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The information you need to follow legislation in the House and Senate- starting with articles and NewsClips from last week--
Environment & Energy NewsClips--
Gov. Shapiro
-- DEP: No Applicants Have Asked For Their Money Back Yet Under The PAyback Permit Review Money Back Guarantee Program [PaEN]
Budget
-- Post-Gazette - Ford Turner: PA Budget Process Muddied By Clashing State Revenue Estimates As Hearings Begin
-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: ‘Reasonable’ State Revenue Projections Versus ‘Plausible’ Ones
-- PennLive: Independent Fiscal Office Projects Bigger Budget Gap, Prompting Diverging Views From Lawmakers
-- PennLive Guest Essay: We Have A Duty To Keep PA On A Solid Financial Path - Keep Rainy Day Fund Healthy - By State Treasurer Stacy Garrity, Sen. Scott Martin, Rep. Seth Grove
-- City & State PA: Budget Hearings - UFOs, Weed, More From This Week’s Hearings
-- ABC27: Senate, House Lawmakers Sitting On $298 Million Surplus In Their Accounts; Republican Rep. Dunbar Said It Was ‘A Little Excessive’
Oil & Gas Health Impacts
-- Penn State Study: Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater Fails To Meet Beneficial Reuse Recommendations For Use As A Dust Suppressant [PaEN]
-- DEP: Shell Petrochemical Plant Pays Additional $2,671,044.75 In Civil Penalties For 12-Month Air Quality Violations After May 2023 Consent Order [PaEN]
-- Western PA Residents Comment After A Year Of Shell Petrochemical Plant Operations [PaEN]
-- PennLive: Beaver County Man Sues Shell Petrochemical Plant Over Smell, Noise: “Sounds Like A Freight Train 24 Hours A Day’
-- Beaver County Times: Lawsuit Claims Shell Petrochemical Plant Is A ‘Private, Public Nuisance’
-- Inside Climate News: Sonya Sanders Grew Up Next To Fmr Philadelphia Refinery, She’s Still Suffering From Environmental Trauma
-- Inside Climate News - Jake Bolster: New Demands To Measure Emissions From Oil & Gas Facilities Raise Cautious Hopes In PA Among Environmental Sluths Who Monitor Fracking Sites
-- Chesapeake Bay Journal - Ad Crable: Pennsylvania Orders Disclosure Of Fracking Chemicals - Except For ‘Trade Secrets’
Train Derailments
-- Inside Climate News: 1 Year Later, Beaver County Residents Living Near Norfolk Southern Train Derailment Site Say They’re Still Sick
-- Penn State Students Provide In-Depth Coverage Of Norfolk Southern Train Derailment And Its Impact
-- LancasterOnline: One Year After Norfolk Southern Train Derailment, Not Much Has Changed For Local Emergency Responders
-- Scranton Times: Scranton Raises Concerns About Norfolk Southern Rail Bridge’s Rusty Steel, Crumbling Concrete
-- Post-Gazette: Why It Took A Year For Biden To Visit The Site Of The Norfolk Southern Train Derailment
-- PittsburghUnionProgress.com: Fleeting Moments Of Unity Emerge In A Town Divided By Norfolk Southern Train Derailment
Gas Explosions
-- TribLive: Gas Leak Forces Evacuation Of Riverview Jr.-Sr. High School In Allegheny County
-- TribLive: Natural Gas Odor Again Forces Evacuation Of Riverview H.S. In Allegheny County; Gas Leak Was Reported There Monday
-- MCall: NTSB Releases Documents Related To Reading Chocolate Factory Natural Gas Explosion That Killed 7 People
PA Politics Of Russian Invasion
-- AAA Gasoline Prices: PA- $3.52, National- $3.26, Ohio- $3.18
-- Warren Times: Gasoline Prices Spike In Warren, Region
-- TribLive: Gasoline Prices Expected To Continue Ticking Upward, Analyst Says
-- Bloomberg: US Natural Gas Prices Finally Find A Floor
-- Baker Hughes: PA Natural Gas Drilling Rigs Increased 1 Last Week To 24
-- WSJ: American Oil Production Growth Might Be Near Its Peak; Declining Oil Prices Causing Producers To Drop Drilling Rigs
-- PA Independent Oil & Gas Association: An Increase In LNG Gas Exports Is Expected To Increase Seasonal Price Volatility In The Future
-- S&P Global: US Gas Producers Tout LNG Growth Outlook Despite Regulatory Uncertainty; [EQT - ‘There’s Really No Impact [from new facility permit pause] through at least the end of 2026’]
-- Reuters: US Gas Prices Soar 13% As Chesapeake Energy Cuts Output
-- Reuters: Chesapeake Energy Says Gas Market Oversupplied, Plans To Cut Output, Spending
-- Reuters: Coterra Energy Forecasts Decline In Production After Missing Profit Estimates
-- Reuters: Tumbling US Gas Prices Prove Unstoppable, Hurting Producers, Benefiting Customers
-- Reuters: US Oilfield Job Losses Could Swell As Natural Gas Prices Plunge
-- Reuters: Chesapeake Energy Gas Producer Tops Quarterly Estimates, Cuts Production Views
-- Reuters: Slumping US Natural Gas Prices Cause Hedge Funds To Despair
-- Bloomberg: European Natural Gas Prices At Pre-Crisis Levels Seen Spurring Asian Demand
Environment/Energy Issues
-- DEP: No Applicants Have Asked For Their Money Back Yet Under The PAyback Permit Review Money Back Guarantee Program [PaEN]
-- DEP Recommends 6 Major Legislative Proposals Be Adopted As Part Of 2024 PA Climate Action Plan [PaEN]
-- Inside Climate News - Jake Bolster: New Demands To Measure Emissions From Oil & Gas Facilities Raise Cautious Hopes In PA Among Environmental Sluths Who Monitor Fracking Sites
-- WHYY - Sophia Schmidt: What Is Community Solar, And Why Do Lawmakers Want To Bring It To Pennsylvania
-- Wesley Family Services Cut Ribbon On Rooftop Solar Energy System With West Penn Power Sustainable Energy Fund In Westmoreland County [PaEN]
-- StateImpactPA - Rachel McDevitt: Penn State Study Shows Themes For Farmers Negotiating Solar Leases
-- PennLive: Elected Officials Join To Oppose Latest Application For Hydroelectric Project On Lower Susquehanna River
-- PennLive: Developer Behind Susquehanna River Hydroelectric Project Responds To Politicians’ Criticism
-- Erie Times - Brian Whipkey: Legislators, Farm Bureau Discuss What It Will Take To Allow More Sunday Hunting
Top 10 Stories On Harrisburg/PA Politics Last Week--
Because In Politics Everything Is Connected To Everything Else--
-- Top 10 Stories: Harrisburg/PA Politics Reported By Local News Media Last Week [PaEN]
Bill Calendars
Senate (March 18): Senate Bill 1058 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) abrogating the final regulation reducing carbon pollution from power plants [RGGI]; Senate Bill 831 (Yaw-R- Lycoming) would direct the state to apply for primary authority to regulate Class VI carbon dioxide underground injection wells from the US Environmental Protection Agency and establish a legal and regulatory framework for potential carbon dioxide capture, utilization and sequestration in Pennsylvania; Senate Bill 832 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) establishing an Independent Energy Office; House Bill 1246 (Malagari-D-Montgomery) set operational temperatures for crematories. <> Click Here for full Senate Bill Calendar.
House (March 18): House Resolution 196 (Matzie-D-Beaver) designating the week of September 18-24 Rail Safety Week; House Resolution 228 (Otten-D-Chester) designating the week of October 1 through 7, 2023, as "Climate Week" in Pennsylvania. <> Click Here for full House Bill Calendar.
Committee Meetings
House
February 28-- House Appropriations Committee budget hearing - Departments Of Conservation & Natural Resources and Environmental Protection. Room 140 Main Capitol. 1:00 p.m. Click Here to watch online.
March 6-- House Consumer Protection, Technology & Utilities Committee informational meeting on electric vehicle infrastructure. Room G-50 Irvis Building. Noon. Click Here to watch online.
March 19-- House Game & Fisheries Committee informational meeting on Fish & Boat Commission’s 2023 Annual Report. Room 523, Irvis Building. 9:00 a.m. Click Here to watch online.
March 20-- House Game & Fisheries Committee informational meeting on Game Commission’s 2023 Annual Report. Room 523, Irvis Building. 9:00 a.m. Click Here to watch online.
<> Click Here for full House Committee Schedule.
Senate
February 27-- Senate Appropriations Committee budget hearing - 9:30 a.m. - Fish & Boat Commission; 1:00 p.m. - Dept. of Agriculture. Hearing Room 1, North Office Building. Click Here to watch online.
February 29-- Senate Appropriations Committee budget hearing - 9:30 a.m. - Dept. Of Environmental Protection. Hearing Room 1, North Office Building. Click Here to watch online.
<> 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.
Session Schedule
Here is the latest voting session schedule for the Senate and House--
Senate
Budget Hearings: February 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29; and March 5, 6, 7
Click Here for Senate Agency Budget Hearing Schedule.
March 18, 19, 20
April 8, 9, 10, 29, 30
May 1, 6, 7, 8
June 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
House
House Agency Budget Hearing Schedule
March 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27
April 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 29, 30
May 1, 6, 7, 8, 20, 21, 22
June 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28
[Posted: February 25, 2024]
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