Senate Approves 4 Government Reform/Oversight Bills

Two health care measures headed to Governor for enactment into law

The state Senate approved four government reform and oversight bills (Senate Bills 6, 101, 105 and 110) during the session week of June 1, according to Senator Bob Robbins (R-50).

Senate Bill 6, co-sponsored by Senator Robbins, would create an 11–member bipartisan commission to provide oversight and accountability for all funds distributed to Pennsylvania through the federal stimulus program. The Pennsylvania Commission on Stimulus Accountability will be required to track, monitor and report on all funds received from the federal government as part of the stimulus package.

Senate Bill 101, co-sponsored by Senator Robbins, would increase the penalties for intentional violations of the state Sunshine Law. The legislation would set a fine of up to $1000 for a first offense, and up to $2000 for a subsequent offense. Under current law, the maximum fine is $100

Senate Bill 105, co-sponsored by Senator Robbins and commonly known as the Taxpayer Transparency Act, would direct the Office of Budget to create and maintain a searchable budget database-driven website that the public can access, for free, to obtain:

Information on grants and contracts provided by government agencies. All transactions above $25,000 would be accessible to the public;
Agency performance indicators and quarterly performance results compared to these indicators;
Agency line-by-line appropriation analysis including user-friendly detailed monetary breakouts and detailed narrative descriptions.

Senate Bill 110, co-sponsored by Senator Robbins, requires that logs be kept on the usage of state aircraft and the information be available for public review on the Department of Transportation Internet website. This measure was prompted by a critical audit report from the state Auditor General. The bill requires the information be updated on a monthly basis.

The Senate also acted on three health care bills during the session week of June 1.

The Senate concurred on House amendments to Senate Bill 89 and sent the bill on to the Governor for enactment. The legislation, cosponsored by Senator Robbins, reestablishes the Health Care Cost Containment Act and reauthorizes the Health Care Cost Containment Council Act Review Committee with a new sunset date of June 30, 2014.

Also headed to the Governor for enactment is House Bill 1089, legislation creating a "Mini-COBRA" health insurance plan in Pennsylvania. 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. HB 1089 extends 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 HB 1089.

The Senate also approved House Bill 84, a measure that would permit health insurers to withhold payment to providers in the event of an avoidable medical error. HB 84 was amended by the Senate Appropriations Committee and will be returned to the House for concurrence.

Other bills approved by the Senate during the session week of June 1 include:

Senate Bill 45 which would amend the Landscape Architects' Registration Law to waive a written examination for only those persons who hold an unexpired license or certification of registration issued by proper authority of another state or foreign country. The bill also increases the number of hours for continuing education from 10 to 24.

Senate Bill 81 which provides for the sale of wine at kiosks operated by the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB); authorizes the PLCB to sponsor "spirits" events for education purposes; permits the PLCB to establish customer relations marketing programs; and clarifies that a member of a governing board of a public authority may have an interest in a beer distributor. Senator Robbins was among 13 senators voting against the bill on final passage.

Senate Bill 383 which promotes the use of mental health and drug courts to divert non-violent offenders from more costly jail cells and encourage rehabilitation through extensive supervision.

Senate Bill 531 provides for county interagency sharing of juvenile records, including the contents of drug and alcohol, mental health, and education records.

Senate Bill 829 Amends the Pennsylvania Climate Change Act related to submittal of climate change action plan by: extending the deadline for the Department of Environmental Protection to submit climate change action plan by three months; requiring DEP to make a draft plan available for public comment and review for at least (60) days before final submittal; and, requiring DEP to review comments and to prepare a copy of its responses to the comments received.

Contact:

Michael Hengst
(717) 787-1322