Here are the Senate and House Calendars for the next voting session day and Committees scheduling action on bills of interest as well as a list of new environmental bills introduced--

Bill Calendars

NEW: Click Here for expected action on bills by the full House.

House (October 28):  House Bill 247 (Oberlander-R-Clarion) to allow cross unit unconventional drilling and authorizes voluntary pooling; House Bill 827 (Fritz-R-Wayne) requiring the Delaware River Basin Commission to reimburse property owners for drilling rights if the Commission adopts a ban on fracking was reported from the House Appropriations Committee (House Fiscal Note and summary); House Bill 1106 (Puskaric-R-Allegheny) requires DEP approval of any permit regulating air quality, waste, erosion and sedimentation and dam safety and encroachments within 30 days without regard to public review of permits, creates a new bureaucracy in the form of a “referee” to decide disputes between DEP and applicants over application completeness (Part of House Republican EnergizePA natural gas subsidy package) Click Here for more. <> Click Here for full House Bill Calendar.

Senate (October 28): Senate Bill 256 (Dinniman-D-Chester) amends the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act (Act 101), to expand the definition of “compost materials" to include spent mushroom substrate (sponsor summary); Senate Bill 258 (Dinniman- D-Chester, Killion-R-Delaware), a bipartisan initiative to improve emergency response to pipeline incidents; Senate Bill 284 (Killion-R- Delaware, Dinniman-D-Chester) require pipeline companies to provide current emergency response plans to PUC; Senate Bill 726 (Bartolotta-R- Washington) which would create a new standard for the review for appeals of DEP permit actions before the Environmental Hearing Board by limiting parties appealing permit decisions-- a company or a citizens group-- to issues raised in and information contained in a record of decision on each permit DEP staff would have to prepare, Click Here for more.; Senate Bill 727 (Bartolotta-R- Washington), a companion bill to Senate Bill 726, would change the term of an Environmental Hearing Board judge from 6 to 5 years and limited judges to serving 2 terms, Click Here for more.;  Senate Bill 891 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) authorizing third party review of Chapter 102 (erosion and sedimentation) and Chapter 105 (dam safety and encroachment) permit applications which will make DEP’s permit reviews more complex and costly, Click Here for more.; Senate Bill 919 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) establish statewide uniform requirements restricting the use of Class B firefighting foams containing added PFAS chemistries for training, restricting their use in testing, while also allowing for continued sale and use against real-world fires (sponsor summary);  Senate Resolution 191 (Yudichak-D-Luzerne, Yaw-R-Lycoming) urging Congress to reauthorize the federal Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fee which is the primary source of funding for Pennsylvania’s abandoned mine reclamation program; House Bill 1410 (Stephens-R-Montgomery) would use local funds which would otherwise pay state taxes for cleaning up PFAS contamination, rather than relying on responsible parties to pay for cleanups  (House Fiscal Note & Summary).  <> Click Here for full Senate Bill Calendar.

Committee Meetings This Week

House: the Environmental Resources & Energy Committee hearing On Pennsylvania CO2 and Climate; Children and Youth Committee hearing on municipal recreational programs for preschool-aged children; Local Government Committee meets to consider House Bill 188 (Quinn-R-Delaware) establishing a property owner’s bill of rights in eminent domain cases, like those involving pipelines (sponsor summary), House Bill 406 (Cox-R-Berks) requiring a public meeting before the sale of a municipal asset like a sewer or water system (sponsor summary),  House Bill 908 (Rader-R-Monroe) authorizing the use of up to 25 percent of open space tax funds to be used for maintenance and development (sponsor summary).  <>  Click Here for full House Committee Schedule.

Senate: the Appropriations Committee meets to consider House Bill 374 (Everett-R-Lycoming) creating the Keystone Tree Fund to support DCNR’s tree planting programs.  <>  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.

House and Senate Co-Sponsorship Memos

House: Click Here for all new co-sponsorship memos

Senate: Click Here for all new co-sponsorship memos

Session Schedule

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

Senate

October 28, 29, 30

November 18, 19, 20

December 16, 17, 18

House

October 28, 29, 30

November 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20

December 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18 

10/28/2019