What Can We Expect For The Environment Next Legislative Session?

With the increase in the Republican majorities in both the Senate and House, in particular more conservative members, we can expect to see the reintroduction and consideration of several environmental bills from last session, including the bills to eliminate certain protections for endangered species, create an unaffordable scheme to fund unsustainable nutrient reduction technology, legislation to rollback the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards and a bill to focus more attention on developing the state’s oil industry.

Of course the priorities and dynamics will be a little different with Democrat Tom Wolf in the Governor’s Office.  

Wolf promised to introduce a natural gas severance tax, expand the use of clean energy, accelerate investment in energy efficiency retrofits, take “responsible action” on climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and set green building standards for state buildings.  Click Here for more background.

Committee Chairs

The Chairs of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee are likely to remain the same-- Sen. Gene Yaw (R-Lycoming) as Majority Chair and Sen. John Yudichak (D-Luzerne) as Minority Chair.

There will be a new Majority Chair of the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee with the retirement of Rep. Ron Miller (R-York).  Rep. Greg Vitali (D-Delaware) is expected to remain Minority Chair.

Republican Bills To Be Reintroduced

The conservative Republican bills expected to be reintroduced include --

-- Eliminating Protections For Endangered Species: Senate Bill 1047 (Scarnati-R- Jefferson) and House Bill 1576 (Pyle-R-Armstrong) that would eliminate some protections for endangered species and set additional requirements for adopting Wild Trout Streams.  The House Bill died on the House Calendar.  The Senate Bill remained in the Senate Game and Fisheries Committee.  Click Here for background on the bill.

-- Nutrient Reduction Watershed Scheme: Senate Bill 994 (Vogel-R-Beaver) would construct an unaffordable scheme to fund one technology that claims to reduce nutrients from manure. The bill died on the Senate Tabled Calendar.  Click Here for background on the bill.

-- PA Grade Crude Development Advisory Council: Senate Bill 1310 (Hutchinson-R- Venango) creating the PA Grade Crude Development Advisory Council within DEP died in the House State Government Committee.  Sponsor summary.

-- Rollback Of Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards: House Bill 1912 (Sankey-R- Clearfield) which would repeal the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards adopted in 2004 that requires electric companies to obtain 15 percent of their power from renewable sources by 2023.  Sponsor summary.

Natural Gas Severance Tax

With a natural gas severance tax high on the agenda of Gov.-Elect Wolf, proposals introduced in the past may serve as a model for the future.  They include--

-- Senate Bill 1370, introduced by now Lt. Gov.-Elect Michael Stack, is a comprehensive package making changes to the Marcellus Shale regulatory program as well as imposing a 5 percent severance tax.  Sponsor summary.

-- Senate Bill 1333 (Hughes-D-Philadelphia, Yudichak-D-Luzerne) would enact a 5 percent severance tax on natural gas production with the proceeds going to fund education, environmental and economic development.  Click Here for more background.

-- Senate Bill 1349 (Erickson-R-Delaware) imposing a four percent severance tax on natural gas production and devotes all of the revenue it generates to funding basic education.  Click Here for more background.

-- Senate Bill 1359 (Ferlo-D-Allegheny) the most comprehensive proposal to fund environmental and other conservation programs using a new severance tax on natural gas production.  Click Here for more background.

-- House Bill 2358 (DiGirolamo-R-Bucks) providing for the imposition of a 4.9 percent natural gas severance tax to replace the drilling impact fees.  Click Here for more background.

Legislation Likely To Be Reintroduced

Other legislation that didn’t make it through both the Senate and House will also likely be introduced--

-- Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards: House Bill 100 (Vitali-D-Delaware) would increase the solar mandate in the AEPS and make other changes.  Click Here for a sponsor summary.

-- Green State Buildings: House Bill 34 (Harper-R-Montgomery) [sponsor summary] and Senate Bill 1061 (Rafferty-R-Montgomery) [sponsor summary] setting green building standards for state owned or leased buildings both died in the Senate.

-- Backup Generators: House Bill 1699 (Ross-R-Chester) setting air quality standards for backup generators died in the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.  Click Here for House summary.

-- Shale Gas Health Advisory Panel: Senate Bill 555 (Scarnati-R-Jefferson) establish a Health Advisory Panel on Shale Gas Extraction and Natural Gas Use.  Sponsor summary.

-- Leasing DCNR Land For Alternative Energy Development: Senate Bill 684 (Wozniak-D- Cambria) further providing for the leasing of DCNR lands for wind, solar and other energy projects died in the Senate Appropriations Committee.  Sponsor summary.

-- Leasing State Lands For Mineral Development: Senate Bill 1443 (White-R-Indiana) amending the Indigenous Mineral Resources Development Act to authorized state agencies (other than DCNR) to release mineral rights whether they owned the surface rights or not died in the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.

-- Natural Gas Royalties: Several bills dealing with natural gas royalty issues are also expected to be reintroduced--

-- House Bill 1684 (Everett-R-Lycoming) which seeks to clarify a minimum royalty payment in state law died on the House Calendar for action.  Click Here for more background.

-- Senate Bill 1236 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) would expand upon the Oil and Gas Lease Act by allowing royalty interest owners the opportunity to inspect records of natural gas companies to verify proper payments.  In addition, the bill requires all royalty payments be made within 60 days of production unless otherwise stated in the contract.  Any delinquent payments are to be paid with interest.  The bill died in the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.  Sponsor summary.

-- Senate Bill 1237 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) would prohibit a gas company from retaliating against any royalty interest owner by terminating their lease agreement or ceasing development on leased property because a royalty interest owner questions the accuracy of current royalty payments.  Companies found to have violated the provisions of this act face civil penalties of up to $1,000 per day. The bill died in the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee. Sponsor summary.

-- Senate Bill 1238 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) would require a gas company to record a surrender document in the county Recorder of Deeds office where the oil and gas well is located within 30 days upon expiration, termination, or forfeiture of an oil and gas lease. The surrender document will release the gas company’s interests in the oil and gas. This is similar to what a mortgage company would be required to do after a mortgage was paid in full.  The bill died in the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.  Sponsor summary.

-- Sewer/Water P2 Partnerships: House Bill 2239 (Evankovich-R-Armstrong) authorizing public-private partnerships for sewer, water, school district projects died on the House Tabled Calendar.  Sponsor summary.

-- Drinking Water Well Standards: Less certain is whether the legislation to set drinking water well standards will be reintroduced.  House Bill 343 (Miller-R-York) and another version of the legislation-- Senate Bill 1461(Vance-R-Cumberland)-- both died in the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.  Click Here for more background.

Other Stuff

As a result of the House adoption of House Resolution 925 (Rapp-R-Forest) in September, the Joint State Government Commission will be conducting a year-long study of the environmental impact of wind turbines, as compared to coal, natural gas, oil and nuclear power, in Pennsylvania, in particular on migratory birds and of forest removal.

The factors to be analyzed include—

-- Number of wind turbines operating in Pennsylvania and their owners;

-- Agencies that oversee the operation of wind turbines;

-- Sources and amounts of subsidies for wind turbines;

-- Wind turbines’ imprint acreage and effects on wildlife; and

-- Wind turbines impact on the electric grid.