Committee Guide

I have been appointed to serve on four committees for the 2011-12 session.  Below is a listing of the committees I am a member of and an overview of the responsibilities of each.

AGING AND OLDER ADULT SERVICES

LEGISLATIVE ISSUES:

• Issues targeted to the 60+ population
• All programs and services available pursuant to the State Lottery Law, i.e., PACE/PACENET and senior transportation programs (shared-ride and fixed-route transportation sometimes shared with the Transportation Committee)
• Long-term care (from a resident rights standpoint)
• Area Agencies on Aging, Department of Aging, and Pennsylvania Council on Aging
• Property Tax and Rent Rebate Program (shared with Finance Committee)
• Adult day care (older adult daily living centers)
• Elder abuse/older adult protective services
• Domiciliary care

CONSTITUENT ISSUES:

• Adult day care placements and related problems
• Nursing home, personal care home and domiciliary care home resident rights issues
• Lottery-funded programs and services-related problems
• Property tax and rent rebate applications/approvals
• PACE/PACENET applications/approvals
• Services through the Area Agencies on Aging (family caregiver support, options assessments, home-delivered meals, respite care, etc.)
• Shared-ride and fixed-route transportation program problems
• Elder abuse casework/protective services problems
• Long-term care insurance problems (shared with Insurance Committee)

Speaker-designated oversight with regard to:

• Pennsylvania Department of Aging
• Nursing Home Loan Agency

ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY

The Committee is responsible for legislative oversight for over 45 different environmental laws in place in the Commonwealth, administered by both the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). The statutes for which the Committee has oversight are as follows:

DEP:

• Solid Waste Management Act (Act 97 of 1980)
• Land Recycling and Environmental Remediation Standards Act (Act 2 of 1995)
• The Hazardous Sites Clean up Act (Act 108 of 1988)
• The Clean Streams Law (Act 394 of 1937)
• The Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Act (Act 12 of 1988)
• The Sewage Facilities Act (Act 537 of 1965)
• Clean Air Act (Air Pollution Control Act) (Act 787 of 1959)
• Flood Plain Management Act (Act 166 of 1978)
• Stormwater Management Act (Act 167 of 1978)
• Bituminous Mine Subsidence & Land Conservation Act (Act 1 of 1966-1) Special Session 1
• Storage Tank Spill and Prevention Act (Act 32 of 1989)
• Anthracite Coal Mining Act (Act 346 of 1965)
• Bituminous Coal Mining Act (Act 339 of 1961)
• Oil and Gas Act (Act 223 of 1984)
• Oil and Gas Conservation Law (Act 359 of 1961)
• Surface Mining Conservation & Reclamation Act (Act 418 of 1945)
• Safe Drinking Water Act (Act 43 of 1984)
• Noncoal Surface Mining Conservation & Reclamation Act (Act 219 of 1984)
• The Dam Safety and Encroachments Act (Act 325 of 1978)
• Radon Certification Act (Act 43 of 1987)
• Infectious & Chemotheraputic Waste Plan Development Act (Act 93 of 1988)
• The Radiation Protection Act (Act 147 of 1984)
• Conservation District Law (Act 217 of 1945)
• The “Clean and Green” Act (Act 319 of 1974)
• Pennsylvania Used Oil Recycling Act (Act 89 of 1982)
• Pennsylvania Solid Waste-Resource Recovery Development Act (Act 198 of 1974)
• Land and Water Conservation Act (Act 443 of 1967)
• Pennsylvania Pesticide Control Act (Act 24 of 1974)
• Delaware River Basin Compact (Act 123 of 1945)
• Susquehanna River Compact (Act 181 of 1968)
• Coal and Gas Resource Coordination Act (Act 214 of 1984)
• Abandoned Mine Subsidence Assistance Act (Act 82 of 1988)
• Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act (Act 101 of 1988)
• Building Energy Conservation Act (Act 222 of 1980)
• Energy Conservation and Assistance Act (Act 122 of 1986)

DCNR:

• Conservation and Natural Resources Act (Act 18 of 1995)
• Wild Resources Conservation Act (Act 170 of 1982)
• Project 70 Land Acquisition and Borrowing Act (Act 8 of 1964-1) Special Session 1
• Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund Act (Act 50 of 1993)
• Water Well Drillers License Act (Act 610 of 1955)
• PA Appalachian Trail Act (Act 41 1978)
• Recreational Improvement and Rehabilitation Act (Act 106 of 1984
• PA Scenic River Act (Act 283 of 1972)
• Schuylkill
• Stony Creek Wild
• Lehigh
• French Creek
• Lick Run Wild
• Octoraro Creek
• LeTort Spring Run
• Tucquan Creek
• Bear Run
• Lower Brandywine
• Yellow Breeches Creek
• Tulpehocken Creek
• Rails to Trails Act (Act 188 of 199)
• Pennsylvania Conservation Corps Act (Act 112 of 1984)
• Snowmobile and All-Terrain Vehicle Law (Title 75 Vehicles Code)

In addition, the Committee’s overall responsibilities deal with matters concerning all aspects of implementing the environmental regulations involving all of the above acts. The regulatory development process is sometimes as important as the legislative enactment process. The Committee has the right to review and comment on all regulations promulgated by DEP and DCNR to implement the above statutes.

GAMING OVERSIGHT

The Committee is responsible for originating legislation and overseeing implementation of programs which affect gaming in the Commonwealth.

LEGISLATIVE ISSUES:

• Bingo Law
• Small Games of Chance Law
• Title 4 (Amusements) Ð Gaming
• The Committee also has oversight of the following:
• The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board
• Department of Revenue (central control system for Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board)
• Attorney General (crimes dealing with gambling)
• State Police (crimes dealing with gambling)

CONSTITUENT ISSUES:

• Obtaining a license or resolving issues with bingo or small games of chance licenses at the county level
• Compulsive gambling
• Unfair practices of the Gaming Control Board

VETERANS AFFAIRS AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

The Committee serves as liaison to the following:

• American Legion, Department of Pennsylvania
• Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Pennsylvania, and the National Headquarters of the VFW
• Numerous other chartered veterans organizations
• Pennsylvania State Veterans Commission
• Pennsylvania War Veterans Council, which represents 1,600,000 Pennsylvania veterans
• Department of Military and Veterans Affairs
• Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency
• Office of the State Fire Commissioner
• Pennsylvania Fire Services Institute
• Pennsylvania Emergency Health Services Council

LEGISLATIVE ISSUES:

• Veterans’ preference for Civil Service employment
• World War II veterans’ compensation benefits and eligibility
• Use of the National Guard for special state duties
• Veterans’ memorial projects
• Per diem pay for National Guard members
• Paralyzed veterans’ pensions
• POW-MIA flag
• Disaster relief, assistance and mitigation projects
• 911 emergency dispatch services
• Fire and emergency services issues
• Emergency management policies/issues
• Volunteer Loan Assistance Program
• Scotland School for Veterans’ Children
• State Veterans Memorial Commission
• Land acquisitions for National Guard activities
• Scholarships and benefits for veterans’ dependents
• Special benefits for disabled veterans
• Special benefits for former POWs
• Special vehicle registration for military service
• Capital budget funding for state armories and National Guard equipment
• Availability of high school graduate lists to military recruiters
• Provisions for veterans’ cemeteries
• Capital budget funding for PEMA and the Office of the State Fire Commissioner

CONSTITUENT ISSUES:

• Arrange for purchase of flags for veterans’ graves, as requested by county commissioners
• Assist discharged veterans in obtaining jobs through the Department of Labor
• Arrange for dependents of 100% disabled veterans to apply for educational benefits
• Obtain a list of military bases in Pennsylvania
• Provide information on the law regarding the display of flags
• National Guard personnel issues
• Fire and emergency services inquiries
• Emergency management inquiries