High-profile bills in limbo in Harrisburg
Pa. lawmakers gone for summer recess
HARRISBURG — There is unfinished business under the Capitol dome this summer.
When state lawmakers returned to their home districts last week after completing the 2016-17 budget, several high-profile bills were left in limbo. Among them are pension reform, updates to the state’s statutes of limitations on child sexual abuse cases, a proposal to tighten restrictions on abortion and the expansion of anti-discrimination protections to people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.
Another lingering issue, the expansion of legal gambling in the state, carries special significance: The recently completed state budget was balanced with help of revenue from that proposal.
Many of the bills have support, but time constraints, complexities and historical divides hindered them from reaching fruition before summer, experts
and lawmakers said.
“They’re not something you can snap your fingers and get passed,” said Steve Miskin, spokesman for House Republicans. “It’s taken years for these issues to be discussed.”
It is unclear what will be accomplished when legislators return to the Capitol in September for a few more weeks of session. The reasons the bills did not pass in the spring could also keep them from making headway in the fall, and there will be the added pressure of a general election right around the corner in which all 203 House seats and half of the 50 Senate seats will be on the ballot.
“They’ll focus mostly on consensus pieces and nothing very controversial,” said Terry Madonna, director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs at Franklin and Marshall College. “I wouldn’t expect to see major pieces of legislation, with the exception of gaming.”
Any legislation left unresolved by Nov. 30 will need to be reintroduced in January when a new legislative session begins.
The gambling legislation is critical because the state budget for the new fiscal year was balanced using $100 million in new revenue from changes to Pennsylvania gaming.
Senate GOP spokeswoman Jennifer Kocher said the gaming bill is a priority for Senate Republicans. The gaming bill’s prime sponsor, Rep. George Dunbar, R-Penn Township, said he expects that measures to legalize internet gaming and fantasy sports will stick, while those that will expand off-track betting parlors will receive some push-back.
Representatives of House and Senate Republican leaders said they would like to reach agreement on the GOP priority of changing the pension benefits earned by future state and public school workers. The House and Senate have passed different versions of change to the retirement plans. Pension reform has been on the Republican legislative agenda for years, and Mr. Madonna said it would prove to be difficult to swing in a few weeks’ time.
Mr. Miskin said House Republicans are also interested in taking up a widely publicized bill that would update the statute of limitations on child sexual abuse cases.
The House in April approved the bill, which would remove the time limit for filing criminal charges and extend the time during which victims can bring lawsuits. A Senate committee then stripped out a controversial provision that would have allowed many victims whose statute of limitations has expired more time to file a lawsuit. The Senate passed that version, which was not brought up in the House before the summer recess.
Rep. Mark Rozzi, D-Berks, who has led the charge for the statute of limitations changes, said he will make it his mission to put the retroactivity provision back into the bill this fall.
Mr. Rozzi said he will do anything necessary to move the bill, including filibustering by reading testimony from grand jury reports of victims’ abuse.
“My path is clear…” he said angrily. “I will go for the throat… By no means is this over.”
Democrats, and some Republicans, have pushed to expand the state’s anti-discrimination laws to include protections for LGBT individuals. But Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Squirrel Hill, the prime sponsor of an anti-discrimination bill in the House, said he isn’t optimistic that the proposals will reach the governor before session ends. Versions of the proposals have also been introduced in the Senate, with one bill winning committee passage.
“We’ve changed many hearts and minds, but not enough in terms of decision makers,” Mr. Frankel said.
Mr. Frankel, who is joined by members from both chambers and parties and Gov. Tom Wolf in supporting the bill, said he will look to reintroduce the legislation for a sixth session next year.
Another controversial bill that could come up this fall would ban most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, rather than the current restriction of 24 weeks, as well as prohibiting an abortion technique called dilation and evacuation. The bill cleared the House and a Senate committee and now awaits consideration by the full Senate.
The bill’s prime sponsor, Rep. Kathy Rapp, R-Warren, said she is hopeful the Senate will run the bill in the fall.
Although many of these issues are up in the air, some lawmakers are hopeful that the summer recess will offer some clarity for their discussions and allow them time to negotiate without the pressure of a budget looming overhead.
“It’s a contentious atmosphere when you’re crafting a budget and spending plan. [Summer recess] gives you time to recharge your batteries and time talking to constituents,” Mr. Miskin said. “Sometimes you need a different perspective than a Harrisburg perspective.”