Senate News Update
From Senator Jane Earll
January 4, 2012

Senate Legislative Update – Part I

The state Senate has been very active in the first half of the 2011-2012 session. I'll begin my overview of our output for the first year, 2011, with a focus on reform-related laws and bills, because streamlining state government and making it more accessible, accountable and understandable to taxpayers is one of my top priorities.

The Public Budget Database law (Act 18 of 2011) requires the new Independent Fiscal Office to maintain current budget information, updated monthly, on a website to be activated by December 31, 2012. Matthew Knittel, formerly a senior economist in the U.S. Treasury, was hired as Director of the Office. He now leads a team of information technology professionals and budget analysts who will prepare cash-flow statements and projections of revenues and expenses, do research and assist legislators with annual budget preparation.

Sunshine Act reform (Act 56 of 2011) increases the fine for a violation of the act from a flat rate of $100 to a graduated rate of $100-$1,000 for a first offense and adds a fine of $500-$2,000 for a second or subsequent offense. The violator must also pay the costs of prosecution. No government agency may pay on behalf of or reimburse a member for costs or fines incurred due to a violation of the law.

Regulation reform (Act 60 of 2011) requires that any proposed regulation be accompanied by a description of the data on which it is based, the method used to collect data and the reasons why the data are acceptable. The agency advocating for the regulation bears the burden of proof.

The Keystone Park & Recreation Fund Information law (Act 61 of 2011) requires that agencies receiving funding publish the following information: the name of the applicant, location and description of the project, total project costs, the amount requested, any matching funds provided by the applicant, grant contract expiration date and the amount granted. Each receiving agency shall publish and maintain the annual report on the agency's publicly accessible Internet website.

Local Government Bidding reform (Acts 84-89, 91-97 of 2011) includes a series of measures amending the various local codes (county, city, township and borough) to raise the bid threshold, thus saving taxpayer dollars in the contracting process.

Senate Bill 105 (passed the Senate but remains in the House) would require state government-paid advertising to include the statement, "Paid for with Pennsylvania Taxpayer Dollars."

Senate Bill 162 (passed the Senate and now before the House Judiciary Committee) would amend the Breach of Personal Information Act to require state agencies and local government entities not only to notify the public within seven days of a data breach, but also to investigate the cause and implement preventive measures at its own expense. The Attorney General would be authorized to step in at the request of a district attorney. An individual found by a court to be responsible for the breach due to an intentional act, misuse of or unauthorized access to a computer system could be required to pay for the investigation and to pay any repair/restoration costs.

Senate Bill 344 (passed the Senate and currently before the House Transportation Committee) would enable "Public-Private Transportation Partnership Agreements" so that state government would not be solely responsible for funding long-overdue transportation infrastructure improvements. The Secretaries of Transportation and Budget, as well as Gubernatorial and Legislative Appointees, would form a review board for project proposals. The bill would require any proceeds earned by public entities to be set aside for future transportation maintenance, operations and construction needs.

Senate Bill 354 (passed the Senate and now in House State Government Committee) would prohibit the Governor or any Commonwealth agency from participating in the federal REAL ID Act of 2005, or any other law or policy that would compromise the economic privacy or biometric data of any resident of Pennsylvania, and would authorize the Governor or Attorney General to challenge the REAL ID law in court on legal or constitutional grounds.

The above summary only touches on a fraction of the bills the Senate has approved in 2011. The General Assembly began the second year of the biennial session on January 3, 2012, and this session continues until November 30, 2012. More Senate news will follow in future columns.