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Senator Argall

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Toll Free: 1-877-327-4255

Harrisburg Office
Senate Box 203029
171 Main Capitol
Harrisburg, PA 17120-3029
717-787-2637
717-783-8657 FAX

Email: dargall@pasen.gov

District Offices
One West Centre Street
P.O. Box 150
Mahanoy City, PA 17948
570-773-0891
570-773-1675 FAX

61 North Third Street
Hamburg, PA 19526-1501
610-562-3411
610-562-6895 FAX
(Shared with Representative
Jerry Knowles)

100 North Centre Street
Pottsville, PA 17901
570-621-3400
570-622-6629 FAX
(Shared with Representative Mike Tobash)

Spring Township
2850 Windmill Road
Spring Township, PA 19608
1-877-327-4255

237 West Broad Street
Tamaqua, PA 18252
570-668-1240
570-952-3374 FAX
(Shared with Representative
Jerry Knowles)


 

Follow Sen. Argall on Twitter for Senate happenings – @SenatorArgall  

In this Email Update:

  • Ignition interlock legislation sent to governor
  • Senate approves civil service modernization measure
  • Committee holds hearing on Sunday hunting

Ignition interlock legislation sent to governor

Legislation that would require most drivers convicted for a first time drunk driving violation to use ignition interlocks for at least a year received final legislative approval this week and was sent to the governor.

Senate Bill 290 would require convicted drunk drivers with illegal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .10 or greater to use ignition interlocks for at least 12 months for first-time offenders. Under current law, the requirement applies only to second and subsequent offenses.

According to statistics compiled by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, nearly 2 million drunk-driving attempts have been stopped with ignition interlock devices, including more than 78,000 instances in Pennsylvania between 2003 and 2015.

Other bills sent to the governor this week include:

House Bill 944, which addresses the management of neighborhood improvement districts in the City of Philadelphia.

Senate Bill 1108, which defines in state statute a new subtype of federally certified motorcycle -- a three-wheeled vehicle with two forward wheels -- as an “autocycle” and creates a special designation under the existing motorcycle definition in state law.

House Bill 1310, which provides privacy and protects the safety of individuals who call 911 to report crimes.

House Bill 1436, which provides for the computation of income tax expense for ratemaking purposes.

House Bill 1574, which expands Pennsylvania’s Anti-hazing Law to include hazing done as a condition for initiation or admission into any organization.


Senate approves civil service modernization measure

The Senate approved Senate Bill 1154, a measure that would streamline and modernize Pennsylvania’s Civil Service Act on Tuesday.

With 70 percent of the Commonwealth’s workforce classified as civil service employees, Senate Bill 1154 will ensure that vacancies are filled with qualified people in a timely manner. The bill would allow applicants to be notified of an open job or test by methods other than the US Mail, such as by email. It would also expand the “Rule of Three” by giving the Commission the option to provide agencies with a list of more than three applicants.

Senate Bill 1154 would allow for “vacancy-based hiring,” which will permit the Civil Service Commission to post actual job vacancies, rather than a general list of job classifications.

Currently a prospective employee applies for job classifications -- not an actual open position -- and is placed on a list. Agencies must review applicant lists to determine availability and interest when a job becomes available. This provides for an unnecessary delay that wastes an applicant’s time and the agency’s time, which can be eliminated by posting specific jobs and allowing prospective employees to apply for them.

The bill now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration.

Other bills approved by the Senate and sent to the House this week include:

House Bill 150, which creates a “Share the Road” registration plate for a passenger car or truck with a registered gross weight of not more than 14,000 pounds or a motor home. Proceeds from the sale of these plates shall be used exclusively to maintain PENNDOT’s central office position of Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator and to fund highway pedalcycle signage. The bill returns to the House of Representatives for concurrence on Senate amendments.

Senate Bill 180, which updates and revises state law relating to organ and tissue donations.

House Bill 608, which adds the term “precursor substances” to the list of chemicals that are illegal to possess if the possessor’s intent is to illegally manufacture a controlled substance. The bill returns to the House for concurrence on Senate amendments.

Senate Bill 837 provides title protection to Marriage and Family Therapists licensed by the State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors to ensure that only those with a professional license be permitted to fashion themselves as a marriage and family therapist in Pennsylvania.

Senate Bill 1031, which allows for the appointment of independent counsel to investigate alleged wrongdoing by an Attorney General, employees of the Office of Attorney General, or chairman or treasurer of a political campaign of the Attorney General.

Senate Bill 1038, which adds a judicial position to juvenile detention boards in third class counties.

Senate Bill 1194, which removes the sunset date of June 30, 2016 from the “State Military College Legislative Appointment Initiative”. Act 29 of 2012 allows members of the General Assembly to appoint annually an eligible student from their legislative districts.

House Bill 1196, which provides special liquor code provisions for the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia this summer. The bill returns to the House for concurrence on Senate amendments.

House Bill 1552, which provides for student-weighted basic education funding and for supplemental payment of basic education funding for the 2014-15 school year.


Committee holds hearing on Sunday hunting

The Senate Game & Fisheries Committee held a public hearing on Wednesday to gather testimony on a proposal to permit hunting on Sundays.

The first panel to testify included representatives from the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, the Keystone Trails Association, the Pennsylvania Equine Association, the Pennsylvania State Grange, and the Humane Society.

The second panel included representatives from the National Rifle Association, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, and the United Sportsmen of Pennsylvania.

Click for video from the hearing.

 

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