Number 15

July 17, 2020

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LEGISLATIVE BULLETIN
An e-newsletter of the
County Commissioners 
Association of Pennsylvania

 

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COUNTY PRIORITY SPOTLIGHT    
While it is no question that pandemic-related response has dominated the legislative and policy conversation, it is critical to ensure the dialogue is focused on longer-term impacts, including the 2020 county legislative priorities, FY 2020-2021 budget and critical election reforms ahead of the November general election. As what is anticipated to be a summer recess begins, it is a perfect time to continue advocacy conversations and stress the importance of focusing on those issues that matter most not only to counties, but also to Pennsylvania residents.
In a socially distanced society, technology and digital communications are critical advocacy tools to stay engaged with legislators and the administration. CCAP offers a number of tools to help counties make a difference with grassroots activity and other advocacy on priorities, the state budget and many other bills under consideration by the General Assembly that impact county government. At www.pacounties.org, the Government Relations web page and Legislative Action Center offer resources such as fact sheets, talking points, sample letters and background information. Additional materials are available on the priorities and budget webpages as well, CCAP is also working on a special edition summer Grassroots Toolkit that will be released later this month..     
MITIGATION AND REOPENING DISCUSSIONS AT FOREFRONT  
On July 15, Gov. Wolf and Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine announced new COVID-19 mitigation measures statewide, referencing evidence of the virus spreading through specific activities. Together with Dr. David Rubin, director of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) PolicyLab, the Governor and Sec. Levine reviewed growing widespread community transmission in Pennsylvania, as well as conditions in other states and Pennsylvania's infection trajectory based on nationwide CHOP data and models as the basis for the measures. The order took effect on July 16, and includes closure of nightclubs and bars that serve only alcohol, restrictions on indoor dining at 25% of capacity, requirements to telework where possible, limiting indoor gatherings to 25 people and outdoor gatherings to 250 people and prioritizing outdoor activities at fitness centers.
The legislature also focused on the state's mitigation and reopening measures this week, with the House approving HB 2541 (Rep. Frank Farry, R-Bucks) and HB 2549 (Rep. Garth Everett, R-Lycoming), two proposals to reopen businesses in Pennsylvania on a county-by-county basis. House Bill 2541 would allow counties, in consultation with their county emergency management agency, county health department or other appropriate health or emergency management official, to develop and implement a countywide reopening plan for businesses that were subject to closure under the Governor's business closure order. Similarly, HB 2549, as amended by the House State Government Committee, would allow a county to adopt a resolution to move to a new "green plus" phase of reopening, after the county has been in the green phase for at least 14 days, provided that the county has not experienced a significant increase in confirmed cases in that time and the county determines there are sufficient medical assets and testing available.
Both proposals now move to the Senate for consideration .
SECOND ELECTION LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST STATE, COUNTIES 
The Pennsylvania Democratic Party, together with 15 Democratic lawmakers and filed a second elections-related lawsuit against the state and the 67 county boards of elections in as many weeks. Unlike the litigation filed in federal court by the President Trump's re-election campaign, along with four members of Pennsylvania's congressional delegation and the Republican National Committee, however, this lawsuit was filed in Commonwealth Court, although the underlying issues are similarly related to the use of mail-in ballots and the conduct of the primary election. In particular, this second lawsuit seeks to ensure mail-in ballots are counted, to allow counties to use drop boxes for ballots in multiple locations and to require poll watchers to live in the county in which they wish to serve as a watcher.
The plaintiffs have filed a motion to intervene in the federal lawsuit, ultimately seeking the dismissal of that litigation. The Pennsylvania NAACP filed a separate lawsuit against the state as well on the grounds that the June 2 primary was not equally accessible, and has also, along with the League of Women Voters and others, filed a motion to intervene in the federal lawsuit .
LEGISLATIVE HAPPENINGS 
Both the House and Senate have been in session during July to consider several pieces of legislation, with updates on bills of interest to counties that have had recent movement below:
HB 1069 (Rep. Aaron Bernstine, R-Lawrence) - Amends the Sunshine Act to require agencies, including counties, to post meeting agendas at least 24 hours prior to the time of the meeting with a listing of agency business that will or may receive consideration or action by the governing body. This bill was reported from the Senate State Government Committee and now moves to the full Senate for consideration.
HB 1459 (Rep. Mike Schlossberg, D-Lehigh) - Creates statewide mental health resources for emergency responders, including county 911 dispatchers, including statewide mental wellness and stress management guidelines, peer-to-peer support and a toll-free helpline for emergency responders, consistent with the recommendations in the SR 6 report. The bill was presented to the Governor on July 15, and he has ten days to determine whether to sign the bill.
HB 2293 (Rep. Chris Quinn, R-Delaware) - Requires public utilities that transmit natural gas liquids through high consequence areas, to make their emergency response plans available to the PUC, PEMA and county emergency management agencies upon request. This bill was reported unanimously from the Senate Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure Committee and is now before the full Senate for consideration.
HB 2407 (Rep. Garth Everett, R-Lycoming) - Allows more flexibility on how notices are printed on absentee and mail-in ballots. The legislation was unanimously approved by the House as a potential first step in addressing election reforms ahead of the November general election, and it now moves to the Senate for consideration.
SB 14 (Sen. Anthony Williams, D-Philadelphia) - Provides for probation system reforms that focus on rehabilitation and reintegration back into society, including minimized punishments for technical violations of probation and allowing judges to shorten probation time for good behavior. This legislation was unanimously approved by the Senate and moves to the House for consideration.
SB 1125 (Sen. Scott Martin, R-Lancaster) - Allows school districts to extend the discount period and/or eliminate the penalty period for payment of property taxes for the 2020-2021 school year. This legislation was approved unanimously in the House and was presented to the Governor on July 15; he has ten days to sign the bill into law .
IFO REPORTS LOSS OF LOCAL REVENUES FROM COVID-19
The Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) released a research brief, requested by members of the General Assembly, examining how the COVID-19 pandemic and business closures could impact local government revenues. The analysis projects revenue collections for the 2020 calendar year for school districts, municipalities and counties and, based on when revenues are received and taxes are due, the IFO estimates that COVID-19 will likely affect only two quarters of county revenue received during this calendar year.
Overall, the IFO estimates county property tax collections will shrink by 1.3% in calendar year 2020, which remains the same even when controls for millage rates and reassessments are applied. The overall reduction applied to each county is an estimate of foregone revenue for that county in the current calendar year.
The IFO notes that the projection includes an assumption that the pandemic temporarily reduced overall property tax collections by 1.25% for counties. Furthermore, for counties with a larger share of commercial property, an additional reduction of 0.25-0.50% is included to reflect economic stress on commercial rental properties and small businesses. Finally, the IFO adjusted for financial distress in counties where unemployment compensation data indicates that a larger portion of the wage base was impacted by COVID-19, such as in rural counties relying more heavily on manufacturing jobs. The full report is available at www.ifo.state.pa.us.
IFO ISSUES UPDATED REVENUE ESTIMATES 
In late June, the state's IFO issued its official revenue estimate for FY 2020-2021. Its $35.9 billion projection was slightly lower than the $36.1 billion the agency projected in its initial revenue estimate in May, with the difference explained by adjustments for delayed revenue collection due dates. On top of that, the IFO anticipated that FY 2019-2020 would end about $3.5 billion short of its June 2019 revenue projection. The IFO attributes the dramatic impact on revenue collections to economic impacts triggered by mitigation efforts in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and further assumes that restrictions will be relaxed by the end of the year, schools will reopen in the fall and additional business closures do not occur in response to any renewed increases in the spread of the virus
VOTING MATTERS
In early August, each CCAP member will be emailed a voting matters packet with items to be considered at the Tuesday business meeting of the upcoming CCAP Virtual Annual Conference. The agenda packet will include proposed policy resolutions, along with information on officer elections and site selection for the 2025 Annual Conference. The resolutions will be deliberated during the business meeting on Aug. 18, and it is highly recommended that members join the meeting using the Zoom platform to make full use of voting and discussion features. Resolutions will be submitted by electronic ballot to the full CCAP membership within 10 days of the conclusion of the business meeting for final adoption