PRINTER'S NO. 1390
No. 62 Session of 1993
INTRODUCED BY BUNT, RYAN, L. I. COHEN, ROHRER, J. TAYLOR,
ARMSTRONG, BAKER, BARLEY, BROWN, CESSAR, CLARK, CLYMER,
CORNELL, DEMPSEY, DRUCE, DURHAM, EGOLF, FAIRCHILD, FARGO,
FARMER, FLICK, GANNON, GEIST, GERLACH, GLADECK, GODSHALL,
HENNESSEY, HUTCHINSON, KING, LAUB, LEE, LEH, MARSICO, NAILOR,
NYCE, O'BRIEN, PERZEL, PETTIT, PHILLIPS, PITTS, RAYMOND,
REINARD, RUBLEY, SAURMAN, SCHEETZ, SCHULER, SERAFINI,
S. H. SMITH, STRITTMATTER, TOMLINSON, VANCE AND M. N. WRIGHT,
APRIL 19, 1993
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON RULES, APRIL 19, 1993
A RESOLUTION
1 Requesting the Governor to appoint a bipartisan committee to
2 review and investigate real property owned by the
3 Commonwealth.
4 WHEREAS, This Commonwealth faces an ongoing budgetary crisis
5 occasioned by failure to cut wasteful spending and to seek
6 additional sources of potential revenue; and
7 WHEREAS, There exists within this Commonwealth numerous
8 pieces of real property which are no longer required in order
9 for the Commonwealth to administer certain programs and which
10 are not vital to the current or future interests of this
11 Commonwealth; and
12 WHEREAS, Over 14,000 acres of land suitable for agricultural
13 use is included among the properties administered by numerous
14 agencies of the Commonwealth; and
15 WHEREAS, The Commonwealth has taken previous steps to dispose
1 of surplus property held by State agencies, and some of the
2 property disposed of has been converted to uses other than
3 agricultural use; and
4 WHEREAS, The Commonwealth has the power to dispose of real
5 property under Article XXIV-A of the act of April 9, 1929
6 (P.L.177, No.175), known as The Administrative Code of 1929; and
7 WHEREAS, The sale of surplus real property can accomplish the
8 goal of eliminating unnecessary property of the Commonwealth
9 while raising additional revenues without tax increases;
10 therefore be it
11 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives request the
12 Governor to appoint a select bipartisan committee of legislators
13 and private citizens to review and investigate all properties
14 owned by the Commonwealth to consider the utility of the
15 properties to programs administered by the Commonwealth. The
16 committee shall also investigate and determine whether the
17 properties are vital to the current or future interests of this
18 Commonwealth and its citizens; and be it further
19 RESOLVED, That the committee shall be composed of 11 private
20 citizens who have residences throughout the Commonwealth in
21 order to provide geographical representation on the committee;
22 five senators, three of whom shall be from the majority party
23 and two of whom shall be from the minority party; and five
24 representatives, three of whom shall be from the majority party
25 and two of whom shall be from the minority party; and be it
26 further
27 RESOLVED, That the private citizens shall be reimbursed for
28 actual expenses in carrying out these duties; and be it further
29 RESOLVED, That the select committee be authorized to develop
30 and submit to the Governor and to the General Assembly a list of
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1 properties considered to be unnecessary for programs
2 administered by the Commonwealth or irrelevant to the current or
3 future interests of this Commonwealth and its citizens. The
4 committee shall also consider potential savings to the
5 Commonwealth that would be realized through disposition of the
6 properties; and be it further
7 RESOLVED, That the committee shall make recommendations for
8 the enactment of any legislation that it deems appropriate to
9 modify the current law relating to the disposition of surplus
10 property in order to provide for a continuous process to
11 identify and report on surplus property and the disposition of
12 the same; and be it further
13 RESOLVED, That the Governor, through the Department of
14 General Services, undertake immediate plans to transfer all
15 property to the jurisdiction of the Department of General
16 Services for expeditious disposition; and be it further
17 RESOLVED, That the committee recommend an agricultural
18 conservation easement be placed on all real property suitable
19 for farming based on soil classification, site characteristics
20 or historical use prior to disposition of the real property; and
21 be it further
22 RESOLVED, That the proceeds from disposition of the real
23 property be placed in the General Fund of the State Treasury for
24 use as appropriated by the General Assembly; and be it further
25 RESOLVED, That the committee shall meet within 30 days from
26 the appointment of its membership and at such other times as it
27 deems appropriate and shall report its findings to the Governor
28 and the House of Representatives within 180 days from the date
29 of its first meeting.
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