News Archive
Lawmaker Takes Aim at Prevailing Wage, Too
State Rep. Ron Marsico, like PSATS, is pushing for common-sense reforms to Pennsylvania's outdated prevailing wage. Click here to find out what he had to say about it: http://mobile.pennlive.com/advpenn/pm_29243/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=W9Ab4STU
Act 13 - Final Implementation Order for Chapter 23
On Thursday, May 10, 2012, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) issued a Final Implementation Order addressing its responsibilities under Chapter 23 of Act 13. Due to uncertainty surrounding the pending litigation challenging the constitutionality of Act 13, the PUC did not address the provisions of Chapter 33 in the Final Implementation Order. Set forth below is a brief summary of the Final Implementation Order as it relates to Chapter 23.
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The PUC confirmed that all counties with spud unconventional wells have properly passed ordinances to impose an impact fee and properly notified the PUC and the public of their actions. Therefore, all of those counties and the municipalities located therein are eligible for impact fee funds.
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All unconventional wells spud in 2011 or before 2011 will be treated as if they were spud in 2011.
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Producers with unconventional wells will pay the impact fee for at least the first three years of production; if the well then qualifies as a stripper well or is capped after the third year of paying the fee, the fee will be suspended. The spudding of a well, not the production of that well, is determinative of whether an impact fee is due for that well. Only wells drilled for the purposes of production of natural gas are subject to the impact fee.
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Plugged wells will be subject to an impact fee for a minimum of three years.
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There will be an annual upward adjustment of the impact fee if there is an upward adjustment in the Consumer Price Index for the Mid-Atlantic Region and if the number of wells spud in that year exceeds the number of wells spud in the prior year.
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Producers are required to pay the impact fee for wells spud before January 1, 2012 by September 1, 2012. The payment of fees for wells spud after January 1, 2012 will be April 1, 2013, and each April 1 thereafter.
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If municipalities or counties determine that there is a discrepancy in the well information being reported by the PUC or the DEP, they are to report them in writing to the DEP, with a copy to the PUC. Further guidance may come from DEP.
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Municipalities are required to submit a 2010 Municipality Approved Budget Report to the PUC by July 6, 2012. They will also be required to submit an Unconventional Gas Well Fund Usage Report, which documents how the impact fee funds are used, by April 15, 2013. Copies of the reports are attached to the Final Implementation Order.
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Municipalities that do not have websites shall make the Unconventional Gas Well Fund Usage Reports public in the same manner as they would make public other actions that they have taken. They do not need to establish websites in order to comply with Act 13.
- The PUC determined that the "total budget" for 2010 shall be the final approved 2010 budget by the governing body of the municipality. That is the budget number that must be reported in the 2010 Municipality Approved Budget Report. PSATS had argued that municipalities should be permitted to take into account unanticipated events that caused their 2010 budgets to increase over the budgets as they were approved in late 2009. The final approved 2010 budget will only be adjusted for inflation in future years. 2010 will be the base year rather than the immediately preceding year (in future years).
Interested parties may, by May 30, 2012, identify and propose resolutions for issues that were not addressed in the Final Implementation Order.A copy of the Final Implementation Order can be found here. If you have any questions, please contact PSATS at 717-763-0930.
Elimination of Costly Sign Mandate Expected to Save Communities Thousands
Another unfunded mandate on local government has been shot down with the elimination of almost four dozen federal traffic sign regulations.
The Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors is among those praising the Federal Highway Administration, which announced today that it plans to eliminate 46 traffic sign regulations, a move that will provide communities with more flexibility by allowing them to replace signs when they are worn out rather than by a specific date.
“Some of these burdensome deadlines would have cost communities millions of dollars at a time when they can’t afford that,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said. “We spoke to state and local officials across the country, and we heard them loud and clear.”
PSATS and its sister organization in Washington, D.C., the National Association of Towns and Townships, were among those chiming in on the issue. In fact, the groups have been lobbying the federal government for several months to have the sign mandate lifted. As a result, the FHWA’s decision eliminates a number of deadlines in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices that would have required larger lettering for signs and for certain signs to be replaced to meet minimum retroreflectivity standards. The final rule also eliminates deadlines for increasing the size of various traffic signs, such as “Pass With Care” and “Low Clearance.” Now, townships will be able to replace and upgrade these signs when they reach the end of their useful life.
“Today’s announcement represents a huge victory for townships and their taxpayers: One more burdensome and costly unfunded mandate has been shot down,” PSATS Executive Director David M. Sanko said. “It’s also a victory for common sense and for our Association’s ‘Take Aim at Unfunded Mandates’ effort.
“Townships have tens of thousands of signs, and had this mandate stood, it would have proven to be an expensive and challenging proposition for many communities,” he added. “I’m pleased to see that after an intensive grassroots outreach by PSATS and NATaT, the federal government has recognized the local impact, and we applaud its efforts to soften the financial blow on Pennsylvania’s townships.”
Sanko said the sign mandate’s repeal marks a turning point in the thinking of state and federal officials, which of late have been backing off on a series of unfunded mandates imposed on municipalities. Recently, for instance, state lawmakers passed legislation that increases the bidding threshold for townships when they purchase goods and services. Lawmakers are also considering a number of changes to the Prevailing Wage Law, including one that would exempt municipalities from the law’s costly requirements.
“The status quo is being questioned,” Sanko said, “and that’s a good thing because the more money that townships can save, the more they can invest in their communities to improve the quality of life and avoid future tax increases.”
Click here to read the FHWA's final rule on the issue.
Get All the Labor Law Posters You Need for FREE Online
Is your township getting calls and flyers from a company trying to sell you federal and state employer labor law posters? Don't be taken in!
All of the mandatory posters are available online free of charge. To find the labor law posters that your township needs, click here and print the posters that you want on 8 1/2" x by 11" paper. Black and white copies are acceptable.
Also, please note that these posters are only updated every few years. Check the date on the bottom of your existing posters and compare with the current versions to help determine what you need to stay in compliance with state and federal law.
Nominations for Governor's Award for Safety Excellence Due June 1
If you’re proud of your safety and prevention program for its impact on reducing employee injuries and leading to financial and other achievements, why not apply for the Governor’s Award for Safety Excellence? The award recognizes outstanding prevention programs and the superior efforts that make these programs so successful. Organizations can nominate themselves or be nominated by a third party.
Click here to download the nomination form or get more information.
ALL APPLICATIONS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY JUNE 1, 2012 TO:
Amy Zacks
Program Coordinator
Bureau of Workers’ Compensation
Health and Safety Division
1171 South Cameron St.
Harrisburg, PA 17104
For additional information or assistance, call (717) 772-1917 or email azacks@pa.gov or RA-LI-BWC-Safety@pa.gov.