THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

INTRODUCED BY BROWNE, PILEGGI, ORIE, BAKER, FOLMER, EARLL, ERICKSON, BRUBAKER, TOMLINSON, VANCE, PIPPY, SMUCKER, WOZNIAK, ROBBINS, CORMAN, WAUGH AND GORDNER, MAY 27, 2009

REFERRED TO FINANCE, MAY 27, 2009  

AN ACT

Establishing the Legislative Fiscal Office and providing for its

powers and duties; and making a related repeal.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Short title.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the Legislative

Fiscal Office Act.

Section 2.  Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Baseline budget."  A draft budget using current dollar

values that projects current year levels of budget authority,

outlays and revenues and the deficit or surplus into the new

budget year and out years on the basis of current laws and

policies.

"Committee."  The Legislative Fiscal Office Selection

Committee.

"Commonwealth agency."  Any office, department, authority,

board, multistate agency or commission of the executive branch.

The term includes:

(1)  The Office of the Governor.

(2)  The Office of Attorney General, the Department of

the Auditor General and the Treasury Department.

(3)  An independent agency as defined in the act of

February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the Right-to-Know

Law.

(4)  A State-affiliated entity as defined in the act of

February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the Right-to-Know

Law.

(5)  The General Assembly.

(6)  The Judiciary.

"Director."  The director of the Legislative Fiscal Office.

"Office."  The Legislative Fiscal Office established in

section 3.

Section 3.  Office established.

There is hereby established a nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal

Office as an independent agency.

Section 4.  Duties of office.

The office shall:

(1)  Prepare revenue estimates to include Federal funds,

State revenues and funds from other resources, including any

projected revenue surplus or deficit for a given fiscal year,

as provided under section 5.

(2)  By January 1, provide a baseline budget that

includes levels of spending necessary to retain all current

programs and statutory requirements.

(3)  Provide an analysis of the executive budget,

including budgetary projections, economic outlook and

economic impact and an analysis of all related tax and

revenue proposals. The budget analysis may include

performance recommendations to secure greater efficiency and

economy.

(4)  Develop and use econometric models to annually

forecast State revenues and update the models. The office

shall make the equations of a model and any historic

databases related thereto available to the Appropriations

Committee of the Senate, the Appropriations Committee of the

House of Representatives, the Majority Leader and Minority

Leader of the Senate and the Majority Leader and Minority

Leader of the House of Representatives.

(5)  By November 15 of each year, provide an assessment

of the State's current fiscal condition and a projection of

what the fiscal condition will be during the next five years.

The assessment shall take into account the state of the

economy, demographics, revenues and expenditures.

(6)  Monitor State taxes and other receipts.

(7)  Develop performance measures for executive level

programs and departments and evaluate performance measures

and results as promulgated and reported by executive level

departments. Performance measurements shall be outcomes-based

and include, but not be limited to, activity cost analysis,

measures of status improvement of recipient populations,

economic outcomes and performance benchmarks against similar

State programs.

(8)  Establish an Internet website.

Section 5.  Revenue estimates.

(a)  Initial revenue estimate.--By the second week of

February, the office shall submit to the General Assembly an

initial revenue estimate for the next fiscal year.

(b)  Official revenue estimate.--

(1)  By June 15 of each year, the office shall submit to

the General Assembly an official final revenue estimate for

the next fiscal year.

(2)  The revenue estimate submitted under this section

shall establish the maximum amount of tax revenue which may

be considered for the General Appropriation Act for the

ensuing fiscal year. No changes in the revenue estimates

shall be made by the office thereafter unless changes in

statutes affecting revenues and receipts are enacted.

(3)  The office shall publish the methodology used to

develop revenue estimates.

(c)  Information.--The office shall provide the

Appropriations Committee of the Senate, the Appropriations

Committee of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of

the Budget all data, assumptions and econometric models used to

develop projections and revenue estimates.

(d)  Required information.--

(1)  A revenue estimate submitted by the office under

this subsection shall include all of the following:

(i)  An assessment of the Pennsylvania economy and

the national economy and the impact of the existing or

emerging State or national economic trends on revenue

performance for the current year and the forecasted or

projected revenue collections for the budget year and the

succeeding year.

(ii)  A summary of current year-to-date revenue

collections by specific tax or revenue source, including

Federal funds, the General Fund, the Lottery Fund and the

Motor License Fund and a detailed explanation of any

negative or positive variation from the prior year's

official revenue estimate, including the reasons or

events contributing to the variation.

(iii)  Any projected revenue surplus or deficit for

the current budget year.

(2)  A revenue estimate shall be based on existing

statutes and tax policy and existing or emerging State or

national economic trends.

(3)  The office shall prepare a revenue estimate of any

change in State tax law proposed as part of the annual State

budget. If the proposed change in State tax law will have a

fiscal impact in excess of $10,000,000 in any fiscal year,

the estimate shall be prepared on the basis of assumptions

that estimate the probable behavioral responses of taxpayers,

businesses and other persons to the proposed changes and

shall include a statement identifying those assumptions.

(e)  Department of Revenue.--The Department of Revenue in

conjunction with the Secretary of the Budget shall make revenue

estimates for the use of the Governor in preparing the budget.

(f)  Governor.--The Governor shall item veto any part of any

appropriation bill that causes total appropriations to exceed

the official revenue estimate under subsection (b) plus any

unappropriated surplus.

Section 6.  Budget information.

The office shall be notified and shall attend any briefings

provided by the Governor or the Secretary of the Budget under

section 619 of the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.177, No.175), known

as The Administrative Code of 1929.

Section 7.  Expenditures.

(a)  Expenditure reports.--Commonwealth agencies shall make

monthly expenditure data available to the office. The data shall

be provided within seven days after the end of each month. The

monthly data shall include a summary of the last monthly

submission. The data shall be provided in finished reports or

electronically, as determined by the office. The data shall be

provided by fund, by appropriation, by department and by

organization within each department and shall include:

(1)  Number of filled personnel positions and their cost.

(2)  Itemized personnel vacancies and their cost.

(3)  New positions created and their cost.

(4)  Wage and overtime costs.

(5)  Allotments and expenditures for itemized personnel

expenses.

(6)  Allotments and expenditures for itemized operating

expenses.

(7)  Allotment and expenditures for itemized fixed

assets.

(8)  The rate of expenditures in appropriations for major

subsidy and grant programs during the month.

(b)  Budget requests.--Commonwealth agencies shall submit

their agency budget requests to the office and the Office of the

Budget. The Commonwealth agency budget requests shall be

submitted to both offices at the same time.

(c)  Revenue reports.--The Governor shall make monthly

revenue reports to the office. The revenue reports shall show

the actual collection of revenue itemized by source and a

comparison of the actual collections with estimated collections

for each month. The comparison shall include an analysis of any

change in collection patterns which will cause a shortfall or

overrun on annual estimates of more than 1%.

(d)  Other revenue data.--Commonwealth agencies shall cause

to be prepared any other revenue data as may be requested from

time to time by the office.

(e)  Electronic access.--Except for information that is

confidential pursuant to statute, the office shall have access

to all information available under this section on inquiry-only

screens through an integrated central computer system.

Section 8.  Revenue conference.

By January 31 of each year, the office shall convene a

meeting with the Secretary of the Budget and the chairman and

minority chairman of the Appropriations Committee of the Senate

and the chairman and minority chairman of the Appropriations

Committee of the House of Representatives to discuss the

following:

(1)  An assessment of the Pennsylvania economy and the

national economy and the impact of the economic trends on

revenue performance for the budget year and the succeeding

year.

(2)  Recommended changes to revenue forecasting and

econometric models being considered by the office.

(3)  Current year-to-date revenue collections by specific

tax or revenue source, including Federal funds, the General

Fund, the Lottery Fund and the Motor License Fund and

variations that may be occurring in the revenue estimate

submitted under section 5(a).

(4)  Any statutory or tax policy changes that may be

recommended by the Governor or the General Assembly for the

next succeeding fiscal year.

Section 9.  Access to information.

(a)  Agencies.--The director is authorized to secure

information, data, expense information, estimates and statistics

directly from a Commonwealth agency or a political subdivision.

All Commonwealth agencies and political subdivisions shall

furnish the director with all reports of expenditure for each

agency and any other available material or data which the

director determines to be necessary in the performance of the

duties of the office, other than material the disclosure of

which would be a violation of law. The director is also

authorized, upon agreement with the head of any Commonwealth

agency or political subdivision, to utilize the services,

facilities and personnel of the agency with or without

reimbursement.

(b)  Office of the Budget.--In carrying out the duties and

functions of the office, the director is authorized to obtain

information, data, estimates and statistics developed by the

Office of the Budget and all Commonwealth agencies. The Governor

shall submit to the office copies of final agency budget

requests.

(c)  Computer database.--In order to carry out its duties

under this act, the office shall have access to any computerized

database of a State agency that is required to aid the office in

the performance of its duties, except that any statutory

requirements regarding privacy of individuals' records shall be

observed in providing access.

(d)  Daily revenue data.--

(1)  The Secretary of Revenue and the Secretary of the

Budget shall post revenue collection data for each deposit

day and make the information available to the office and the

chairman and minority chairman of the Appropriations

Committee of the Senate and the chairman and minority

chairman of the Appropriations Committee of the House of

Representatives.

(2)  The daily revenue data shall be presented in a

manner similar to and consistent with the daily revenue data

provided on June 30, 2007. In no case shall each deposit day

contain less information than was accessible during the

2006-2007 fiscal year as a result of changes in reporting

procedures, accounting systems or computer systems.

(3)  The Governor, the Attorney General, the Auditor

General and the State Treasurer shall cause to be prepared

any other revenue data as may be requested by the office.

(e)  Civil action.--If information is not made available by a

Commonwealth agency or political subdivision within a reasonable

time, the director may make a written request to the agency

head, stating the authority to receive the information. The

agency head shall have ten days to respond. If the information

is not provided within ten days of the receipt of the agency

response, the director may bring a civil action to require the

agency head to provide the information.

Section 10.  Director.

(a)  Selection committee.--There is hereby established a

committee to select the director of the office consisting of the

following:

(1)  The chairman and minority chairman of the

Appropriations Committee of the Senate and the chairman and

minority chairman of the Appropriations Committee of the

House of Representatives.

(2)  The Majority Leader and the Minority Leader of the

Senate and the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader of the

House of Representatives.

(3)  The President pro tempore of the Senate and the

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

(b)  Appointment.--The office shall be headed by a director

appointed by the selection committee under subsection (a). The

appointment shall be made without regard to political

affiliation and solely on the basis of fitness to perform the

duties of the office based on qualifications published by the

selection committee.

(c)  Deputy director.--The director shall appoint a deputy

director who shall perform such duties as assigned by the

director and who shall during the absence or incapacity of the

director or a vacancy act as the director.

(d)  Term.--The term of office of the director shall be four

years. An individual appointed as director to fill a vacancy

prior to the expiration of a term shall serve only for the

unexpired portion of that term. An individual serving as

director at the expiration of a term may continue to serve until

a successor is appointed.

(e)  Removal.--The director may be removed by a concurrent

resolution passed by the Senate and the House of

Representatives.

Section 11.  Powers and duties of director.

(a)  Personnel.--The director shall appoint and fix the

compensation of personnel as necessary to carry out the duties

and functions of the office. All personnel of the office shall

be appointed without regard to political affiliation and solely

on the basis of their fitness to perform their duties.

(b)  Experts and consultants.--In carrying out the duties and

functions of the office, the director may procure the temporary

or intermittent services of experts or consultants or

organization thereof by contract.

Section 12.  Repeal.

Section 618 of the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.177, No.175),

known as The Administrative Code of 1929, is repealed in order

to effectuate the provisions of this act.

Section 20.  Effective date.

This act shall take effect in 60 days.