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House of Representatives
Session of 2019 - 2020 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted:	April 30, 2019 11:42 AM
From:	Representative P. Michael Sturla
To:	All House members
Subject:	PA State Police Municipal Police Services Support Act

Soon, I will be introducing the Pennsylvania State Police Municipal Police Services Support Act. This legislation provides for a reasonable per capita fee to be paid by municipalities receiving full-time Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) coverage. Roughly two-thirds of Pennsylvania municipalities rely on PSP for patrol services in lieu of a full-time local police force. And while the area covered by PSP encompasses 82 percent of the Commonwealth’s land mass, it includes only 26 percent of residents. Meanwhile, the remaining 74 percent of PA residents who pay local taxes to fund their full-time local police services are also paying state taxes and fees to support PSP, essentially subsidizing free police protection for municipalities that choose not to fund their own local patrols. During the 2017-2018 fiscal year, approximately $778 million from the Motor License Fund—money that is constitutionally restricted for transportation projects—was diverted to PSP’s operating budget, $677 million of which was spent to support patrol services in municipalities that do not have full-time local, regional, or contracted police forces. Excluding traffic stops, almost three-quarters of incidents responded to by PSP in 2018 occurred in municipalities with full-time PSP coverage. This legislation is part of the FY2019-2019 Governor’s Budget Proposal and would raise about $100 million, which represents only a small percentage of the amount of coverage that municipalities receive from PSP. Please join me in co-sponsoring this legislation.

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