H1590B1971A01950 BIL:DHB 06/22/07 #90 A01950
AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILL NO. 1590
Sponsor: REPRESENTATIVE PETRI
Printer's No. 1971
1 Amend Bill, page 2, lines 1 and 2, by striking out all of
2 said lines and inserting
3 Section 1.1. Title 74 is amended by adding a section to
4 read:
5 § 1102. Southeast Pennsylvania Regional Intermodal Transit
6 Authority Study Commission.
7 (a) Commission.--The Southeast Pennsylvania Regional
8 Intermodal Transit Authority Study Commission is hereby
9 established. The commission shall be appointed as follows:
10 (1) In a county of the first class, one member by the
11 mayor of the city of the first class duly elected in the 2007
12 general election and one member by city council.
13 (2) In other counties by the county commissioners with
14 two members from each county.
15 (b) Purpose.--
16 (1) The purpose of the commission shall be to study the
17 possibility and feasibility of replacing the current transit
18 entities in southeast Pennsylvania with a regional system to
19 make recommendations for dedicated funds from locally derived
20 sources and to meet with the following organizations to
21 coordinate planning for future expansion and use of transit
22 systems and make recommendations for coordinating the
23 activities of the following transportation systems:
24 (i) Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation
25 Authority.
26 (ii) Philadelphia Parking Authority.
27 (iii) Delaware River Port Authority.
28 (iv) Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission.
29 (2) Among the sources the commission may consider are a
30 levy to be imposed on parking facilities, including airport
31 parking facilities, naming rights, advertising, bridge
32 tolling, privatization of road systems, direct revenue
33 sources derived from tolling of specific lanes or structures
34 or surcharges for use of certain lanes by motorists at
35 specified times during the day.
36 (3) Each commission is precluded from identifying any
37 other local revenue derived from the imposition of a realty
38 transfer tax, earned income tax or regional sales tax upon
39 the residents or businesses located within the geographical
40 boundaries of the district without public recommendation from
41 a majority of the members of the commission for any other
42 locally derived revenue which would require legislative
1 enactment by the General Assembly.
2 (c) Staff and consultants.--
3 (1) The commission may employ professional, technical
4 and clerical staff and engage the services of consultants as
5 it deems necessary to carry out its responsibilities under
6 this section. The Department of Transportation shall provide
7 necessary office space and administrative support for the
8 commission.
9 (2) Whenever possible, the commission shall utilize the
10 services and expertise of existing personnel and staff of
11 State government, and to this end the Governor is hereby
12 directed to make personnel and staff available to the
13 commission to the fullest extent commensurate with the
14 performance of their other duties.
15 (3) The commission shall reimburse State agencies,
16 including the Department of Transportation, for any expense
17 incurred in providing to the commission the services as
18 required by this section.
19 (d) Meetings.--
20 (1) The commission shall hold an organization meeting as
21 soon as possible after the appointment of all its members.
22 Thereafter, the commission shall hold meetings at the call of
23 the chairman or of a majority of the members serving on the
24 commission.
25 (2) The commission shall also hold public hearings on
26 the matters to be considered by it at locations throughout
27 southeast Pennsylvania, including specifically those areas
28 most likely to be served by any system that may replace the
29 existing transit entities in southeast Pennsylvania. All
30 meetings and public hearings of the commission shall be
31 deemed meetings for the purposes of and subject to 65 Pa.C.S.
32 Ch. 7 (relating to open meetings).
33 (e) Reports.--The commission shall make a report of its
34 activities and recommendations to the General Assembly and the
35 Governor on March 31, 2008.
36 (f) Funding.--In addition to the moneys appropriated and
37 other moneys as may be appropriated from time to time by the
38 General Assembly for its work, the commission is authorized to
39 make application for and expend such Federal grants as may be
40 available and may also receive and expend contributions from
41 other public, quasi-public or private sources as may become
42 available.
43 (g) Definitions.--As used in this section the following
44 words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this
45 subsection:
46 "Commission." The Southeast Pennsylvania Regional Intermodal
47 Transit Authority (SPRITA) Study Commission established in
48 subsection (a).
49 "Southeast Pennsylvania." The region of this Commonwealth
50 consisting of the following counties: Bucks, Chester, Delaware,
51 Northampton, Lehigh, Berks, Philadelphia and Montgomery.
52 Section 1.2. Chapter 13 of Title 74 is repealed:
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