The Senate this week gave final approval to House Bill 796 (Marsico-D-Dauphin) which extends multi-municipal land use planning to municipalities that are not contiguous, but are contained within one school district.

Multi-municipal land use planning is one tool communities can use to help manage their growth under the state’s Municipalities Planning Code. With this technique, not all uses of land must be within one municipality as courts required prior to adoption of general provisions authorizing multi-municipal planning in 2000.

“Controlling sprawl and improving an overall quality of life are just two of the many benefits of multi-municipal planning, and clearly, communities around Lower Dauphin have similar goals. They should be better able to work together to achieve those goals,” said Sen. Jeff Piccola (R-Dauphin) who was an advocate for the bill in the Senate.

“Government should never stand in the way of communities with a common interest working together. I am pleased we were able to get this measure to the governor’s desk to clear the way for a formal joint planning process in Lower Dauphin,” added Rep. Marsico. “Our area has much to offer people and families, and planning is key to ensuring that these valuable resources and attractions are protected and retained.”

For more on land use planning tools, visit PA Growing Smarter webpage.

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