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NEW YEAR, NEW COUNTY PRIORITIES
As the new year begins, Pennsylvania's counties have chosen six legislative priorities for 2019, each of which highlights their commitment to core county responsibilities and ultimately to the people and communities of Pennsylvania.
The counties' priorities are led by a call for a strong state-county partnership to meet the requirements of a recent litigation settlement agreement between the Pennsylvania Department of State and the Jill Stein campaign which, among other things, requires voter-verifiable paper audit trail voting systems to be in place by April 2020. State, federal and county government will need to work together to assure counties have access to a full marketplace of voting equipment that is compliant with certification requirements and available to meet timing and deployment needs. At the same time, while Gov. Wolf's administration has indicated its intention to seek state funding of at least 50 percent of the cost of new systems, a chief county objective under this priority is obtaining full funding, noting that every dollar that does not come from federal or state funding will be a local property tax dollar.
Counties also continue to prioritize the expansion of resources to allow more options for care and treatment of individuals with mental illness and developmental disabilities outside of the prison system. While counties and the state Department of Human Services have formed a strong partnership to address forensic bed shortages and expand community-based services, much remains to be done to expand services across the mental health system as a whole, regardless of an individual's involvement in the criminal justice system.
Commitment of full state and federal funding for human services also remains a county priority. Programs have suffered more than fifteen years of funding stagnation or decline, even in the face of the daily challenge of serving the ever-growing needs of vulnerable residents. Funding is critical to protect children suffering from abuse, those fighting substance abuse issues, individuals with mental illness and seniors in need of long-term care.
The 2019 priorities are rounded out with a focus on developing strategies for rural broadband expansion, encouraging all counties to use newly developed tools to maintain fair and uniform assessment practices, and implementing a comprehensive approach to addressing substance abuse in all of its forms.
More information about the counties' priorities is available at www.pacounties.org by clicking on Priorities under the Government Relations tab.
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WOLF ADMINISTRATION SEES CHANGES GOING INTO SECOND TERM
Several state agencies and offices will assume new leadership as Gov. Wolf's second term begins in January.
Changes include the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA), where Randy Padfield will become acting director on the retirement of Director Rick Flinn. Padfield was previously the deputy director for response at PEMA. Sharon Minnich, the previous secretary of administration, will be joining the State System of Higher Education as vice chancellor for administration and finance, with Michael Newsome, who previously served on the Liquor Control Board, named as the new secretary.
Gov. Wolf will also nominate current Secretary of Aging Teresa Osborne as head of the Civil Service Commission; current acting Secretary of the Commonwealth Robert Torres will be named to head the Aging Department. Kathy Boockvar, who has been serving as senior advisor to the governor on election modernization, will be nominated to fill the top post at the Department of State. All agency appointments are subject to the confirmation of the state Senate.
Earlier in December, Jen Swails was named the Secretary of the Budget, replacing Randy Albright, while Meg Snead will take over for outgoing Sarah Galbally as Secretary of Policy and Planning in the governor's office. These positions do not require Senate confirmation.
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HOUSE REPUBLICANS NAME COMMITTEE CHAIRS
The General Assembly officially began the 2019-2020 session on Jan. 1, and a day later Speaker of the House Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny) announced committee chairs with a mix of familiar and new faces.
Of note for counties, Rep. Dan Moul (R-Adams) has been named the new chair of the Local Government Committee, while Rep. Garth Everett (R-Lycoming) will chair the State Government Committee which traditionally has jurisdiction over election-related matters. Other incoming chairs include Rep. Mike Peifer (R-Pike) with the Finance Committee, Rep. Rob Kauffman (R-Franklin) with the Judiciary Committee, Rep. Tim Hennessey (R-Chester) with the Transportation Committee, and Rep Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler) with the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.
Rep. Kathy Rapp (R-Warren) and Rep. Gene DiGirolamo (R-Bucks) will remain the respective chairs of the Health and Human Services committees. The Children and Youth Committee will see a new chair in Rep. Karen Boback (R-Lackawanna), while Rep. Tom Murt (R-Montgomery) takes over as chair of the Aging and Older Adult Services Committee.
Neither caucus in the Senate, nor the House Democrats, had named committee chairs as this Bulletin went to pess
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PA SUPREME COURT OVERTURNS DECISION ON IMPACT FEES
The state Supreme Court issued a Dec. 28 decision overturning a lower court ruling regarding how stripper wells are determined for purposes of levying the impact fee under Act 13 of 2012.
Commonwealth Court had previously found, by a 5-2 vote, that Act 13 language exempting vertical natural gas wells from impact fees that are "incapable of producing more than 90,000 cubic feet of gas per day during any calendar month" meant that if production dipped during just one month, a company would be exempt from fees. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that such an interpretation could leave Act 13 open to abuse by allowing operators to limit production one month each year to avoid paying impact fees. The Commission also argued that the impact fees were intended to help communities address the impacts associated with unconventional drilling.
In overturning the Commonwealth Court, the Supreme Court indicated instead that the word "any" can be interpreted differently based on context, and relied on the legislative intent to come to its decision - that is, that the legislature structured the impact fee to provide a revenue stream to help local governments address drilling-related needs. The decision reinstates a PUC order indicating that drillers operating vertical natural gas wells whose production exceeds 90,000 cubic feet for even one month of the year will be required to pay impact fees.
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STATE LAUNCHES DRUG AND ALCOHOL REFERRAL TOOL
In early December, the state Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) announced an online tool to help individuals identify resources for substance use disorder treatment and related support services, which can be accessed at ddap.pa.gov/GetHelp.
The Drug and Alcohol Referral Tool (DART) is a centralized hub that lists available resources to assist people seeking help, and people who want to help someone else, who may not know where to go for it. The tool provides resources based on an individual's profile, including age, county of residence and veteran status, and can list resources if a person is experiencing homelessness, has issues with transportation to treatment, or has legal concerns, as well as programs that may be available depending on a person's income. While the tool does not evaluate individual eligibility for resources, it can refer users to how they can obtain more information or assess their eligibility.
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MERIT HIRING TRANSFERS FROM CIVIL SERVICE TO OA
Effective Dec. 13, all merit recruitment and hiring functions in the commonwealth have been transferred from the Civil Service Commission to the Office of Administration in accordance with Act 71 of 2018. The move is intended to streamline the testing and selection process for county and state civil service positions and lead to better customer service for those who use the civil service system, including counties who have experienced many years of frustration with the current system. At the same time, Act 71 assures adherence to fair and impartial hiring procedures, and does not affect the criteria for hiring under the system, the positions subject to civil service hiring, or any existing criteria related to veterans' preference.
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HOTEL TAX CHANGES TAKE EFFECT JAN. 22
Act 109
of 2018, which clarifies how state and local hotel taxes are to be levied and collected by booking agents, is set to take effect on Jan. 22, 2019. Specifically, the act requires booking agents (online travel companies such as Hotels.com, Expedia, and Travelocity) to remit all hotel taxes levied on rooms reserved through their platforms directly to the state and counties; hotels will no longer act as a pass-through for those revenues, but will continue to submit hotel taxes for any room payments made directly to the hotels.
Counties are encouraged to review their hotel tax ordinances with their solicitors to determine whether any provisions of Act 109 may need to be incorporated, particularly as they relate to the definition of "booking agent." CCAP is also working with the Department of Revenue and the Pennsylvania Restaurant and Lodging Association to assure the state, counties, hotels and other stakeholders are receiving consistent information on the implementation of Act 109. Additional information and a link to guidance released by the Department of Revenue is available on CCAP's Legislative Action Center.
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