for beverage containers.

Electric Rate Mitigation: Senate Bill 580 (Browne-R-Lehigh) providing for an electric rate phase-in to mitigate the impact of electric rate caps expiring in 2010.

Authorities - Electric Power: Senate Bill 584 (Rafferty-R-Montgomery) authorizing municipal authorities to operate as an aggregator or market aggregator for purchasing electricity.

Solar Tax Exemption: Senate Bill 585 (Rafferty-R-Montgomery) providing for a sales tax exemption for the sale of solar energy systems or components.

House

Oil & Gas Reserve Assessment: House Bill 10 (DeWeese-D-Greene) authorizing counties to assess the value of natural gas, oil and coal-bed methane for property tax purposes.

Alternative Energy/Climate: House Bill 80 (Vitali-D-Delaware) extending the Alternative Energy Portfolio requirements and developing a carbon sequestration network.

Energy-Efficient Home Assistance: House Bill 790 (Watson-R-Bucks) authorizing the PA Housing Finance Agency to establish an energy efficient home assistance pilot program.

Health Risks From Waste Facilities: House Bill 801 (Quinn-R-Bucks) requiring the Department of Environmental Protection to consult with the Department of Health on matters of public health significance of releases from waste facilities and requiring local notification.

Critical Water Resource Areas: House Bill 802( Quinn-R-Bucks) requiring applicants for permits to demonstrate their activity will not have an adverse impact on water resources in designated critical water resource areas.

Fluorescent Light Recycling: House Bill 806 (Quinn-R-Bucks) adding fluorescent light recycling to Act 101.

Oil & Gas Well Bonding: House Bill 808 (Quinn-R-Bucks) increasing bonding for oil and gas wells.

REAP Increase: House Bill 819 (Stern-R-Blair) increasing the cap on the Resource Enhancement and Protection Program (REAP) tax credit program from $10 to $35 million.

Hazleton Soil Series: House Bill 833 (Cox-R-Berks) designating the Hazleton soil series as the official soil of the Commonwealth.

Oil & Gas Royalties: House Bill 834 (Hutchinson-R-Venango) directing the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to lease State Forest lands for gas exploration.

Energy Office: House Bill 836 (George-D-Clearfield) establishing an independent State Energy Office.

PVC Pipe: House Bill 840 (M.O'Brien-D-Philadelphia) prohibiting the use of PVC pipe for water and sewage transmission in certain buildings.

Lyme Disease Task Force: House Bill 894 (Phillips-R-Northumberland) establishing a Lyme Disease Task Force.

Flood Insurance Coverage: House Bill 924 (Hanna-D-Centre) requiring flood insurance coverage as a condition of a mortgage for properties in the flood zone.

Wellhead Gas Meter: House Bill 934 (Wansacz-D-Lackawanna) requiring the installation of a wellhead gas meter.

Tax Credit Study: House Resolution 127 (Levdansky-D-Allegheny) directing the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to determine the impact of tax credit programs on the Commonwealth's economy, job market and state and local tax revenues. The bill was reported out of the House Finance Committee and is on the House Calendar for action. The Senate passed an identical resolution this week and theLegislative Budget and Finance Committee met this week to award a contract to a firm to do an evaluation on one program- the film development tax credit. The Committee must complete their evaluation in one year.

Fuel Price Investigation: House Resolution 139 (Hornaman-D-Erie) memorializing Congress to conduct an investigation into all foreign and domestic factors affecting gasoline and diesel fuel prices.


3/13/2009

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