Here are the Senate and House Calendars and Committee meetings showing bills of interest as well as a list of new environmental bills introduced--

Bill Calendars

House (May 22):  <> Click Here for full House Bill Calendar.

Senate (May 22): Senate Bill 242 (Baker-R-Luzerne) adds natural gas gathering lines to the PA One Call utility construction safety program so they can be identified and mapped for emergency services (sponsor summary); Senate Bill 269 (Baker-R- Luzerne) changing the process for updating the PA Construction Code (sponsor summary); Senate Bill 431 (Scavello-R-Monroe) increasing fines for littering (sponsor summary); Senate Bill 561 (DiSanto-R-Dauphin) requiring legislative approval of regulations with an economic impact of $1 million or more.  <> Click Here for full Senate Bill Calendar. 

Committee Meeting Agendas This Week

House:   <>  Click Here for full House Committee Schedule.

Senate:   <>  Click Here for full Senate Committee Schedule.

Bills Pending In Key Committees

Check the PA Environmental Council Bill Tracker for the status and updates on pending state legislation and regulations that affect environmental and conservation efforts in Pennsylvania.

Here are links to key Standing Committees in the House and Senate and the bills pending in each--

House

Appropriations

Education 

Environmental Resources and Energy

Consumer Affairs

Gaming Oversight

Human Services

Judiciary

Liquor Control

Transportation

Links for all other Standing House Committees

Senate

Appropriations

Environmental Resources and Energy

Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure

Community, Economic and Recreational Development

Education

Judiciary

Law and Justice

Public Health and Welfare

Transportation

Links for all other Standing Senate Committees

Bills Introduced

The following bills of interest were introduced this week--

Expedited Environmental Permit Review For Licensed Professionals: House Bill 1352 (Bloom-R-Cumberland) directs DEP to develop an alternative permit review process for applications submitted by a licensed professional engineer landscape architect, geologist and land surveyor that requires publication of public notice, schedule required public meetings and hearings and initiative a technical review within 10 working days of the receipt of an application and it is declared complete and requires DEP to make a decision on the permit within 45 days.  It also prohibits DEP from charging an “additional” fee for receipt or processing of an application submitted by a licensed professional  (sponsor summary); House Bill 1353 (Bloom-R- Cumberland) require DEP to cite specific regulations or statutes when it declares an application deficient (sponsor summary).

Adjust Fee Cap On Local On-Lot Septic System Inspections: House Bill 1365 (Daley-D- Montgomery) adjusts the cap on local on-lot septic system inspection fees for a proposed permit-exempt septic system to more fully pay for the actual cost of inspection (sponsor summary).

Add Substances To Hazardous Sites Cleanup Program: House Bill 1398 (Watson-R-Bucks) adding perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and other substances designated by executive order as a health threat to the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Program (sponsor summary).

Severance Tax: House Bill 1401 (DiGirolamo-R-Bucks) imposing a 3.2 percent natural gas severance tax on natural gas production in addition to the Act 13 drilling impact fee.  15 percent of the revenues would go to the Growing Greener Program and the remaining to basic education grants, pension payments and human service programs (sponsor summary).

Official Amphibian: Senate Bill 658 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) designing the hellbender the official amphibian of Pennsylvania (sponsor summary).

Wellhead Protection: Senate Bill 707 (McIlhinney-R-Bucks) defining critical zones for protection of drinking water in wellhead areas (sponsor summary).

Session Schedule

Here is the latest voting session schedule for the Senate and House--

Senate

May 22, 23, 24

June 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30

House

May 22, 23, 24

June 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30

Governor’s Schedule

Gov. Tom Wolf's work calendar will be posted each Friday and his public schedule for the day will be posted each morning.   Click Here to view Gov. Wolf’s Weekly Calendar and Public Appearances.

5/15/2017