HARRISBURG -- The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 1325, legislation virtually identical to a House proposal known as "Erin's Law."

The bill would establish sanitation standards for petting zoos and require that incidents of E. coli infection be reported to the state Health Department. It was inspired by the personal crisis endured when Erin Jacobs, now 4, of Montgomery County, contracted the E. coli virus from a petting zoo in October 2000. Erin eventually required a kidney transplant, and the virus at that particular petting zoo -- transmitted by contact with cattle -- caused 56 illnesses and 19 hospitalizations.

SB 1325 is nearly identical to a Democratic House bill which received unanimous House approval, but languished when referred to the Republican-controlled Senate Agricultural and Rural Affairs Committee.

The Senate adopted a Democratic amendment moving the effective date up a year earlier than in the proposed bill. Another amendment which would have restored a preamble dedicating the bill to Erin Jacobs was defeated on party lines.

SB 1325 will be sent to the House.

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The Senate unanimously approved Senate Bill 1089, which would require all prison inmates convicted of felony sex offenses to submit a DNA sample for the state's sexual offender registry. Under current law, only sexual offenders convicted after the registry law was enacted in 1995 are required to submit a DNA sample. The bill now returns to the House for concurrence in Senate amendments.

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· The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 212, which would expand the statute of limitations from two years to twelve years after the 18th birthday of a person who is suing for damages as a result of childhood sexual abuse. The bill now goes to the House.

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By a unanimous vote, the Senate approved Senate Bill 1109, which would toughen penalties for making a bomb or "weapons of mass destruction" threat. Penalties vary based on how much disruption the threat causes. Making such a threat during a declared state of emergency would carry the most severe penalty (second-degree felony). The measure also makes it illegal to make or possess weapons of mass destruction, which include weapons such as germs, deadly chemicals and radioactive materials. The bill now returns to the House.

-- LEGISLATIVE NOTEBOOK--

· The Senate unanimously passed House Bill 1923, which would amend the Recorder of Deeds Fee Law to increase the fee charged for the recording of documents from $2 to $5 The bill will be returned to the House for concurrence in Senate amendments.

· The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 820, which makes it a first degree misdemeanor for a prison inmate or mental hospital resident to possess telecommunications equipment such as cell phones, beepers and computer modems without written permission from the warden/supervisor. The same penalty would apply to those who furnish prisoners with such equipment. The bill now returns to the House for concurrence in Senate amendments.

· The Senate this week voted 50-0 to approve amending Pennsylvania's law governing the State Board of Certified Real Estate Appraisers. Senate Bill 206 increases the number of members from seven to nine, and from two to three the number of public members. The measure also stipulates any violation of the Real Estate Certification Act is an automatic violation of the state's Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection laws. The bill has been forwarded to the House.