The information you need to follow legislation in the House and Senate- starting with articles and NewsClips from last week--

Environment & Energy NewsClips--

Budget

-- DEP Offers 10 Point Plan To Improve Permit Reviews; Climate/Energy Work Group Co-Chairs Announced; Work Group Formed To Prevent New Oil & Gas Well Abandonments [PaEN]

-- House Budget Hearing: Acting DEP Secretary Outlines His Views On Environmental Justice, Announces Fernando Treviño As Special Deputy For Environmental Justice  [PaEN]

-- DEP Acting Secretary Negrin Wants To Encourage A Culture Of Being User-Friendly At DEP And Used The Train Derailment Response As An Example  [PaEN]

-- DEP Acting Secretary Negrin: All Climate Change Is Local - We Are Guardians Of Our Neighborhoods, We Are To Act In Service To Our Neighbors  [PaEN]

-- DEP Projects Over $1.5 Million Deficit In Account Funding Oil & Gas Regulation Program In FY 2023-24  [PaEN]

-- DEP Budget Testimony: Increasing Permitting Efficiency, Cleaning Up Legacy Pollution, Investing In Communities, Holding Companies Accountable  [PaEN]

-- Former DEP Secretaries Invited To Share Their Experiences Protecting Pennsylvania's Environment With Acting Secretary Negrin  [PaEN]

-- PA Capital-Star: Permitting Reform, RGGI Carbon Pollution Program Take Center Stage At DEP’s Senate Budget Hearing

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: PA’s Permitting Delays, Carbon Tax [RGGI] Still Vexing Lawmakers

-- Post-Gazette/Capitolwire.com - Robert Swift: Senate DEP Budget Hearing Focuses On Permit Reform, Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative

-- Senate Republicans Again Suggest DCNR Allow More Natural Gas Drilling To Fund Park/Forest Operations; New Hellbender License Plate Coming In June  [PaEN]

-- DCNR Budget Testimony: Supporting PA’s Outdoor Recreation Industry, Conserving Natural Resources [PaEN]

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: In PA, Drilling On Public Land Loses And 2 Invasive Bugs Win

-- Post-Gazette/Capitolwire.com - Robert Swift: State Parks Dept. Budget Hearing Focuses On New Hires, Infrastructure

-- PennLive: As DCNR Asks For Boost In Infrastructure Spending, Republicans See Opening For More Gas Leasing On State Land

-- Agriculture Budget Testimony: Budget Proposal Supports Agriculture Economy; Land & Water Stewardship; Organic Farming; Helps Deal With Threats To Food System  [PaEN]

-- The Center Square: Uncertain Revenue Expectations Cloud PA’s Financial Future

 Train Derailment

-- PA Senate Hearing: Norfolk Southern CEO - Ignition Of Rail Cars Following Ohio Trainwreck Was A 'Success' ?  [PaEN] 

-- PA Senate Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee March 20 Hearing Video With Norfolk Southern CEO + Written Testimony

-- Shapiro Administration Announces Long-Term Presence In Beaver County To Assist Residents Affected By Norfolk Southern Train Derailment  [PaEN]

-- DEP Acting Secretary Negrin Wants To Encourage A Culture Of Being User-Friendly At DEP And Used The Train Derailment Response As An Example  [PaEN]

-- House Budget Hearing: Acting DEP Secretary Outlines His Views On Environmental Justice, Announces Fernando Treviño As Special Deputy For Environmental Justice  [PaEN]

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: Rebuilding Public Trust After The Train Derailment Starts From The Ground Up

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: Western PA Residents Want More Testing- And Attention-- After Train Derailment

-- Post-Gazette: Beaver County School District Sues Norfolk Southern Over Train Derailment Chemical Plume

-- AP: Bipartisan Support Emerges For US Senate Railroad Safety Bill After Norfolk Southern Train Derailment

-- PA Capital-Star: Norfolk Southern Will Be There ‘As Long As It Takes,’ CEO Tells PA Senate Panel; ‘Unified Command’ Made The Decision To Burn Chemicals Lead By Local Ohio Fire Chief

-- City & State PA: In PA Senate Hearing: Norfolk Southern CEO Said Local Fire Chief, OH Governor Had Final Say On Chemical Tanker Burn

-- Post-Gazette - Ford Turner: PA Lawmakers Grill Norfolk Southern CEO On Decision To Burn Chemicals After Train Derailment

-- The Center Square: Norfolk Southern CEO Reluctant To Say Who OK’d Chemical Burn After Derailment

-- PennLive: Legislators Frustrated With Norfolk Southern CEO’s Appearance Before PA Senate Committee

-- Politics PA: Norfolk Southern CEO To Appear Before PA Senate Committee Monday

-- Post-Gazette Editorial: Government Should Extract Direct Compensation From Norfolk Southern For Train Derailment

-- PA Capital-Star: Jessica Conard Of East Palestine, OH Has Become A Reluctant Community Advocate After Train Derailment

-- AP: After Derailment, Toxic Burn Student Athletes Seek Normalcy In Ohio

 Environment/Energy Issues

-- StateImpactPA - Rachel McDevitt: New House Environmental Chair Says He’ll Look For Bipartisan Agreement

-- Feature-- Remembering March 28, 1979 At The Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant - The Accident No One Thought Would Happen -- Like With Natural Gas Infrastructure Today   [PaEN]

-- AP: Deadly Chocolate Factory Explosion Kills 3, 5 Missing In Reading; Employees Reported Smelling Natural Gas, Investigation By Officials, UGI Ongoing 

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Shell Temporarily Shuts Down Part Of Beaver County Petrochemical Plant For Repairs Fully Activating Natural Gas, Flammable Gases Flaring System Again For An Unspecified Period Of Time 

-- Guest Essay: Shell Petrochemical Plant Off To A Bad- And Dangerous- Start In Beaver County - By Joseph Minott, Clean Air Council [PaEN]

-- Pennsylvania Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - March 18 to 24; Continuing Violations At Equitrans Gas Storage Area; 6 More New Well Abandonments  [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - March 25 [PaEN]

Top 10 Stories On Harrisburg/PA Politics Last Week--

Because In Politics Everything Is Connected To Everything Else--

-- Top 10 Stories: Harrisburg/PA Politics Reported By Local News Media Last Week  [PaEN]

Bill Calendars

Senate (April 24): Senate Bill 188 (DiSanto-R-Dauphin) amending the Regulatory Review Act to authorize the General Assembly to kill “economically significant” regulations by doing nothing;  Senate Bill 190 (Brooks-R- Crawford) requiring an automatic three-year review of economically significant regulations in a process similar to what was called “sunset reviews” decades ago. That process was abandoned by the General Assembly because it became a costly, time-consuming exercise with little benefit; Senate Bill 508 (Mastriano-R-Adams) providing for a Train Derailment Emergency Grant Program to provide financial support for residents and small businesses impacted by the February Ohio/PA train derailment;  Senate Bill 466 (Brown-R-Lackawanna) providing for land bank environmental cleanup liability; Senate Resolution 59 (Mastriano-R- Adams) recognizing the impact of the February Ohio/PA train derailment on Pennsylvania residents.  <> Click Here for full Senate Bill Calendar.

House (April 24): <> Click Here for full House Bill Calendar 

Committee Meetings

House   

March 28--House Game & Fisheries Committee hearing to receive Game Commission’s Annual Report.  Room 523 Irvis Building. 10:00 a.m.  Click Here to watch live.

March 28-- House Game & Fisheries Committee hearing to receive Fish & Boat Commission’s Annual Report.  Room 523 Irvis Building. 1:00 p.m.   Click Here to watch live.

April 11-- House Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee information meeting on organic production in PA.  Rodale Institute Visitor’s Center, Kutztown.  1:00 p.m.

<>  Click Here for full House Committee Schedule.

Senate

March 28-- Senate Appropriations Committee Budget Hearing: 1:00 - Department of Agriculture. Hearing Room 1, North Office Building.  Click Here to watch live.

 <>  Click Here for full Senate Committee Schedule.

Bills Introduced

Environmental Justice Area Impact Statements: House Bill 652 (Bullock-D-Philadelphia) requiring environmental impact statements for facilities like incinerators, landfills and sewage plants in environmental justice areas.

Lifting Ban On Stream Fencing: House Bill 677 (Sturla-D-Lancaster) lifting the ban on fencing livestock from streams to improve water quality.

Requiring Preserved Farms To Have Conservation Plans: House Bill 685 (Sturla-D- Lancaster) requiring farms benefiting from preferential property tax assessments to preserve farmland to have conservation plans.

Bills Pending In Key Committees

Check the PA Environmental Council Bill Tracker for the status and updates on pending state legislation and regulations that affect environmental and conservation efforts in Pennsylvania.

Session Schedule

Here is the latest voting session schedule for the Senate and House--

House

Budget Hearings: March 27, 28, 29, 30, April 11, 12, 13, 14

April 24, 25, 26

May 1, 2, 3, 22, 23, 24

June 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30

Senate

Budget hearings: March  27, 28, 29, 30 and April 11, 12, 13

April 24, 25, 26

May 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 10

June 5, 6, 7, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30

[Posted: March 26, 2023]

3/27/2023