PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 1848, 1864, 1946, PRINTER'S NO. 2039
2010
No. 1417 Session of 2000
INTRODUCED BY SLOCUM, WENGER, CORMAN, CONTI, WHITE, DENT,
HELFRICK, MURPHY, MADIGAN, BELL, PUNT, BRIGHTBILL, JUBELIRER,
LEMMOND, ROBBINS, THOMPSON, O'PAKE, MOWERY, GERLACH, HART,
BOSCOLA, RHOADES AND KASUNIC, APRIL 10, 2000
SENATE AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE AMENDMENTS, JUNE 12, 2000
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of December 13, 1999 (P.L.905, No.57), entitled
2 "An act providing for emergency drought relief, for
3 commercial orchard and fruit tree nursery indemnity, for
4 grants for flood damage and for powers and duties of the
5 Department of Agriculture; establishing the Supplemental
6 Individual Assistance Program; providing for payment of the
7 Commonwealth's share to secure individual assistance from the
8 Federal Government; and making appropriations," further
9 providing for drought relief and for appropriations.; <--
10 establishing the Small Disaster Assistance Fund; authorizing
11 the transfer of funds; and imposing duties on the
12 Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and the Legislative
13 Reference Bureau.
14 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
15 hereby enacts as follows:
16 Section 1. The title and section 302(c) SECTIONS 302(C) AND <--
17 5102(B) of the act of December 13, 1999 (P.L.905, No.57), known
18 as the Drought, Orchard and Nursery Indemnity and Flood Relief
19 Act, are amended to read:
20 AN ACT <--
21 Providing for emergency drought relief, for commercial orchard
22 and fruit tree nursery indemnity, for grants for flood damage
1 and for powers and duties of the Department of Agriculture;
2 establishing the Supplemental Individual Assistance Program;
3 providing for payment of the Commonwealth's share to secure
4 individual assistance from the Federal Government;
5 establishing the Small Disaster Assistance Fund; and making
6 appropriations.
7 Section 302. Drought relief.
8 * * *
9 (c) Grant criteria.--The department shall review
10 applications and award grants using [an eligible producer's
11 approved application for the Federal program or other
12 documentation from which Federal payment for eligible producers
13 will be calculated. Each eligible producer shall be eligible for
14 a grant under this chapter in an amount not to exceed 75% of the
15 grant received under the Federal program. If funds appropriated
16 under section 5102(a) are not sufficient to provide grants
17 prescribed under this chapter to all approved eligible
18 producers, grants shall be made to eligible producers] eligible
19 producers' approved applications for the Federal program from
20 which Federal payment for eligible producers is calculated.
21 Approved eligible producers shall qualify for grants under this
22 chapter in amounts which shall be determined on a pro rata basis
23 of the maximum sum appropriated under section 5102.
24 * * *
25 Section 2. The act is amended by adding a chapter to read: <--
26 CHAPTER 9
27 PENNCRISIS
28 Section 901. Legislative findings.
29 The General Assembly finds that many communities in this
30 Commonwealth frequently are subject to natural and manmade
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1 disasters which cause significant damage and disruption in the
2 life of the community but which are not of sufficient magnitude
3 to qualify for Federal disaster assistance programs.
4 Nevertheless, these losses are of considerable importance to
5 those directly affected and their communities and to the health
6 and welfare of the citizens of this Commonwealth's many small
7 communities.
8 Section 902. Definitions.
9 The following words and phrases when used in this chapter
10 shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
11 context clearly indicates otherwise:
12 "Agency." The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.
13 "Fund." The Small Disaster Assistance Fund created under
14 this chapter.
15 "Small disaster." An event which results in total uninsured
16 losses, for all individuals, businesses and municipalities, of
17 not more than $2,000,000; which occurred after June 30, 1999;
18 and which involves:
19 (1) damage exceeding 40% of the value of a structure and
20 contents of at least five homes or two businesses;
21 (2) loss of life; or
22 (3) total estimated damages of at least $250,000 to
23 public facilities.
24 Section 903. Small Disaster Assistance Fund.
25 (a) Fund created.--There is created within the PENNCrisis
26 program a Small Disaster Assistance Fund to assist the victims
27 of natural and manmade disasters with low-interest loans and
28 grants. Assistance shall not be available to a person that owns
29 property within a 100-year flood plain and that does not have
30 flood insurance. All loan repayments shall be placed in the fund
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1 to be used for the purposes of this act.
2 (b) Coordination and administration of fund.--All field and
3 other activities of the fund shall be coordinated by the agency,
4 including budgetary allocations from the PENNCrisis Fund to the
5 various objects of PENNCrisis and reports to the General
6 Assembly on program performance and needs. Final authority on
7 all individual requests for assistance from the fund shall rest
8 with the administering agencies. Program elements of the fund
9 shall be administered as follows:
10 (1) For residential housing needs, the Pennsylvania
11 Housing Finance Agency.
12 (2) For residential contents and vehicles, the
13 Department of Public Welfare.
14 (3) For business and municipal programs, the Department
15 of Community and Economic Development.
16 (c) Small disaster declarations.--A county emergency
17 management director may petition the agency for a declaration of
18 a small disaster. The agency's determination on the petition
19 shall be deemed a final order, subject to review under 2 Pa.C.S.
20 Ch. 7 Subch. A (relating to judicial review of Commonwealth
21 agency action).
22 Section 904. Low-interest loans to small disaster victims.
23 All loans shall bear interest for the entire term at a rate
24 no greater than the annual cost of living in the year in which
25 the loan is granted. Interest rates shall be reviewed by the
26 administering agency at the beginning of each fiscal year based
27 on guidance from the Office of the Budget and adjusted in
28 accordance with the prior year's cost of living. All loans shall
29 cover only that portion of loss not covered by insurance. Loans
30 to businesses and residential loans shall be extended to
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1 incorporate existing debt on the real property and contents.
2 Section 905. Business and municipal loans.
3 (a) Business loans.--
4 (1) Loans to businesses and municipalities shall be for
5 a term of no more than 15 years, except where the term is
6 extended by hardship suspensions of payments. Business loans
7 shall be secured by a mortgage on real property of the
8 business or other suitable collateral.
9 (2) Business loans may be used to repair or replace all
10 of the following when lost or seriously damaged due to a
11 small disaster:
12 (i) Fixed equipment.
13 (ii) Major moveable equipment.
14 (iii) Furnishings.
15 (iv) Real property.
16 (v) Leasehold improvements.
17 (vi) Inventory, if it can be shown that an insurance
18 policy at a reasonable premium in relation to value was
19 not available to replace the inventory.
20 (3) At the discretion of the Department of Community and
21 Economic Development, individual business loans may be
22 increased up to 150% of eligible repair or replacement costs
23 to assist in business retention and recovery. The sum of all
24 business loans may not exceed more than one-half of all funds
25 available for expenditure in the PENNCrisis fund in any
26 fiscal year.
27 (b) Municipal loans.--Municipal and county loans may be used
28 for repairing or replacing all of the following when lost or
29 seriously damaged due to a small disaster:
30 (1) Buildings.
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1 (2) Major equipment other than vehicles, plows, backhoes
2 and similar gasoline or diesel powered mobile machinery.
3 (3) Office machines.
4 (4) Streets.
5 (5) Water and sewer lines.
6 (6) Recreational facilities.
7 Section 906. Residential loans.
8 (a) General rule.--Residential loans may be made only for
9 the replacement or repair of the structure of a primary
10 residence and must be secured by a mortgage on the real property
11 that is the subject of the loan. Tenants who have been forced
12 from a primary rental residence by a small disaster are eligible
13 for loans to purchase a home approximately equivalent to their
14 prior residence in size but no smaller than 400 square feet per
15 individual of interior living space.
16 (b) Exception.--Repairs to landscaping, ponds, pools and
17 outbuildings are not eligible for PENNCrisis funding, except to
18 respond to serious hazards resulting from small disaster damage.
19 Section 907. Grants to small disaster victims.
20 (a) Residential loans.--Persons, including tenants, who have
21 lost clothing, furniture, appliances, furnaces, hot water
22 heaters or other contents of their primary residences as the
23 result of a small disaster shall be eligible for low-interest
24 loans not to exceed $7,500 per person in multiperson households
25 and not to exceed $15,000 in single person households. The total
26 amount per household shall not exceed $25,000. The interest rate
27 for such loans shall be the current cost of living in the year
28 of the event.
29 (b) Residential grants.--In the event that individual
30 financial circumstances indicate that a person incurring losses
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1 described in subsection (a) does not reasonably have the ability
2 to repay such additional indebtedness, the administering agency
3 may convert some or all of the amounts permitted by subsection
4 (a) to grants.
5 (c) Excess loans.--For documentable losses exceeding the
6 amounts specified in subsection (a), the administering agency
7 may make loans to individuals at an interest rate twice the
8 current cost of living.
9 (d) Contents limitations.--Loans and grants for contents
10 under this section shall not exceed one-third of estimated
11 market value of the residence prior to the small disaster.
12 (e) Exclusions.--Personal items eligible for residential
13 grants and loans shall not include jewelry or other luxury items
14 and sporting equipment.
15 Section 908. Small disaster mitigation loans and grants.
16 (a) General rule.--Municipalities affected by a small
17 disaster may apply for loans and grants to rectify conditions or
18 inadequate public facilities that led directly to the small
19 disaster or contributed substantially to its occurrence or the
20 inability of local officials to bring the damage under control.
21 Subjects of such assistance shall include, but are not limited
22 to, the following:
23 (1) Missing or inadequate storm sewers or other water
24 management structures, including work within stream channels.
25 (2) Inadequate fire hydrants or related water lines.
26 (3) Watershed plans.
27 (4) Engineering studies and designs necessary to effect
28 mitigation improvements.
29 (b) Limitation.--Small disaster mitigation assistance may be
30 used only for municipally owned or controlled improvements.
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1 Firefighting apparatus and other emergency services equipment
2 and vehicles, including trucks, tankers and other vehicles, are
3 not eligible for mitigation assistance.
4 (c) Chronic flooding.--The coordinating agency may consult
5 with the Department of Environmental Protection to identify
6 areas of chronic flooding that result in frequent damage to
7 communities but which do not rise to the level of a small
8 disaster. The coordinating agency, in conjunction with the
9 Department of Environmental Protection, may use up to 25% of the
10 PENNCrisis Fund annual revenue, exclusive of carryover reserves,
11 to provide grants and loans to municipalities to correct such
12 conditions. Assistance shall follow the formula set forth in
13 subsection (e).
14 (d) Hazard mitigation.--Hazard mitigation loans and grants
15 shall be subject to the following:
16 (1) Grants for hazard mitigation work shall be no more
17 than $5,000,000 per event.
18 (2) Low-interest loans shall be available for the
19 balance of project work not covered by a mitigation grant.
20 (3) Hazard mitigation loans shall bear interest at a
21 rate fixed at the current year's cost of living and shall be
22 for a term of 20 years.
23 (e) Formula.--Grants and loans shall be awarded on the
24 following formula:
25 (1) Municipalities with median per capita personal
26 income greater than 20% above the State median per capita
27 personal income for the preceding year shall be eligible for
28 a mitigation grant of 50% of total project costs.
29 (2) Municipalities with median per capita personal
30 income of between 20% less than and 20% greater than the
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1 State median per capita personal income for the preceding
2 year shall be eligible for a mitigation grant of 60% of total
3 project cost.
4 (3) Municipalities with median per capita personal
5 income more than 20% less than the State median per capita
6 personal income for the preceding year shall be eligible for
7 a mitigation grant of 70% of total project cost.
8 Section 909. The PENNCrisis Fund.
9 There is established under the jurisdiction of the agency a
10 fund to be called the PENNCrisis Fund.
11 (1) Beginning with surplus revenues received during the
12 1999-2000 fiscal year, revenue for the PENNCrisis Fund shall
13 be generated by reserving the greater of 5% or $10,000,000 of
14 each year's surplus revenues to the Commonwealth generated by
15 all taxes and fees deposited into the General Fund.
16 (2) In a fiscal year, the balance of the PENNCrisis Fund
17 shall not exceed $100,000,000; and the sum available for
18 expenditure shall not exceed $50,000,000.
19 (3) Revenue shall be placed into a dedicated fund
20 reserved for the programs authorized under the PENN Crisis
21 Fund. Deposits into the fund shall not lapse but be carried
22 forward from year to year. Up to one-half of funds on reserve
23 and to be earned by the end of any fiscal year may be used to
24 pay the Commonwealth's matching share for any major disaster
25 declared eligible for Federal assistance by the President of
26 the United States. The need for Federal matching funds for
27 any specific major disaster event may not encumber PENNCrisis
28 revenues in years beyond the year of the major event.
29 Section 910. Training, administration and operations.
30 (a) Specialized staff.--The agency and each administering
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1 agency under section 903 shall recruit, train and develop staff
2 specializing in small disaster assistance in their respective
3 program areas. The staff sections shall be deployed by each
4 administering agency in response to a declared small disaster,
5 as directed by the agency. These personnel shall also be
6 available to the agency at the direction of the Governor to
7 respond to any major disaster in this Commonwealth.
8 (b) Funding for staff.--The agency and each administering
9 agency shall receive $1,000,000 annually, or as much thereof as
10 is necessary, from the PENNCrisis Fund to create a permanently
11 staffed small disaster response team. When each agency's small
12 disaster response team is deployed on assignment, the
13 coordinating agency shall reimburse the agency from the
14 PENNCrisis Fund for standard and necessary travel and living
15 costs for each team deployed to the small disaster. Expenditures
16 under this category shall not exceed 10% of the revenue received
17 by the PENNCrisis Fund in a fiscal year.
18 (c) Authority to approve expenditures.--In response to any
19 small disaster, the agency shall have final authority to approve
20 expenditures of PENNCrisis funds for any additional purposes it
21 deems necessary to small disaster recovery unless the uses are
22 specifically prohibited by this chapter.
23 Section 911. Insurance coverage.
24 All loan recipients shall maintain adequate property
25 insurance coverage for the full value of the subject property
26 for the term of the disaster assistance loan and shall include
27 flood insurance coverage if the property is located within a
28 100-year flood plain.
29 Section 3. Section 5102 of the act is amended to read:
30 Section 5102. Appropriations.
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1 (a) Drought relief.--The sum of $60,000,000, or as much
2 thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the
3 Department of Agriculture to carry out the provisions of Chapter
4 3. Any funds not needed for the purposes of Chapter 3 shall
5 lapse to the General Fund on December 31, 2000.
6 SECTION 5102. APPROPRIATIONS. <--
7 * * *
8 (b) Crop insurance.--The sum of $5,600,000, or as much as
9 may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the Department of
10 Agriculture to provide payment for crop insurance [under the
11 USDA-FSA 1999 Crop Disaster Program] in an amount up to 10% of
12 the cost of the insurance premiums and the total amount of all
13 related fees for [eligible] producers[, as defined in Chapter
14 3,] of agricultural commodities during calendar years 2000 and
15 2001. If sufficient funds are not available to provide for up to
16 10% of the cost of the insurance premiums and the total amount
17 of all related fees, the Department of Agriculture shall prorate
18 the available funds among all the [eligible] producers of
19 agricultural commodities who applied. Any unused funds shall
20 lapse into the General Fund on June 30, 2001.
21 * * * <--
22 (c) Orchard and nursery indemnity.--The sum of $2,000,000, <--
23 or as much thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated
24 to the Department of Agriculture to carry out the provisions of
25 Chapter 5. Any funds not needed for the purposes of Chapter 5
26 shall lapse to the General Fund on June 30, 2001.
27 (d) Public assistance and hazard mitigation.--The sum of
28 $10,000,000, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is hereby
29 appropriated to the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency for
30 the match required for Federal disaster funds for the August and
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1 September 1999 disasters for public assistance and hazard
2 mitigation to be allocated by the Office of the Budget among
3 these disasters and programs. This appropriation shall be a
4 continuing appropriation.
5 (e) Supplemental Individual Assistance Program.--The sum of
6 $5,000,000 is hereby appropriated from the General Fund for
7 allocation by the Governor for payment of the Commonwealth's
8 share necessary to secure individual and family assistance from
9 the Federal Government under the provisions of The Robert T.
10 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Public
11 Law 93-288, 88 Stat. 143) and for payment of Supplemental
12 Individual Assistance Program grants authorized pursuant to
13 Chapter 7. This subsection shall be construed in a manner which
14 secures the maximum available Federal funding for individual and
15 family assistance. Any unused funds not needed for purposes of
16 this appropriation shall lapse to the General Fund on June 30,
17 2000.
18 (f) Other Federal funding.--Nothing in this act shall
19 supplant or replace any funds otherwise available from the
20 Federal Government.
21 (g) PENNCrisis.--The sum of $10,000,000, or as much thereof
22 as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the Small
23 Disaster Assistance Fund for the fiscal year July 1, 2000, to
24 June 30, 2001, to carry out the provisions of Chapter 9.
25 Section 4. When the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency
26 determines that Federal legislation is in effect to prohibit the
27 Federal Emergency Management Agency from considering the
28 existence of state small disaster funds in the recommendation of
29 a presidential declaration of a major disaster, the Pennsylvania
30 Emergency Management Agency shall transmit to the Legislative
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1 Reference Bureau a notice of the determination for publication
2 in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
3 Section 5. Until publication of the notice under section 4
4 of this act, the Governor is authorized to transfer, under 35
5 Pa.C.S. § 7307, up to $10,000,000, for loans and grants in
6 accordance with sections 904 through 908 of the act. This
7 section constitutes action by the General Assembly under 35
8 Pa.C.S. § 7307 to permit exceeding the figure set forth in 35
9 Pa.C.S. § 7307. This section shall expire June 30, 2001.
10 Section 6. This act shall take effect as follows:
11 (1) The following provisions shall take effect July 1,
12 2000, or immediately, whichever is later:
13 (i) The addition of sections 901, 902, 904, 905,
14 906, 907, 908 and 911 of the act.
15 (ii) Section 5 of this act.
16 (2) The following provisions shall take effect upon
17 publication of the notice under section 4 of this act:
18 (i) The amendment of the title of the act.
19 (ii) The addition of sections 903, 909 and 910 of
20 the act.
21 (iii) The addition of section 5102(g) of the act.
22 (3) The remainder of this act shall take effect
23 immediately.
24 SECTION 2. THIS ACT SHALL TAKE EFFECT IMMEDIATELY. <--
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