PRINTER'S NO. 728
No. 639 Session of 1985
INTRODUCED BY TRELLO, BELARDI, TIGUE, ANGSTADT, DALEY, KOSINSKI,
MORRIS, PHILLIPS, DAWIDA, RUDY, CIVERA, GAMBLE, OLASZ,
LINTON, BELFANTI, BOWSER, HALUSKA, PERZEL, CIMINI, DeLUCA,
MICOZZIE, KASUNIC, HOWLETT AND FREEMAN, MARCH 25, 1985
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CONSUMER AFFAIRS, MARCH 25, 1985
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 66 (Public Utilities) of the Pennsylvania
2 Consolidated Statutes, providing for the election of public
3 utility commissioners and for their campaign expenses.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Section 301 of Title 66 of the Pennsylvania
7 Consolidated Statutes is amended to read:
8 § 301. Establishment, members, qualifications and chairman.
9 (a) [Appointment] Election and terms of members.--
10 (1) The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission,
11 established by the act of March 31, 1937 (P.L.160, No.43), as
12 an independent administrative commission, is hereby continued
13 as such and shall consist of [five members who shall be
14 appointed by the Governor, by and with the advice and consent
15 of two-thirds of all the members of the Senate, for a term of
16 ten years. No commissioner upon the expiration of his term
17 shall continue to hold office until his successor shall be
1 duly appointed or shall be qualified.] five elected members.
2 Three of the members shall be elected for four-year terms and
3 two of the members shall be elected for two-year terms.
4 Thereafter, all terms shall be for four years. Terms shall
5 begin January 1 following their election. In the event of a
6 vacancy, the Governor shall appoint a person to fill the
7 unexpired term. This Commonwealth shall be divided into five
8 utility districts of equal population and one commissioner
9 shall be elected from each district.
10 (2) The nomination and election of a candidate for the
11 office of commissioner of the Public Utility Commission shall
12 be governed by the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320),
13 known as the Pennsylvania Election Code. Nominating petitions
14 shall contain 2,000 signatures of the electorate registered
15 with the candidate's party and residing in the candidate's
16 district. If the district contains two or more counties or if
17 the candidates are elected from this Commonwealth-at-large,
18 not more than 50% of the signatures shall be from one county.
19 (b) Qualifications and restrictions.--Each commissioner, at
20 the time of his [appointment] election and qualification, shall
21 be a resident of this Commonwealth and shall have been a
22 qualified elector therein for a period of at least one year next
23 preceding his appointment, and shall also be not less than 30
24 years of age. No person shall be [appointed] elected a member of
25 the commission or hold any place, position or office under it,
26 who occupies any official relation to any public utility or who
27 holds any other appointive or elected office of the Commonwealth
28 or any political subdivision thereof. Commencing July 1, 1977,
29 commissioners shall devote full time to their official duties.
30 No commissioner shall hold any office or position, the duties of
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1 which are incompatible with the duties of his office as
2 commissioner, or be engaged in any business, employment or
3 vocation, for which he shall receive any remuneration, except as
4 provided in this chapter. No employee, appointee or official
5 engaged in the service of or in any manner connected with, the
6 commission shall hold any office or position, or be engaged in
7 any employment or vocation, the duties of which are incompatible
8 with his employment in the service of or in connection with the
9 work of the commission. No commissioner shall be paid or accept
10 for any service connected with the office, any fee or emolument
11 other than the salary and expenses provided by law. No
12 commissioner shall participate in any hearing or proceeding in
13 which he has any direct or indirect pecuniary interest. Within
14 90 days of confirmation, each commissioner shall disclose, at
15 that time and thereafter annually, the existence of all security
16 holdings in any public utility or its affiliates held by such
17 commissioner, his or her spouse and any minor or unemancipated
18 children and must either divest or place in a blind trust such
19 securities. As used in this part, blind trust means a trust over
20 which neither the commissioners, their spouses, nor any minor or
21 unemancipated children shall exercise any managerial control,
22 and from which neither the commissioners, their spouses, nor any
23 minor or unemancipated children shall receive any income from
24 the trust during the commissioner's tenure of office. Such
25 disclosure statement shall be filed with the secretary of the
26 commission and shall be open to inspection by the public during
27 the normal business hours of the commission during the tenure of
28 the commissioner. Every commissioner, and every individual or
29 official, elected, employed or appointed to office under, in the
30 service of, or in connection with, the work of the commission,
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1 is forbidden, directly or indirectly, to solicit or request
2 from, or to suggest or recommend to any public utility, or to
3 any officer, attorney, agent or employee thereof, the
4 appointment of any individual to any office, place or position
5 in, or the employment of any individual in any capacity by, such
6 public utility. Every commissioner, every bureau director and
7 every administrative law judge elected, employed or appointed to
8 office under, in the service of or in connection with the work
9 of the commission, is prohibited from accepting employment with
10 any public utility subject to the rules and regulations of the
11 commission for a period of one year after terminating employment
12 or service with the commission. If any person elected, employed
13 or appointed in the service of the commission violates any
14 provision of this section, the commission shall forthwith remove
15 him from the office or employment held by him.
16 (c) Chairman.--A member designated by the [Governor]
17 commissioners shall be the chairman of the commission during
18 such member's term of office. When present, the chairman shall
19 preside at all meetings, but in his absence a member, designated
20 by the chairman, shall preside and shall exercise, for the time
21 being, all the powers of the chairman. The chairman shall have
22 such powers and duties as authorized by the commission as
23 provided in section 331(b) (relating to powers of commission and
24 administrative law judges).
25 (d) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the commission
26 serving in accordance with law shall constitute a quorum and
27 such majority, acting unanimously, shall be required for any
28 action, including the making of any order or the ratification of
29 any act done or order made by one or more of the commissioners.
30 No vacancy in the commission shall impair the right of a quorum
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1 of the commissioners to exercise all the rights and perform all
2 the duties of the commission.
3 (e) Compensation.--Each of the commissioners shall receive
4 an annual salary of [$35,000, as of January 1, 1977, and]
5 $40,000, [as of January 1, 1978,] except the chairman, who shall
6 receive an annual salary of [$37,500, as of January 1, 1977,
7 and] $42,500[, as of January 1, 1978].
8 (f) Open proceedings.--The proceedings of the commission
9 shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the act
10 of July 19, 1974 (P.L.486, No.175), referred to as the Public
11 Agency Open Meeting Law.
12 (g) Monitoring cases.--Each commissioner shall be
13 responsible for monitoring specified cases as shall be assigned
14 to him in a manner determined by the commission. All proceedings
15 properly before the commission shall be assigned immediately
16 upon filing.
17 (h) Utility Election Committee.--The General Assembly shall
18 establish a Utility Election Committee composed of the Majority
19 Leaders of the Senate and the House of Representatives, the
20 Minority Leaders of the Senate and the House of Representatives
21 and a member appointed by the Governor from the League of Women
22 Voters or Common Cause. Members of the Utility Election
23 Committee shall be reimbursed for personal expenses incurred
24 conducting the committee's duties. Those duties shall be to
25 verify the candidates' eligibility for public funds and
26 expenditure of those funds.
27 (i) Political contributions.--Every utility bill and every
28 State income tax form shall contain a provision permitting
29 persons to contribute $1 for the campaign costs of candidates
30 for Public Utility Commission commissioner. Revenues accrued in
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1 this manner shall be placed into a special fund administered by
2 the Department of Revenue.
3 (j) Disbursement of funds to candidates.--Any candidate
4 seeking money from the special fund shall submit the information
5 concerning his campaign and election expenditures as the Utility
6 Election Committee shall require. The amount disbursed from the
7 special fund to any one candidate shall not exceed $25,000.
8 (k) Donation limits.--No candidate for the office of Public
9 Utility Commission commissioner shall accept more than $25 in
10 donations from any individual employee of utilities. Total
11 donations from employees of utilities shall not exceed $500. No
12 candidate for Public Utility Commission commissioner shall
13 accept donations of more than $100 from other individuals or
14 political committees. No candidate shall spend more than $25,000
15 for a primary election campaign and $50,000 for the general
16 election campaign.
17 (l) Moneys remaining in fund.--Moneys remaining in the
18 special fund at the close of an election shall be reserved for
19 subsequent Public Utility Commission elections and shall be
20 placed in an interest-bearing account.
21 Section 2. The terms of the Public Utility Commission
22 commissioners appointed before the effective date of this act
23 shall terminate on the election and qualification of elected
24 Public Utility Commission commissioners.
25 Section 3. This act shall take effect January 1, 1986.
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