PRINTER'S NO. 2331
No. 1801 Session of 1983
INTRODUCED BY ITKIN, GEIST, PISTELLA, CESSAR, SWEET, DeWEESE,
PRATT, TRELLO, SEMMEL, JAROLIN, SEVENTY, COLAFELLA, MORRIS,
OLASZ, PETRONE, WOZNIAK AND BURD, DECEMBER 13, 1983
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, DECEMBER 13, 1983
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of July 20, 1968 (P.L.550, No.217), entitled
2 "An act implementing the provisions of clause (4) of
3 subsection (a) of section 7 of Article VIII of the
4 Constitution of Pennsylvania authorizing and restricting the
5 incurring of certain debt; providing for a capital budget
6 bill; imposing duties upon the Governor, the Auditor General
7 and the State Treasurer; prescribing procedures for the
8 issuance, sale and payment of certain general obligation
9 bonds, the disposition of the proceeds therefrom, and the
10 funding of debt and refunding of bonds; exempting said bonds
11 from State and local taxation; creating certain funds; and
12 providing for certain appropriations," providing for the
13 estimated cost of repair and maintenance of capital projects.
14 The General Assembly hereby finds that various capital
15 projects which have been authorized over the years are
16 fundamental assets of the Commonwealth. Insufficient revenue,
17 inflation and competing needs have forced the Commonwealth to
18 often defer maintenance on these projects, and the resulting
19 damage has frequently inconvenienced the public, sometimes
20 threatened its safety, and led to higher repair costs over the
21 life of projects. It has been estimated that at least 25% of the
22 Commonwealth's bridges are in need of urgent repair or should be
23 replaced. It is further found that maintenance of the
1 Commonwealth's infrastructure is often based on the "breakdown
2 principle" with repairs made only when a facility ceases to
3 function or deterioration become intolerable. The General
4 Assembly, therefore, declares that a systematic procedure is
5 required to forecast needed maintenance and to provide for its
6 consideration in future budgets. The intent of this legislation
7 is not to mandate adherence to rigid maintenance schedules, but
8 rather to establish schedules in order to avoid the neglect of
9 the past, to assure public disclosure of any deferment of
10 scheduled maintenance, and to make public officials more
11 accountable for the maintenance and safety of the Commonwealth's
12 major assets.
13 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
14 hereby enacts as follows:
15 Section 1. The act of July 20, 1968 (P.L.550, No.217), known
16 as the Capital Facilities Debt Enabling Act, is amended by
17 adding a section to read:
18 Section 3.1. Estimated Cost of Repairs and Maintenance.--(a)
19 In preparing a capital budget, the chief executive officer of
20 every State department or agency proposing a capital project
21 costing in excess of five million dollars ($5,000,000) shall
22 supply to the Governor a schedule of the annual maintenance
23 requirements over the useful life of the project and the
24 estimated costs thereof.
25 (b) If the proposed capital project is accepted by the
26 Governor and an appropriation thereafter recommended by him, the
27 Governor shall also include a schedule of the annual maintenance
28 requirements over the useful life of the project and the
29 estimated costs thereof.
30 (c) Each schedule shall include a thorough explanation
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1 detailing the manner in which it was prepared and calculated and
2 any factors which may require a revision thereof in any
3 subsequent year. It shall also contain the certification of both
4 the chief executive officer of the State department or agency,
5 and a professional engineer licensed in this State, as may be
6 appropriate. In any case where, and at any time when, the chief
7 executive officer of the relevant State department or agency
8 recommends that for technical nonfiscal reasons the current
9 maintenance schedule should be modified, the Governor may amend
10 such schedule by filing the amended schedule together with the
11 reasons for the revisions involved with the Chairman of the
12 Appropriations Committee of the House and the Chairman of the
13 Appropriations Committee of the Senate for the use of such
14 committees and the General Assembly.
15 (d) In subsequent fiscal years for which the annual
16 maintenance schedule indicates that any maintenance will be
17 required, the chief executive officer of the appropriate State
18 agency shall either:
19 (1) include the scheduled maintenance for the project and
20 the costs therefor in any capital budget request of the
21 department or agency to the Governor; or
22 (2) include in the narrative justification included in such
23 budget request a statement indicating why funding for the
24 scheduled maintenance has been canceled or postponed to a date
25 certain. The Governor shall thereupon include the scheduled
26 maintenance appropriation for such project in the appropriate
27 capital budget bills submitted to the Legislature, or include in
28 his executive budget the reasons for the recommended
29 cancellation or postponement of such scheduled maintenance.
30 (e) Each State agency shall keep an up-to-date record, by
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1 years and cumulatively, on all maintenance completed, in
2 process, or scheduled for the future, on the projects covered in
3 this section.
4 (f) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, the
5 Governor shall also include the maintenance schedule for capital
6 projects costing in excess of five million dollars ($5,000,000)
7 which are under the jurisdiction of the Department of
8 Transportation.
9 (g) If a project which has not been recommended by the
10 Governor is included in an enacted capital bill, a schedule of
11 maintenance shall be prepared for such project in accordance
12 with this section before construction is initiated and,
13 thereafter, in subsequent fiscal years during which maintenance
14 will be required.
15 (h) The Governor shall also include maintenance schedules
16 for all capital projects undertaken and completed by a State
17 department or agency before the effective date of this section:
18 (1) provided that continued postponement of maintenance
19 would threaten the safety of the public or force an imminent
20 shutdown of a needed facility; or
21 (2) provided that the current market value of such project
22 is at least ten million dollars ($10,000,000), except for
23 projects which are under the jurisdiction of the Department of
24 Transportation, which shall be included in maintenance schedules
25 if maintenance is deemed necessary in accordance with priorities
26 established pursuant to 75 Pa.C.S. Ch.91 (relating to state
27 highway maintenance). Such maintenance schedules shall be
28 prepared and certified in accordance with subsection (c) and
29 carried out, for each succeeding fiscal year, in accordance with
30 subsection (d) and (e).
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1 (i) Any contract for new capital projects which costs more
2 than one million dollars ($1,000,000), and which involves
3 mechanical and electrical systems, shall require that a
4 comprehensive manual be supplied covering the operation and
5 maintenance of the entire system. Such a manual shall be
6 designed, using explanatory diagrams as needed, to cover both
7 day-to-day operations and emergencies so as to insure proper
8 care and thus to extend the life of the facility. This contract
9 provision may be waived whenever such a manual is already
10 available from a similar project, or is provided free by a
11 supplier and covers the maintenance needs of the entire system.
12 Section 2. This act shall apply to all capital budgets
13 introduced on and after January 1, 1985.
14 Section 3. (a) Section 3.1(h) shall take effect on January
15 1, in the second year following the effective date of this act.
16 (b) This act shall take effect immediate.y.
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