PRINTER'S NO. 1488

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

No.

1026

Session of

2020

INTRODUCED BY BAKER, VOGEL, BARTOLOTTA, MASTRIANO, J. WARD,

MENSCH AND STEFANO, JANUARY 31, 2020

REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT, JANUARY 31, 2020

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Section 2705 of the act of May 1, 1933 (P.L.103,

No.69), known as The Second Class Township Code, is amended to

read:

Section 2705. Fees.--(a) For the purposes of funding the

construction, maintenance and operation of storm water

management facilities, systems and management plans authorized

under this article, a township may assess reasonable and uniform

fees based in whole or in part on the characteristics of the

Control Act, for the construction, maintenance and operation of

storm water management facilities, systems and management plans,

as specified in 40 CFR 122.26 (relating to storm water

discharges (applicable to State NPDES programs, see § 123.25)).

In establishing the fees, the township shall consider and

provide appropriate exemptions or credits for properties which

have installed and are maintaining storm water facilities that

meet best management practices and are approved or inspected by

the township.

(b) Any fee levied by the township can be assessed in one of

the following methods:

or (b) or of any other act to the contrary, a township or

municipal authority responsible for regulation of storm water

management or administration of storm water management

infrastructure within the township shall not assess on any

agricultural property whose total area of impervious surface

does not exceed thirty percent of the property's total land area

a fee that is greater than twice the median assessment fee

imposed on all properties in the township.

(2) Within sixty days of the effective date of this

subsection and no later than September 30 of each year

the property's intended use will continue to be operated as

agricultural use for the current and subsequent calendar year.

No administrative fee shall be imposed on any notice filed under

this paragraph.

(3) No later than thirty days before the date in which the

agricultural property no longer qualifies for the limitation in

fee assessment provided in this subsection, the owner or

operator of agricultural property must file a written notice

with the levying agency.

(b.2) In addition to the requirement for limitation in

assessment of fee prescribed in subsection (b.1), a township or

of conservation measures performed in furtherance or

facilitation of a Total Maximum Daily Load that has been

developed pursuant to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act

(62 Stat 1155 33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq.). An owner or operator of

agricultural property claiming an additional reduction to the

fee imposed under subsection (b.1.) must, by September 30 of

each calendar year provide sufficient written documentation of

costs incurred or to be incurred for that year. Any additional

reduction in fee that the owner or operator is otherwise

entitled to receive under this section shall be applied to the

(b.3) For purposes of subsections (b.1) and (b.2),

"agricultural property" shall include all contiguous area of

real property operated by a person as part of "agricultural

use," as defined in section 2 of the act of December 19, 1974

(P.L.973, No.319), known as the "Pennsylvania Farmland and

Forest Land Assessment Act of 1974," regardless of whether the

area is comprised of more than one deeded tract.

(c) Any fee collected for the purposes of storm water

management may only be used for the purposes authorized by this

article

(d) The assessments shall be filed with the township

conflict with this amendatory act.

Section 3. This act shall apply retroactively to January 1,

2020.

Section 4. This act shall take effect immediately.