December 5, 2011
Back to News Brief

Pennsylvania Senate Republican News Brief

"Through a reasonable and well-thought-out impact fee on shale companies, we can manage this tremendous resource in a way that improves our economy, creates new jobs and opportunities for our residents and protects our quality of life.”

-- Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson) on passage of his legislation to establish reasonable fees on gas drillers, establish strong environmental safeguards, and strengthen oversight of the Marcellus Shale drilling industry.

Preview

Senate Session: Monday, 1 p.m.

The Senate will be in session Monday beginning at 1 p.m.  Legislation that may be considered on the floor includes: 

Senate Bill 405 - Sen. Pat Browne (R-Lehigh) -- delegation of taxing powers
Senate Bill 539 - Sen. John Rafferty (R-Montgomery) -- drinking and driving penalties
Senate Bill 775 - Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R-Delaware) -- DNA testing
Senate Bill 1174 - Sen. Gene Yaw (R-Lycoming) -- Housing Authority Law amendments

On Tuesday, the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee, chaired by Sen. Don White (R-Indiana), will hold a public hearing on Senate Bill 1339. (10 a.m. Hearing Room 1, N. Office Bldg.)

The Senate Education Committee, chaired by Sen. Jeffrey Piccola (R-Dauphin), will hold an informational briefing Tuesday on Senate Bill 1303 and receive an update on the Department of Education’s teacher evaluation, and consider the Governor’s nominee to the Philadelphia School Reform Commission. (10 a.m. Room 8E-A)

On Thursday, the Senate Community Economic and Recreational Development Committee, chaired by Sen. Jane Earll (R-Erie) and the Senate Local Government Committee, chaired by Sen. John Eichelberger (R-Blair), will hold a joint public hearing with the House Urban Affairs and House Local Government committees on the impact of Act 47 on local governments, businesses and labor. (9 a.m. Room 140, House Majority Caucus Room)

Review

Third Hearing Held on UPMC-Highmark Dispute

The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee, chaired by Sen. Don White (R-Indiana), held its third public hearing Wednesday on the continuing dispute between UPMC and Highmark.

Meeting at the University of Pittsburgh, the committee took testimony from primary witnesses Dr. Ken Melani, President and CEO of Highmark, and Jeffrey Romoff, President and CEO of UPMC.

The hearing provided the committee with an update on the current status of the situation and a discussion of potential legislative solutions, as well as an exploration of the outcome of the expiration of the contract between the health care provider and the insurer.
Agenda and Video

Senate Approves Drilling Impact Fees, Increased Environmental Safeguards

The Senate approved legislation Nov. 15 that would establish reasonable fees on gas drillers, establish strong environmental safeguards, and strengthen oversight of the Marcellus Shale drilling industry.

Senate Bill 1100, sponsored by Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson), would impose a tax rate of approximately 3 percent on gas production – retroactive to 2010 -- that is expected to generate tens of millions of dollars a year to help maintain roads and sewer systems in communities affected by the drilling.  It would also fund statewide initiatives that finance infrastructure improvement, environmental cleanups and open space.

The Marcellus Shale Education and Training Center estimates shale drilling will require between 3,700 and 15,000 direct jobs in central and northern Pennsylvania by 2013 and an additional 8,100 to 13,500 direct jobs in southwestern Pennsylvania by 2014.

In addition, the state Department of Revenue estimates that natural gas drilling companies have paid more than $1.1 billion in taxes since 2006, including corporate taxes, sales taxes and employee withholding. For more details, please see In the Spotlight, below.
Watch | Listen
Watch

Bipartisan Flood Relief Package Approved by Senate

The Senate approved a bipartisan, eight-bill package Nov. 16 designed to provide relief to those affected by heavy flooding caused by Tropical Storm Lee and Hurricane Irene. 

Sponsors of the package include Sen. John Gordner (R-Columbia), Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee Chair Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne) and Sen. Gene Yaw (R-Lycoming), who introduced the measures in September, shortly after the devastating floods.

Senator Gordner: "Regardless of political party or municipal boundaries, the flooding affected our entire region, and we steadily worked together to bring these bills to votes in a responsible manner so that we can provide financial assistance, infrastructure funding and tax breaks to those who were impacted by this disaster.”  For a list of flood relief bills, please see Fast Facts, below.
Watch | Listen - Gordner
Watch | Listen - Baker

Joint Panel Holds Two Days of Hearings on Flood Mitigation, Stormwater Management

The Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, chaired by Sen. Mary Jo White (R-Venango), and the Senate Majority Policy Committee, chaired by Sen. Ted Erickson (R-Delaware), held two joint public hearings on flood mitigation and stormwater management.

Many Pennsylvania communities face ongoing flooding issues, with several hit especially hard by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. The joint panel heard from engineers and infrastructure experts, along with local, state and federal officials.

On Nov. 15, the committees heard from academics, environmental engineers, and other water resources experts who discussed engineering solutions to stormwater runoff, such as the use of green infrastructure design and ongoing maintenance of stormwater systems.

On Nov. 16, the panel took testimony from representatives of the state Department of Environmental Protection, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, among others.
Hearing 1
Hearing 2

Senate Passes Brubaker Farm Equipment Transportation Measure 

The Senate approved legislation Nov. 16 that would allow farmers to move farm equipment more freely on Pennsylvania roads.

Senate Bill 390, sponsored by Sen. Mike Brubaker (R-Lancaster), would allow for the transportation of wider equipment on Pennsylvania roads and permit farm equipment transportation at night if proper safety precautions are taken. 

For producers using their own equipment, the legislation would increase the size of implements of husbandry permitted on roads during the day from 14 feet, 6 inches to 16 feet in width if additional safety precautions are taken. The bill would also provide for the movement of equipment up to 14 feet, 6 inches in width at night with proper precautions. Current law only permits farmers to move equipment at night under very specific circumstances and only during certain times of the year. 
Listen

Ward Announces Legislation to Broaden Mandated Child Abuse Reporting

Senate Aging and Youth Committee Chair Kim Ward (R-Westmoreland) is introducing legislation to expand the responsibility of mandated reporting of child abuse to institutions of higher learning, as well as increasing the penalties for failure to report child abuse.

The committee has been examining Pennsylvania's definition of child abuse and mandated reporting of child abuse, with public hearings held in August and October. In the wake of recent events unfolding at Penn State University, Senator Ward said that urgency was needed legislatively to include universities and other institutions of higher learning in the mandated child abuse reporting requirements.

In addition to the new mandated reporting requirement, a second bill introduced by Ward will increase the penalties for failure to report suspected child abuse. The bill will make it a first degree misdemeanor for failure to report in a first violation, and a third degree felony for second and subsequent violations.

In the Spotlight

Senator Scarnati's legislation would impose a sliding fee of $50,000 per well in the first year of production, with a $10,000 annual reduction in the second, third and fourth years. The fee would remain at $20,000 from the fourth through tenth years. Starting in the eleventh year until the twentieth year of the well, an annual fee of $10,000 would be imposed.

According to estimates, the fee proposal would raise $94 million from wells that were producing gas this year, a figure that would rise to $155 million next year and $255 million by 2014. Over the next five years the fee will yield more than $1 billion dollars.

Approximately 55 percent of the fees generated would go to counties and municipalities in the Marcellus Shale region and 45 percent to statewide infrastructure projects, environmental programs and other projects related to natural gas production.

Other funds also would be set aside for county conservation districts, firefighter training programs, the Fish and Boat Commission and for boosting availability of affordable housing.

The legislation also provides for standardized but flexible zoning standards which would allow communities to retain reasonable control over zoning power, a compromise that has drawn support from local government groups because it provides for local authority while creating reasonable baselines.

Strengthened environmental safeguards include increased setbacks, a listing of all chemicals used at a drill site, provisions for water safety, an increase in well bonding, and increased penalties for environmental violations.

Fast Facts