February 26, 2016

Weekly Wrap:

With back-to-back budget hearings from Monday through Thursday, it was a busy week for members of both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. Monday kicked off with a lengthy and intense hearing in the Senate with Budget Secretary Randy Albright. With the 2015-2016 budget yet unresolved and the 2016-2017 Fiscal Year looming, Chairman Pat Browne (R-Lehigh) noted that this season of budget hearings would be “unusual and uncustomary,” since two fiscal years’ worth of funding needs to be resolved. Albright fielded questions for nearly five hours, bumping subsequently scheduled budget hearings to other times and dates. The Senate also held a hearing with the Independent Fiscal Office, where Executive Director Matthew Knittel answered questions about the governor’s proposed tax increases. The IFO was also before the House Appropriations Committee, where there was a lot of discussion about the structural deficit.

Row offices and the courts were center-stage on Tuesday, when each committee heard from Auditor General Eugene DePasquale and Treasurer Tim Reese, as well as representatives from the judiciary, including Supreme Court Justices Max Baer and Debra McCloskey Todd.

On Wednesday, the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources appeared before the Senate Appropriations Committee, as did the Pennsylvania State Police, where PSP Commissioner Tyree Blocker was questioned about the cadet class cheating investigation. The Department of Aging, the Office of Consumer Advocate and the Office of Small Business Advocate discussed their funding issues with the House Appropriations Committee, as did the Public Utility Commission. PUC Chairwoman Gladys Brown made a pitch for about a million dollar increase in funding for the Commission, but most of the discussion focused on pipelines and natural gas.

Wrapping up the week’s budget hearings, on Thursday, the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency and the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board made their budget cases before the House Appropriations Committee, with much of the discussion with PLCB Chairman Tim Holden addressing privatization and modernization efforts. Meanwhile, in the Senate, Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection John Quigley appeared before the Appropriations Committee, spending a good amount of his time talking about the technology needs of the department. The Senate also heard funding requests from the Attorney General’s Office and the Department of Community and Economic Development, where Secretary Dennis Davin gave an update on the availability of tax credits. Of note, Davin also announced that the Commonwealth Financing Authority is planning to hold a meeting on March 9, at which time they will release funding for a number of projects (though he gave no particulars).

In a committee other than Appropriations, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts held their first public hearing on Tuesday to investigate the potential impeachment proceedings of Attorney General Kathleen Kane. Rep. Frank Dermody (D-Allegheny) and former Rep. Jeff Piccola, chairmen of the committee in 1994 when Pennsylvania Supreme Justice Rolf Larsen was impeached, described their experiences and addressed questioned posed by the committee.

There was bad news this week for someone other than the Attorney General: Supreme Court Justice Michael Eakin, who is currently suspended from the bench, appeared before the Court of Judicial Discipline on Thursday, facing allegations of exchanging offensive emails in the Porngate scandal. It seemed that attorneys for the Judicial Conduct Board and Eakin agreed to a settlement; however, the three-judge panel refused to consider the deal. A trial is scheduled for March 29, where Eakin could be removed from the bench if convicted.

Finally, this week, the governor signed H.B. 941 (Regan, R-Cumberland). The bill amends the Administrative Code and includes provisions to restructure the Horse Racing Commission and Harness Racing Commission into a single commission. It also includes updated guidelines for the oversight of horse racing and pari mutuel operations in the Commonwealth.

On a much more personal note, the governor announced this week that he has been diagnosed with a treatable form of prostate cancer. The Gov. assured that the diagnosis will not interfere with his duties as governor and encouraged all Pennsylvanians to schedule early cancer detection screenings with their doctors.

A Look Ahead:

Week two of budget hearings begins on Monday.

For a list of House hearings, go to: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/CMS/index.cfm?Chamber=H

For a list of Senate hearings, go to: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/CMS/index.cfm?Chamber=S

All Senate Budget Hearings will be held in Hearing Room 1 of the North Office Building; House Budget Hearings will be held in Room 140 of the Main Capitol Building. Any changes to the schedule will be posted on our twitter feed @BuchananGov.

Also next week, the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee will hold a joint hearing with the House Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee on the Wolf Administration’s Chesapeake Bay Reboot Strategy. The meeting will be held on Monday in Room 60 EW at noon. Check out the agenda here: http://wallaby.telicon.com/PA/library/2016/2016022278.HTM

And looking a little further ahead, House Majority Leader Dave Reed (R-Indiana) announced this week that when the House returns to session on March 14, he plans to bring S.B. 3 (Folmer, R-Lebanon) up for a vote. Senate Bill 3 would legalize the use of medical marijuana in Pennsylvania, and with dozens of amendments posted to the bill, debate will likely be lengthy and lively. After the announcement, Gov. Wolf issued a statement in support of the use of medical marijuana. We’ll be sure to keep you posted as things develop on this issue nearer to March 14.

For more, go to: http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/news/index.ssf/2016/02/medical_marijuana_amendments_v.html#incart_river_index

To read Wolf’s statement, go to: http://wallaby.telicon.com/PA/library/2016/2016022575.HTM

In Other News: