PRINTER'S NO. 843
No. 143 Session of 2007
INTRODUCED BY FAIRCHILD, MARSICO, GEIST, ADOLPH, BAKER,
CALTAGIRONE, CAPPELLI, COX, CREIGHTON, EACHUS, J. EVANS,
EVERETT, GILLESPIE, GINGRICH, HARRIS, HERSHEY, HICKERNELL,
JAMES, M. KELLER, KILLION, KIRKLAND, MAJOR, METCALFE,
R. MILLER, NAILOR, O'NEILL, PAYNE, PEIFER, PHILLIPS, PICKETT,
REED, REICHLEY, ROHRER, RUBLEY, SAYLOR, SCAVELLO,
S. H. SMITH, SONNEY, STERN, R. STEVENSON, VEREB, WALKO AND
YOUNGBLOOD, MARCH 19, 2007
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS AND EMERGENCY
PREPAREDNESS, MARCH 19, 2007
A RESOLUTION
1 Directing certain standing committees of the House of
2 Representatives to investigate the roles and responsibilities
3 of the Department of Transportation, the Pennsylvania
4 Emergency Management Agency, the Pennsylvania State Police
5 and any other agency involved in disaster emergency response.
6 WHEREAS, Providing for public safety is a fundamental role of
7 government; and
8 WHEREAS, The Valentine's Day disaster emergency of 2007
9 exposed significant but, as yet, not completely documented or
10 understood deficiencies in the Commonwealth's emergency planning
11 and implementation; and
12 WHEREAS, It appears that this storm may also have exposed the
13 ultimate result of manpower and equipment shortages at the
14 Department of Transportation, at least; and
15 WHEREAS, These shortages may have been the predictable result
16 of conscious downsizing steps taken by the department and its
1 engineering districts; and
2 WHEREAS, There appears to be some question as to whether
3 there was one person physically present who would have been able
4 to take control of the storm response; and
5 WHEREAS, These questions involve not just departmental
6 priorities but fundamental public policy challenges which should
7 be addressed comprehensively by the administrative and
8 legislative branches; and
9 WHEREAS, These challenges involve basic lawmaking functions
10 of crafting and revising crucial statutes and funding programs
11 at appropriate levels; and
12 WHEREAS, The General Assembly and the Governor have
13 historically worked together to investigate and develop remedies
14 for prior widespread and significant emergencies; and
15 WHEREAS, In 1977 the House of Representatives established
16 bipartisan task forces and the Senate directed standing
17 committees to document the causes and effects of a weather and
18 energy emergency; and
19 WHEREAS, These investigations led to significant changes in
20 the Public School Code and the then-Civil Defense Law and
21 recommendations on energy alternatives; and
22 WHEREAS, During the 1985-1986 legislative session, the
23 General Assembly and the Governor developed a significant
24 legislative package to respond to tornadoes and flooding in
25 northwestern Pennsylvania; and
26 WHEREAS, During the 1995-1996 legislative session, a special
27 session called by the Governor and enthusiastically embraced by
28 the members of the General Assembly led to the passage of ten
29 statutes to address emergency management law, providing
30 financial assistance to individuals, the provision of general
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1 disaster relief funding and flood control, education and
2 mitigation; and
3 WHEREAS, Careful analysis and response are as important today
4 as they were in each of those last significant emergencies;
5 therefore be it
6 RESOLVED, That the Committee on Transportation is hereby
7 directed to hold hearings and other formal and informal
8 inquiries into the role and response of the Department of
9 Transportation to the Valentine's Day storm emergency; and be it
10 further
11 RESOLVED, That the Committee on Veterans Affairs and
12 Emergency Preparedness is hereby directed to hold hearings and
13 other formal and informal inquiries into the roles and responses
14 of the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, the Department
15 of Military Affairs and the Pennsylvania National Guard to the
16 Valentine's Day storm emergency; and be it further
17 RESOLVED, That the Committee on the Judiciary is hereby
18 directed to hold hearings and other formal and informal
19 inquiries into the roles and responses of the Pennsylvania State
20 Police and local police forces to the Valentine's Day storm
21 emergency; and be it further
22 RESOLVED, That each of these committees shall conduct
23 bipartisan inquiries into the areas assigned to each and that
24 the executive agencies involved in each committee's inquiry
25 shall cooperate with that inquiry completely; and be it further
26 RESOLVED, That each standing committee chairman or any of its
27 members shall have subpoena power to compel attendance and
28 testimony and that each shall further have the power to
29 administer oaths and affirmations to witnesses appearing before
30 each committee; and be it further
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1 RESOLVED, That the committees shall have 90 days from the
2 date of the adoption of this resolution to complete all hearings
3 and any other formal and informal inquiries and shall make
4 written reports of their findings and recommendations to the
5 House of Representatives at the first voting session day
6 following the expiration of the authority to hold hearings under
7 this resolution; and be it further
8 RESOLVED, That the Speaker of the House of Representatives
9 shall set aside a date thereafter for the committees to make
10 formal presentations of their findings and recommendations to
11 the members of the House of Representatives assembled in formal
12 voting session; and be it further
13 RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution shall be transmitted
14 to the Governor, the heads of the executive agencies named
15 herein and the chairs of the standing committees assigned tasks
16 under this resolution.
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