SENATE AMENDED
PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 2578, 2621 PRINTER'S NO. 3124
No. 1934 Session of 1985
INTRODUCED BY DeWEESE, KASUNIC, DALEY, F. E. TAYLOR, PIEVSKY,
PISTELLA, PETRONE, IRVIS, DOMBROWSKI, LANGTRY, KUKOVICH,
JOSEPHS, RYBAK, O'DONNELL, LLOYD, BELFANTI, TIGUE, MARKOSEK,
CAWLEY, D. R. WRIGHT, SALOOM, KOSINSKI, LESCOVITZ, ANGSTADT,
STABACK, DAWIDA, TRELLO, STAIRS, OLASZ, COWELL, MRKONIC,
BOOK, SWEET, LEVDANSKY, SHOWERS, FATTAH, BELARDI, MAIALE,
McVERRY, LASHINGER, TRUMAN, NOYE, FOX, ARTY, WOZNIAK, DUFFY,
ITKIN, BURD AND RICHARDSON, NOVEMBER 26, 1985
SENATOR TILGHMAN, APPROPRIATIONS, IN SENATE, AS AMENDED,
MARCH 18, 1986
AN ACT
1 Providing for grants to persons for property damaged or <--
2 destroyed by flood or tornadoes; establishing the basis for
3 the grants; providing further duties of the Department of
4 Public Welfare; providing a penalty; and making an
5 appropriation.
6 PROVIDING FOR A RADON GAS DEMONSTRATION PROJECT; PROVIDING <--
7 FURTHER DUTIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES;
8 AND MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.
9 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
10 hereby enacts as follows:
11 Section 1. Short title. <--
12 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Flood and
13 Tornadoes of 1985 Relief Act.
14 Section 2. Grants for loss due to flood or tornadoes.
15 (a) Grants.--Upon receipt and approval of a sworn
16 application by any person for nonbusiness or nonfarm personal
17 property damaged or destroyed by the floods or tornadoes of 1985
1 and of August 11-14, 1984, the Office of the Governor may make a
2 grant to cover a portion of the adjusted loss.
3 (b) Computation of total loss.--Total loss shall be computed
4 in accordance with standards applied by the Federal Government
5 pursuant to the Disaster Relief Act of 1974 (Public Law 93-288,
6 88 Stat. 143) for persons whose property was damaged by the
7 floods or tornadoes of 1985. The total loss shall not include
8 any preflood or pretornado indebtedness, business or farm
9 losses, nor any loss covered by insurance. The adjusted loss of
10 the applicant shall be the total loss less the amount received
11 by the applicant from the Department of Public Welfare pursuant
12 to the Disaster Relief Act of 1974.
13 (c) Amount of grant.--The amount of the grant shall be
14 determined in accordance with the following:
15 (1) For the first $5,000 of the adjusted loss, the grant
16 shall be 50% thereof.
17 (2) For the second $5,000 of the adjusted loss, the
18 grant shall be 30% thereof.
19 (3) For the third $5,000 of the adjusted loss, the grant
20 shall be 20% thereof.
21 (4) For the balance of the adjusted loss the grant shall
22 be 10% thereof, but the total grant shall not exceed $12,500.
23 Section 3. Eminent domain.
24 If real property was condemned under eminent domain
25 proceedings and where measure of damage is calculated under
26 section 602 of the act of June 22, 1964 (Sp.Sess., P.L.84,
27 No.6), known as the Eminent Domain Code, the owner shall not be
28 eligible for a grant provided in section 2 for any property for
29 which compensation is granted in the eminent domain proceedings.
30 Section 4. Administration by Department of Public Welfare.
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1 All grants under this act shall be administered by the
2 Department of Public Welfare. If sufficient funds are not
3 allocated herein, distribution of grants shall be on a pro rata
4 basis.
5 Section 5. Penalty.
6 Any person making a false claim under the provisions of this
7 act shall be subject to a penalty in the amount of three times
8 the amount of the grant with interest at the rate of 6% from the
9 date of the grant. Such a penalty may be enforced by the
10 Commonwealth in an assumpsit action and collected in the manner
11 that other debts due and owing the Commonwealth are collected.
12 Section 6. Appropriation.
13 The sum of $20,000,000, or as much thereof as may be
14 necessary, is hereby appropriated to the Department of Public
15 Welfare to provide for the grants in section 2.
16 Section 7. Effective date.
17 This act shall take effect immediately.
18 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. <--
19 THIS ACT SHALL BE KNOWN AND MAY BE CITED AS THE RADON GAS
20 DEMONSTRATION PROJECT OF 1986 ACT.
21 SECTION 2. RADON GAS DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.
22 (A) THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES SHALL HAVE THE
23 POWER AND ITS DUTY SHALL BE TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT, IN
24 COOPERATION WITH THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE
25 INDUSTRY, METHODS OF REMEDIAL ACTION TO REDUCE UNSAFE LEVELS OF
26 NATURALLY OCCURRING RADON GAS IN RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS. THE
27 DEPARTMENT MAY ENTER INTO CONTRACTS WITH BUILDERS, REMODELERS
28 AND OTHER PRIVATE CONTRACTORS TO ASSIST THE DEPARTMENT IN
29 DEVELOPING EXPERIMENTAL OR PROTOTYPIC SYSTEMS OF REMEDIAL
30 ACTION. SUCH SYSTEMS SHALL BE INSTALLED OR INCORPORATED INTO
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1 OCCUPIED RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS WITH THE PERMISSION OF THE
2 OWNERS. UPON COMPLETION, ANY AND ALL MATERIALS SO INCORPORATED
3 SHALL BECOME FIXTURES OF THE PROPERTY AND SHALL NOT BE REMOVED
4 WITHOUT THE CONSENT OF THE PROPERTY OWNER.
5 (B) THE DEPARTMENT SHALL ESTABLISH MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR
6 MATERIALS AND CRAFTSMANSHIP OF CONTRACTORS PARTICIPATING IN THIS
7 PROJECT. IN ADDITION, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL ADVISE HOMEOWNERS, IN
8 AREAS KNOWN TO BE AFFECTED BY HIGH RADON CONCENTRATIONS, OF WAYS
9 TO AVOID UNSCRUPULOUS OR UNQUALIFIED CONTRACTORS.
10 SECTION 3. APPROPRIATION.
11 THE SUM OF $1,000,000, OR AS MUCH THEREOF AS MAY BE
12 NECESSARY, IS HEREBY APPROPRIATED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF
13 ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES FOR THE DEMONSTRATION PROJECT AUTHORIZED
14 IN SECTION 2. ANY FUNDS REMAINING UNEXPENDED, UNENCUMBERED AND
15 UNCOMMITTED ON JUNE 30, 1987, SHALL LAPSE.
16 SECTION 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.
17 THIS ACT SHALL TAKE EFFECT IMMEDIATELY.
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