Regular Session 2019-2020 House Bill 2431 P.N. 3608

PRINTER'S NO. 3608

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

2431

Session of

2020

INTRODUCED BY GLEIM AND CUTLER, APRIL 24, 2020

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, APRIL 24, 2020

AN ACT

Amending the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.343, No.176), entitled

"An act relating to the finances of the State government;

providing for cancer control, prevention and research, for

ambulatory surgical center data collection, for the Joint

Underwriting Association, for entertainment business

financial management firms, for private dam financial

assurance and for reinstatement of item vetoes; providing for

the settlement, assessment, collection, and lien of taxes,

bonus, and all other accounts due the Commonwealth, the

collection and recovery of fees and other money or property

due or belonging to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

including escheated property and the proceeds of its sale,

the custody and disbursement or other disposition of funds

and securities belonging to or in the possession of the

Commonwealth, and the settlement of claims against the

Commonwealth, the resettlement of accounts and appeals to the

courts, refunds of moneys erroneously paid to the

Commonwealth, auditing the accounts of the Commonwealth and

all agencies thereof, of all public officers collecting

moneys payable to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

and all receipts of appropriations from the Commonwealth,

authorizing the Commonwealth to issue tax anticipation notes

to defray current expenses, implementing the provisions of

section 7(a) of Article VIII of the Constitution of

Pennsylvania authorizing and restricting the incurring of

certain debt and imposing penalties; affecting every

department, board, commission, and officer of the State

government, every political subdivision of the State, and

certain officers of such subdivisions, every person,

association, and corporation required to pay, assess, or

collect taxes, or to make returns or reports under the laws

imposing taxes for State purposes, or to pay license fees or

other moneys to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

every State depository and every debtor or creditor of the

Commonwealth," in emergency finance and tax provisions,

providing for local taxation on real property and for

reopening of 2019-2020 school district budgets.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. The act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.343, No.176), known

as The Fiscal Code, is amended by adding sections to read:

Section 104-A. Local taxation on real property.

(a) Scope.--This section provides for a temporary

prohibition on a school district increasing the rate of tax on

real property.

(b) Increase prohibited.--Notwithstanding any other

provision of law, the following apply:

(1) A board of school directors for a school district

that operates on a calendar year basis may not levy a tax on

real property for the benefit of the school district for the

calendar year beginning January 1, 2021, at a rate above the

rate of taxation on real property for the benefit of the

school district imposed for the calendar year beginning

January 1, 2020.

(2) A board of school directors for a school district

that operates on a fiscal year basis may not levy a tax on

real property for the benefit of the school district for the

fiscal year beginning July 1, 2020, at a rate above the rate

that was assessed on real property for the benefit of the

school district the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2019.

words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this

subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Board of school directors." The term includes the

following:

(1) A board of school directors of a school district of

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the first class A, second class, third class or fourth class.

(2) A city council of a city of the first class.

"School district." A school district of the first class,

first class A, second class, third class or fourth class.

Section 105-A. Reopening of 2019-2020 school district budgets.

(a) General rule.--Notwithstanding any other provision of

law, a board of school directors of a school district may reopen

its annual budget for the 2019-2020 school year to reflect

increases or decreases to budgeted expenditures for the 2019-

2020 school year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020,

the waiver of the minimum instructional day requirement under

section 1501.8(b)(1) of the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30,

No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949, or any action

taken by the Secretary of Education under section 1501.8(b)(2)

of the Public School Code of 1949.

(b) Report.-- No later than July 31, 2020, a school district

shall report to the department, on a form prescribed by the

department, any contract renegotiated by the school district

from March 1, 2020, through June 30, 2020, including the type of

contract and information related to the renegotiated terms,

except when disclosure is prohibited under Federal or State law.

No later than August 31, 2020, the department shall report the

information required under this subsection to the Education

Committee of the Senate and the Education Committee of the House

of Representatives.

words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this

subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Board of school directors." As defined under section 104-

A(c).

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"Department." The Department of Education of the

Commonwealth.

"School district." As defined under section 104-A(c).

Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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