The Senate and House return to voting session on May 4 and for the next week. The House added Thursdays to the session schedule through May and June.

Session Schedule

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

House

May 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14

June 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29, 20

Senate

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

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

Calendars

House (May 4): House Resolution 35 (M.O'Brien-D-Philadelphia) urging the Department of Education to create stimulating ways to implement geography education.

Senate (May 4): Senate Bill 45 (Greenleaf-R-Montgomery) further providing continuing education requirements for Landscape Architects.

Committees

The following Committees have meetings this week--

House: the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee meets to consider House Bill 1069 (Scavello-R-Monroe) authorizing a county waste management fee, House Bill 594 (Siptroth-D-Monroe) requiring DEP to establish a program for the disposal of home-generated medical sharps; the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee hearing on Marcellus Shale and House Bill 984 (Kessler-D-Berks) allowing the splitting off of land leased for drilling in Williamsport; the Commerce Committee tours the Solar Power Industries, Belle Vernon and Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Garden and holds a hearing on companies engaged in new alternative energy, clean coal and Marcellus Shale developmen tin Pittsburgh.

Senate: theEnvironmental Resources and Energy Committee meets to consider Senate Bill 297 (Yaw-R-Bradford) requiring more frequent reporting of oil and gas well production; Senate Bill 617 (Orie-R-Allegheny) authorizing the Heritage Area Program in law; Senate Bill 783 (MJ White-R-Venango) requiring additional reporting on the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Fund; Senate Bill 829 (MJ White-R-Venango) requirnig a 60-day comment period on the proposed climate change action plan; House Bill 262 (Haluska-D-Cambria) establishing prescribed burning practices; and House Bill 263( Freeman-D-Lehigh) further authorizing agreements to protect the Appalachian Trail, the Game and Fisheries Committee to hear a presentation of the Fish and Boat Commission 2008 annual report.

Other: Joint Legislative Air and Water Pollution Control and Conservation Committee Environmental Issues Forum on PA's Heritage Areas.

These bills of interest were introduced this week--

5/6/2009