PRINTER'S NO. 1303
No. 1146 Session of 1997
INTRODUCED BY VAN HORNE, BELARDI, MASLAND, WAUGH, KREBS,
TRAVAGLIO, VEON, JOSEPHS, READSHAW, CARONE, CASORIO AND
MELIO, APRIL 3, 1997
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, APRIL 3, 1997
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of May 21, 1937 (P.L.774, No.211), entitled "An
2 act to facilitate vehicular traffic between the eastern and
3 western sections of the Commonwealth by providing for the
4 construction, operation and maintenance of a turnpike from a
5 point at or near Middlesex in Cumberland County to a point at
6 or near Irwin in Westmoreland County; providing for the
7 creation of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, and
8 conferring powers and imposing duties on said commission;
9 authorizing the issuance of turnpike revenue bonds of the
10 Commonwealth, payable solely from tolls, to pay the cost of
11 such turnpike; providing that no debt of the Commonwealth
12 shall be incurred in the exercise of any of the powers
13 granted by this act; providing for the collection of tolls
14 for the payment of such bonds and for the cost of
15 maintenance, operation and repair of the turnpike; making
16 such bonds exempt from taxation; constituting such bonds
17 legal investments in certain instances; prescribing
18 conditions upon which such turnpike shall become free;
19 providing for condemnation; granting certain powers and
20 authority to municipal subdivisions and agencies of the
21 Commonwealth to cooperate with the commission; and
22 authorizing the issuance of turnpike revenue refunding
23 bonds," requiring the commission to submit annual reports to
24 the Governor and General Assembly.
25 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
26 hereby enacts as follows:
27 Section 1. Section 4 of the act of May 21, 1937 (P.L.774,
28 No.211), referred to as the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission
1 Act, amended July 3, 1974 (P.L.444, No.154), is amended to read:
2 Section 4. (a) That there is hereby created a commission to
3 be known as the "Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission" and by that
4 name the commission may sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded,
5 contract and be contracted with, and have an official seal. The
6 commission is hereby constituted an instrumentality of the
7 Commonwealth, and the exercise by the commission of the powers
8 conferred by this act in the construction, operation and
9 maintenance of the turnpike shall be deemed and held to be an
10 essential governmental function of the Commonwealth. The
11 commission shall consist of five members, and the Secretary of
12 Transportation shall be a member ex officio. The Secretary of
13 Transportation may authorize the Deputy Secretary for Highway
14 Administration to act in his place, including the power to vote
15 on any issue. The four remaining members shall be appointed by
16 the Governor by and with the advice and consent of two-thirds of
17 the members of the Senate, and shall be residents of the
18 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania at the time of their appointment
19 and qualification, and shall also at such time have been
20 qualified electors therein for a period of at least one year
21 next preceding their appointment. The appointed members of the
22 commission shall continue in office for terms of four, six,
23 eight and ten years, respectively, from the dates of their
24 appointment and until their respective successors shall be duly
25 appointed and qualified, the term of each appointed member to be
26 designated by the Governor at the time of his appointment; but
27 their successors shall each be appointed for a term of ten
28 years, except that any person appointed to fill a vacancy shall
29 serve only for the unexpired term, and any member of the
30 commission shall be eligible for reappointment. Immediately
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1 after such appointments, the members of the commission shall
2 enter upon their duties. Each appointed member of the commission
3 before entering upon his duties shall take the oath prescribed
4 by Article VIII of the Constitution of the Commonwealth. The
5 commission shall elect one of the appointed members as chairman
6 of the commission, and shall also elect a secretary and
7 treasurer who may not be a member of the commission. Three
8 members of the commission shall constitute a quorum who, for all
9 purposes, must act unanimously. No vacancy in the commission
10 shall impair the right of a quorum of the commissioners to
11 exercise all the rights and perform all the duties of the
12 commission. Before the issuance of any turnpike revenue bonds
13 under the provisions of this act, each appointed member of the
14 commission shall execute a bond in the penalty of $25,000, and
15 the secretary and treasurer shall execute a bond in the penalty
16 of $50,000 each, such bond to be approved by the Governor and to
17 be conditioned upon the faithful performance of the duties of
18 his office which bonds shall be filed in the office of the
19 Secretary of the Commonwealth. The commission shall make
20 necessary rules and regulations for its own government and shall
21 have power and authority to acquire, own, use, hire, lease,
22 operate and dispose of personal property, real property and
23 interests in real property, and to make and enter into all
24 contracts and agreements necessary or incidental to the
25 performance of its duties and the execution of its powers under
26 this act, and to employ engineering, traffic, architectural and
27 construction experts and inspectors and attorneys, and such
28 other employes as may be necessary in its judgment, and fix
29 their compensation: Provided, however, That all contracts and
30 agreements relating to the construction of the turnpike and
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1 connecting tunnels and bridges shall be approved by the
2 Department of Transportation, and the turnpike and connecting
3 tunnels and bridges shall be constructed under the supervision
4 of the Department of Transportation. Each appointed member of
5 the commission shall receive an annual salary as shall be
6 provided by law and each member of the commission shall be
7 reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred in the performance of
8 his duties. All such compensation and salaries and all expenses
9 incurred in carrying out the provisions of this act shall be
10 paid solely from funds provided under the authority of this act,
11 and no liability or obligation shall be incurred hereunder
12 beyond the extent to which money shall have been provided under
13 the authority of this act. All public or private property
14 damaged or destroyed in carrying out the powers granted by this
15 act shall be restored or repaired and placed in their original
16 condition as nearly as practicable, or adequate compensation
17 made therefor out of funds provided under the authority of this
18 act.
19 (b) The commission shall annually transmit to the Governor
20 and the General Assembly, and shall make available to the
21 public, a report on the conduct of the commission. The report
22 shall include, but shall not be limited to, a summary of
23 significant issues which the commission resolved during the
24 reporting period, a summary of significant decisions of the
25 commission and the courts of the Commonwealth during the
26 reporting period relating to the turnpike, a summary of
27 significant anticipated issues and a status report of any
28 commission action regarding these issues. In the annual report
29 and at such other times as the commission determines, the
30 commission shall make recommendations to the Governor and the
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1 General Assembly which the commission believes to be necessary
2 or desirable to protect the public interest.
3 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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