The following bills of interest saw action this week in the House and Senate--

House

General Fund Budget: House Bill 1192 (Adolph-R-Delaware) Senate/House Republican General Fund budget was amended and reported out of the House Appropriations Committee and passed by the House 112-77. A House Fiscal Note and summary are available.  The bill now goes to the Senate for action.

Pension Reform: Senate Bill 1 (Corman-R-Centre) Senate Republican pension reform bill was amended and reported out of the House State Government committee and is now on the House Calendar for action.

Water Well Standards: House Bill 48 (Godshall-R- Montgomery) authorizing the Environmental Quality Board to set construction standards for private water wells was amended and reported out of the House Consumer Affairs Committee and referred to the House Rules Committee.

Regulatory Review: House Bill 965 (Godshall-R-Montgomery) requiring additional oversight of agency regulations under the Regulatory Review Act was amended and reported out of the House Consumer Affairs Committee and referred to the House Rules Committee.

River Of The Year: House Resolution 412 (Rapp-R-Forest), honoring the Conewango Creek Watershed Association for its efforts in preserving, enhancing and promoting the Conewango Creek in northwestern Pennsylvania, including being named Pennsylvania’s 2015 River of the Year (sponsor summary) was passed by the House Saturday.

Senate

Reuse Of Mine Water: Senate Bill 875 (Bartolotta-R-Fayette) encouraging the reuse of treated mine water for fracking gas wells (sponsor summary) was reported from the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee and passed by the Senate 34 to 15.  The bill now goes to the House for action.  (The House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee is scheduled to consider this legislation June 29.)

“Utilizing treated mine water in natural gas operations holds the potential to significantly reduce the withdrawal demands on Pennsylvania’s rivers and streams,” said Sen. Bartolotta. “Questions regarding liability are the biggest barrier preventing more companies from taking advantage of this environmentally friendly process.”

EQB Independent Counsel: Senate Bill 307 (Yudichak-D-Luzerne) establishing an independent counsel for the Environmental Quality Board was passed by the Senate and now goes to the House for consideration.  A Senate Fiscal Note and summary are available. (The House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee is scheduled to consider this legislation June 29.)

Wind Farms: House Bill 188 (Sonney-R-Erie) authorizing wind farms in Agricultural Security Areas was referred to the Senate Rules Committee on concurrence with House amendments.

6/29/2015