PRINTER'S NO. 345
No. 336 Session of 1997
INTRODUCED BY TILGHMAN, ULIANA, STOUT, HELFRICK, SALVATORE,
HECKLER, WENGER, O'PAKE, GERLACH, BRIGHTBILL, RHOADES,
THOMPSON, MADIGAN, STAPLETON, LEMMOND AND MELLOW,
FEBRUARY 3, 1997
REFERRED TO FINANCE, FEBRUARY 3, 1997
AN ACT
1 Exempting political subdivisions from compliance with certain
2 laws that require political subdivisions to spend funds or
3 that limit the ability of political subdivisions to raise
4 revenue.
5 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
6 hereby enacts as follows:
7 Section 1. Political subdivisions exempt from certain laws.
8 (a) General rule.--No political subdivision shall be bound
9 by any statute enacted or amended after the effective date of
10 this act requiring that political subdivision to spend new or
11 additional funds, or to take an action requiring the expenditure
12 of funds, unless:
13 (1) funds have been appropriated that have been
14 estimated by an independent legislative agency at the time of
15 the enactment of the statute requiring the expenditure to be
16 sufficient to fund that expenditure;
17 (2) the General Assembly authorizes or has authorized
18 the political subdivision to enact a funding source not
1 available to that political subdivision on the effective date
2 of the statute that can be used to generate the amount of
3 funds estimated to be sufficient to fund that expenditure;
4 (3) each house of the General Assembly passes, by a vote
5 of two-thirds of all members, a resolution explicitly
6 exempting the Commonwealth from funding a specific statute or
7 providing a funding source for that specific statute; or
8 (4) the statute is either required to comply with a
9 Federal requirement, or required for eligibility for a
10 Federal entitlement, which Federal requirement specifically
11 contemplates actions by political subdivisions for
12 compliance.
13 Section 2. Statutes relating to revenue raising.
14 Except by a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to
15 each house, the General Assembly may not enact, amend or repeal
16 any law after the effective date of this act if the anticipated
17 effect of enactment, amendment or repeal would be to reduce the
18 authority that any political subdivision has to raise revenues,
19 in the aggregate, as that authority exists on the effective date
20 of this section.
21 Section 3. Exemptions.
22 The provisions of this act shall not apply to:
23 (1) Any funding formula which exists on the effective
24 date of this act.
25 (2) Any funding necessary to supply any pension benefit
26 which exists on the effective date of this act.
27 (3) Any statute which relates to the enforcement of
28 criminal laws but not to the execution of judicial sentences.
29 (4) Election laws.
30 (5) General appropriation acts.
19970S0336B0345 - 2 -
1 (6) Special appropriation acts.
2 Section 4. Effective date.
3 This act shall take effect immediately.
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