H2419B3581A05186 NAD:EJH 04/21/20 #90 A05186
AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILL NO. 2419
Sponsor: REPRESENTATIVE GROVE
Printer's No. 3581
Amend Bill, page 2, lines 2 through 30; pages 3 through 8,
lines 1 through 30; page 9, lines 1 through 9; by striking out
all of said lines on said pages and inserting
Section 2101-C. Legislative findings.
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) A novel coronavirus, known as COVID-19, entered the
United States in late January 2020 and has spread throughout
the states, including this Commonwealth.
(2) On March 6, 2020, the Governor declared a disaster
emergency, citing a threat of imminent disaster that is of
such a magnitude and severity as to necessitate extraordinary
measures to protect the health, safety and life of this
Commonwealth's citizens.
(3) The impact of COVID-19, including all the necessary
measures taken to mitigate the spread of the disease, has
severely disrupted the Commonwealth and its subdivisions and
is producing short-term and long-term negative economic
consequences.
(4) In order to effectively manage the current disaster,
all branches of the Commonwealth's government must work
cooperatively to identify immediate and urgent issues,
provide a structure to catalog the Commonwealth's response to
the disaster emergency and create a forum to receive
testimony, information and recommendations from individuals,
business and industry.
(5) In addition to managing the existing public health
challenges of COVID-19, the Commonwealth will need a recovery
plan once the emergency subsides to address the innumerable
issues resulting from the disaster emergency, including the
impact to the economy.
(6) The most effective manner to achieve these critical
needs is to form an interbranch task force.
Section 2102-C. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this article
shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Order." As follows:
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(1) The declaration of disaster emergency issued by the
Governor on March 6, 2020, published at 50 Pa.B. 1644 (March
21, 2020).
(2) A declaration of disaster emergency relating to the
novel coronavirus, known as COVID-19, issued after March 6,
2020.
"Task force." The COVID-19 Cost and Recovery Task Force
established under section 2103-C(a).
Section 2103-C. Task force.
(a) Establishment.--The COVID-19 Cost and Recovery Task
Force is established.
(b) Membership.--The task force shall consist of the
following members, appointed within five days of the effective
date of this section:
(1) The Governor or a designee.
(2) The President pro tempore of the Senate or a
designee .
(3) The Majority Leader of the Senate or a designee .
(4) The Minority Leader of the Senate or a designee .
(5) The Speaker of the House of Representatives or a
designee .
(6) The Majority Leader of the House of Representatives
or a designee .
(7) The Minority Leader of the House of Representatives
or a designee .
(8) The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court or a
designee.
(9) A judge of the Superior Court or Commonwealth Court
or a judge of the court of common pleas appointed by the
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
(c) Method of appointment.--An appointing authority under
subsection (b) shall make appointment or replacement appointment
by the transmission of a letter to the Governor, all ex officio
members and all appointing authorities under subsection (b).
(c.1) Executive advisors.--The following shall serve as
advisors to the task force:
(1) An officer or employee of the Department of
Agriculture to represent the Secretary of Agriculture.
(2) An officer or employee of the Department of Banking
and Securities to represent the Secretary of Banking and
Securities.
(3) An officer or employee of the Department of
Community and Economic Development to represent the Secretary
of Community and Economic Development.
(4) An officer or employee of the Department of
Education to represent the Secretary of Education.
(5) An officer or employee of the Department of Human
Services to represent the Secretary of Human Services.
(6) An officer or employee of the Insurance Department
to represent the Insurance Commissioner.
(7) An officer or employee of the Department of Labor
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and Industry to represent the Secretary of Labor and
Industry.
(8) An officer or employee of the Department of
Transportation to represent the Secretary of Transportation.
(d) Advisory committees.--The following shall apply:
(1) The task force may establish advisory committees to
review issues relating to the COVID-19 public health
emergency that require executive, legislative or judicial
action and to report related information to the task force.
(2) Members of an advisory committee shall be
individuals appointed by the task force who have experience
in the issue being reviewed. Members of the task force and
individuals who are not members of the task force may be
appointed to an advisory committee.
(3) Individuals appointed to an advisory committee who
are not members of the task force shall represent the
geographic, racial, gender and socioeconomic diversity of
this Commonwealth. Individuals appointed to an advisory
committee who are not members of the task force may not be a
lobbyist as defined in 65 Pa.C.S. ยง 13A03 (relating to
definitions) or an officer or an employee of a political
party or political committee as defined in section 801 or
1621(h) of the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), known
as the Pennsylvania Election Code.
(4) A member of the task force shall serve as the
chairperson of each advisory committee.
(5) An advisory committee established under this
subsection may be directed to review issues related to issues
arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact those
issues have had on the Commonwealth.
(e) Chairperson.--The Governor or a designee under
subsection (b)(1) shall serve as chairperson of the task force.
(f) Participation.--A member not physically present may
participate by teleconference or video conference.
(g) Quorum and voting.--The following shall apply:
(1) A majority of the members of the task force
participating in person, teleconference or video conference
shall constitute a quorum.
(2) Action of the task force must be authorized or
ratified by majority vote of the members of the task force.
(h) Meetings.--The following shall apply:
(1) The task force shall meet at least once a week.
Additional meetings may be called by the chairperson as
necessary. The chairperson shall schedule a meeting upon
written request of four members of the task force.
(2) The first meeting shall be convened within 10 days
of the effective date of this paragraph.
(3) The task force may take actions necessary to conform
to public gathering requirements ordered or recommended by
the Secretary of Health or the Centers for Disease Control.
(4) The task force shall permit the public to view or
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listen to an advisory committee meeting through
contemporaneous methods and make the recordings available on
the Department of Community and Economic Development's
publicly accessible Internet website.
(5) The task force or an advisory committee may hold
public hearings if necessary.
(i) Expenses.--Members shall not receive compensation but
shall be reimbursed for actual expenses incurred in service of
the task force.
(j) Support.--The Office of the Governor, the Senate, the
House of Representatives and the Administrative Offices of the
Pennsylvania Courts shall provide administrative services to the
task force or advisory committee .
(k) Applicability.--The following shall apply:
(1) (i) Except as provided under subparagraph (ii), the
act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the
Right-to-Know Law, shall apply to the task force.
(ii) Correspondence between a person and a member of
the task force and records accompanying the
correspondence submitted under section 2104-C(a)(3) shall
be exempt from access by a requester under the Right-to-
Know Law. This subparagraph shall not apply to
correspondence between a member and a principal or
lobbyist under 65 Pa.C.S. Ch. 13A (relating to lobbying).
(2) Except as provided under paragraph (3), the task
force shall be deemed an agency for the purposes of 65
Pa.C.S. Ch. 7 (relating to open meetings).
(3) Public notice of a meeting of the task force shall
be made by the by the chairperson no less than 24 hours prior
to a meeting.
(4) A member of the task force shall be deemed a public
official for the purpose of 65 Pa.C.S. Ch. 11 (relating to
ethics standards and financial disclosure). A statement
required to be filed by a member under 65 Pa.C.S. ยง 1104(a)
(relating to statement of financial interests required to be
filed) due to the individual's membership on the task force
shall be filed only with the State Ethics Commission.
(5) The task force shall be considered an independent
agency for the purposes of the act of October 15, 1980
(P.L.950, No.164), known as the Commonwealth Attorneys Act.
Section 2104-C. Functions of task force.
(a) Powers.--The task force shall have the following powers:
(1) To request periodic updates from each agency under
the Governor's jurisdiction, independent agencies, the
legislature and the unified judicial system on any actions
taken in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency.
(2) To appoint advisory committees under section 2103-
C(d).
(3) To receive communications from individuals,
businesses, nonprofit entities, local governments and any
other entity regarding issues under subsection (b)(2).
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(b) Duties.--The task force shall have the following duties:
(1) To monitor and track the response by the
Commonwealth to the COVID-19 public health emergency during
the time that the order remains active, including all actions
taken under the authority of the order.
(2) To identify issues of immediate public importance
relating to the COVID-19 public health emergency that require
executive, legislative or judicial action and to make
recommendations to the proper branch in a timely fashion.
(3) To develop and submit a recovery plan to the
Executive Branch, Legislative Branch and Judicial Branch of
the Commonwealth's government. A recovery plan shall include
a documented, structured approach that describes how the
Commonwealth and its political subdivisions can expeditiously
resume mission-critical functions, including the restoration
of housing, transportation, education and other public
services and economic activity to levels equal to or better
than their predisaster states through a series of short-term,
intermediate and long-term strategies and actions. The
recovery plan may be based in part or in whole on the Federal
Emergency Management Agency's resources for recovery planning
and managing recovery.
(4) To make a final report no later than six months
after the order is terminated by executive order,
proclamation or operation of law documenting all of the
following:
(i) Actions taken by executive agencies under the
order.
(ii) Legislative enactments made in response to the
COVID-19 public health emergency.
(iii) Judicial orders made in response to the COVID-
19 public health emergency.
(iv) A summary of actions undertaken by local
governments in response to the COVID-19 public health
emergency.
(v) A detailed summary of the actions taken by the
task force and each advisory committee established under
section 2103-C(d).
Section 2105-C. Appropriation.
The amount of $1,000 is appropriated from the General Fund to
the Department of Community and Economic Development for payment
of reasonable expenses under section 2103-C(i). The
appropriation under this section shall not lapse until the
expiration of this article under section 2106-C. Any amount of
the appropriation unexpended or uncommitted upon the expiration
under section 2106-C shall lapse.
Section 2106-C. Expiration.
This article shall expire six months after the order is
terminated by executive order, proclamation or operation of law.
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See A05186 in
the context
of HB2419