Pennsylvania Senate Republican News Brief

"It's been well established that the natural gas within the Marcellus Shale region provides an extraordinary - even historic - opportunity for energy and economic development. The next, critical phase is to develop an approach that takes advantage of this opportunity and addresses the challenges that come with it. Pennsylvania has to get this right."

-- Senate Majority Policy Committee Chairman John Pippy (R-Allegheny) leading an April 9 public hearing on issues surrounding the Marcellus Shale gas reserves.

The Senate returns to voting session Monday, and among the bills to be considered are two consumer protection measures.

The Senate is expected to consider Senate Bill 123, the Consumer Protection Against Spyware Act, sponsored by Sen. John Gordner (R-Columbia). The Senate is also expected to consider legislation sponsored by Sen. Jake Corman (R-Centre) that would eliminate the need for Pennsylvania consumers to re-register in the "Do Not Call" registry every five years. Senate Bill 304 would keep a consumer's number in the registry until they ask to be removed.

COMMITTEES: GAMING, STATE POLICE BUDGETS, TEACHER STRIKES, PUBLIC TELEVISION

On Monday, the Senate Community, Economic and Recreational Development Committee, chaired by Sen. Jane Earll (R-Erie), will hold a public hearing on the proposed Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board budget and other issues. On Tuesday, the Senate Law and Justice Committee, chaired by Sen. John Rafferty (R-Montgomery), will hold a hearing on the proposed State Police budget.

On Wednesday, the Senate Education Committee, chaired by Sen. Jeffrey Piccola (R-Dauphin), will hold a public hearing on teacher strikes and their impact on public education. The Senate Communications and Technology Committee, chaired by Sen. Mike Folmer (R-Lebanon), will hold a public hearing on the Pennsylvania Public Television Network.

A bipartisan group of legislators, led by Sen. Jane Orie (R-Allegheny), will hold a news conference Wednesday to unveil a package of gaming reform bills.

The bills would place tighter controls on the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board to create greater public disclosure and eliminate conflicts of interest.

The Senate approved a HealthNET PA measure April 1 that would extend continuation of group health insurance policies for former employees and dependents, making the option available to approximately 150,000 individuals who work for employers with 2 to 19 employees and who change jobs.

Senate Bill 442, sponsored by Senate Banking and Insurance Committee Chairman Don White (R-Indiana), would create a Mini-COBRA Small Employer Group Health Plan. The federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) provides former employees, retirees, spouses, former spouses, and dependent children the right to continuation of health coverage at group rates for up to 18 months. However, COBRA benefits only apply to employers with 20 or more employees. SB 442 would extend the COBRA guidelines in Pennsylvania to group plans that employ 2 to 19 employees.

The Senate Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure Committee, chaired by Sen. Tommy Tomlinson (R-Bucks), approved HealthNET PA legislation March 31 that would credit volunteer time by health care professionals toward their continuing education requirements.

Senate Bill 464, sponsored by Sen. Pat Browne (R-Lehigh), would allow physicians, dentists, dental hygienists, nurses and certified registered nurse practitioners to apply volunteer time served in a community-based health care clinic towards the completion of their mandatory continuing education hours required by their individual licensure boards. The bill is now before the full Senate.

SENATE APPROVES SEN. SCARNATI'S BILL DENYING PUBLIC BENEFITS TO ILLEGAL ALIENS

Illegal aliens who live in Pennsylvania would be unable to obtain public benefits, including Medicaid, welfare and in-state college tuition, under legislation approved April by the Senate with a bipartisan vote of 41 to 9.

Senate Bill 9, sponsored by Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson), would also ensure that the Commonwealth's more than 100,000 illegal aliens face tighter scrutiny when applying for services. Any applicant signing an affidavit stating they are a legal alien would have their status verified through the Federal Systematic Alien Verification of Entitlement Program (SAVE), operated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

SEN. PILEGGI'S BILL STRENGTHENING PERSONAL DATA BREACH NOTIFICATION APPROVED

State agencies and local governments would be required to notify the public of data breaches involving personal information within one week under legislation unanimously approved by the Senate on April 1.

Senate Bill 155, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R-Delaware), was drafted after reports of three separate thefts of state-owned computers containing personal information. Although those computers included at least 17,800 Social Security numbers and other personal information of approximately 400,000 state residents, the state agencies involved did not notify the public until two or three weeks after the incidents.

Current law requires the public to be notified of such incidents "without unreasonable delay." Senate Bill 155 would put a specific one-week notification requirement in place for breaches involving state agencies and local governments.

Senator Pileggi's legislation, developed with Attorney General Tom Corbett's office, would also require data breaches to be reported to the Attorney General within three business days, and would authorize the Attorney General to investigate every breach involving state agencies. The bill was sent to the House of Representatives.

Legislation sponsored by Sen. Ted Erickson (R-Delaware) to help ensure that state regulations are based on reliable data and sound science was unanimously approved April 1 by the Senate.

Senate Bill 136, the Data Quality Act, would expand the scope of review by the Independent Regulatory Review Commission to include the examination of the quality of data, studies, reports and information underlying state regulations being implemented. The state agency seeking to implement a regulation would have the responsibility to provide to the IRRC a sufficient description of any data upon which the regulation is based as well as a detailed explanation of how the data was obtained and why the data is acceptable.

The Senate approved legislation by a vote of 49-1 MARCH 31 that would prohibit public school officials from discriminating against members of the Armed Forces.

Senate Bill 206, sponsored by Sen. Chuck McIlhinney (R-Bucks), would prohibit any principal, superintendent or school official from denying any member of the military entry to school facilities because he or she is wearing a military uniform. The legislation stemmed from several incidents in which military members visiting friends and former teachers were denied access to school grounds due to their military uniforms.

The Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Sen. Pat Browne (R-Lehigh), approved legislation April 1 increasing prize limits for small games of chance and another bill that would make several changes to Pennsylvania's Bingo Law.

Many charitable and non-profit organizations, such as volunteer fire companies and community groups, use bingo and small games of chance as fundraising tools. The changes in these bills are intended to help groups raise funds that support the organization's mission and are used for the benefit of the community.

Senate Bill 211, sponsored by Sen. Mike Folmer (R-Lebanon), raises the prize limit for any one game from $500 to $1,000, and replaces the $5,000 weekly prize limit with a $20,000 weekly cash value prize limit. Payouts of less than $26 would not count toward the weekly prize limit.

The committee also approved Senate Bill 212, sponsored by Sen. Jane Orie (R-Allegheny), which would make several changes to Pennsylvania's Bingo Law. It increases the daily award limit from $4,000 to $8,000 and allows multiple associations to lease the same premises for conducting bingo, among other changes.

The Senate Majority Policy Committee held an April 9 public hearing in Williamsport on the multiple issues surrounding the Marcellus Shale gas reserves.

The hearing, led by Committee Chairman John Pippy (R-Allegheny) and Sen. Gene Yaw (R-Lycoming), included discussion with local government officials, industry representatives, environmental organizations and other experts. The state's recoverable gas resources are estimated to be worth about $500 billion.

Among the issues surrounding natural gas drilling that the hearing focused on were taxation, infrastructure and land reclamation. The environmental impact, including the effect on water quality, was also discussed. (For a list of Marcellus Shale statistics, please see Fast Facts, below.)

Hearing Part 1

Hearing Part 2

Hearing Part 3

Sen. Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne) unveiled a package of reform measures to address corruption in the Luzerne County Courthouse affecting several thousand juveniles and their families.

The corruption involved, among other things, the denial of counsel in juvenile cases.

Joined by senators from across the state, Senator Baker outlined two major changes aimed at preventing the situation from happening again: mandating counsel to represent juveniles in court and opening more juvenile hearings to the media. The second part of Senator Baker's plan is aimed at compensating the individuals and families victimized by corruption.

Senator Baker

Senator Gordner

News Conference

Senate Bill 442 amends the Insurance Company Law of 1921 to create a Mini-COBRA Small Employer Group Health Plan.

The federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) provides former employees, retirees, spouses, former spouses, and dependent children the right to continuation of health coverage at group rates for up to 18 months. However, COBRA benefits only apply to employers with 20 or more employees. SB 442 would extend the COBRA guidelines in Pennsylvania to group plans that employ 2 - 19 employees.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, also known as the federal stimulus act, provides a 65 percent federal subsidy for COBRA premiums. The subsidy is good for up to nine months for those covered by COBRA as well as those in a state continuation program such as the Mini-COBRA program established by SB 442.

On March 26, the Senate approved Senate Bill 443, a measure introduced by Senator White that would permit health insurers to withhold payment to providers in the event of an avoidable medical error. Medicare has already stopped reimbursing providers for the cost of medical-related infections and mistakes, and the measure would give health insurance companies the same opportunity to reduce health care insurance costs while pushing providers to eliminate mistakes.

MARCELLUS SHALE NATURAL GAS RESERVE

Location: Southern New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio
Estimated Natural Gas: 360 trillion cubic feet
Estimated Worth: $500 billion
Potential Jobs Created: 80,000