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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2013 - 2014
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | February 21, 2013 11:50 AM |
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| From: | Representative Thomas R. Caltagirone |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Public Education Cost Containment Package of Legislation |
| In the near future, I will be introducing my package of four bills designed to help those on fixed incomes, and even those still actively employed, to not lose their lifelong homes due to completely unaffordable school property taxes. If your district doesn't have this problem, it soon will, believe me. This term, I will not be including a property tax elimination bill of my own, preferring to sign on to Rep. Cox's effort instead. However, I am convinced that tax shifting without cost containment solves very little. It merely shifts an essentially unaffordable tax burden from one group of taxpayers to another. We simply must approach cost containment in public education at the same time we handle property taxes as an issue. Due to the structure of the cosponsorship system, the first bill is attached to this section and the one immediately below. | ||
| View Attachment | ||
Document #1
Introduced as HB1451
| Description: | The first bill (last term's HB2571) makes a small amendment to the State Public School Building Authority Act, as amended, calling for the preparation of a number of master architectural designs for school facilities, so that districts may adopt and modify one of the master plans, as appropriate for the site, rather than become the funding source for architectural showpieces for well-connected architectural firms. For those on the internal House cosponsorship system, the attachment is the bill from the previous term in draft form. No changes are planned. | |
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| View Attachment | ||
Document #2
Introduced as HB1450
| Description: | The second bill (last term's HB2572) authorizes the Department of General Services to procure school supplies for the public schools of the Commonwealth. Purchasing of supplies is one administrative function of 500 school districts that can be and must be streamlined in order to save money on non-instructional overhead. In the days before the "big box" office supplies super-stores, an argument could be made that a move such as this could endanger "mom and pop" entrepreneurs from being able to compete. Office and school supplies are now "big business" and we need to take advantage of the economies of scale available to us. Again, the in-House attachment is the bill from the previous term in draft form and no changes are planned. |
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| View Attachment | ||
Document #3
Introduced as HB1452
| Description: | The third bill (last term's HB2573) calls upon the Pennsylvania Department of Education to transition to become the public employer of all school personnel for purposes of collective bargaining as present contracts expire, rather than the 500 individual school districts. In addition, the Department is tasked with preparing a plan for the administrative consolidation of school districts, with an eye toward maximizing utilization of present facilities and cost containment. Under my bill, the administrative authority for hiring, firing, promotion, demotion and discipline of school district personnel would remain at the school district level, in whichever form they exist either before or after any future consolidations. Again, the in-House attachment is the bill from the previous term in draft form and no changes are planned. Due to the length and complexity of the fourth bill, (health benefits program consolidation) it will be the subject of a separate memo, but I consider it part of my education reform legislative package and they will be submitted together when they are ready. |
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| View Attachment | ||