SENATE DEMOCRATIC WRAP-UP FOR THE WEEK OF
February 11, 2008

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            The Senate voted unanimously in favor of Senate Bill 1, the so-called “open records” legislation that will make all levels of government more open and accessible to the public.

This bill contains several technical and clarification-type amendments tacked on in the House.

Under the measure, which stands as the first substantive re-write of the state’s “Right-to- Know” law in 50 years, nearly all government records are presumed open, and agencies cannot deny access based on how the requester plans on using the information.  This applies to all state, local government, judicial and legislative agencies.

The measure requires that agencies accept informational requests made in person, by email, fax, or any other electronic means. 

All agencies must appoint an open-records officer.  For the General Assembly, the Legislative Reference Bureau will designate this person.  The open-records officer will be responsible for receiving, processing, and responding to requests in a timely manner and maintaining a record of the request. 

Agencies will appoint an appeals officer to handle any appeals of denied access to records. The bill also establishes a clearinghouse to provide information on the implementation and enforcement of this legislation; issue advisory opinions to agencies and requestors; provide training; employ hearing examiners for administrative appeals and establish a website to include advisory opinions and decisions. 

The measure contains limited exemptions to what must be released to the public. 

The open records legislation will complement substantive reforms the Senate embraced when it reconvened in January 2007. Those rule changes instituted restrictions on session hours (8 a.m. to 11 p.m.), waiting periods on passing bills and amendments and the requirement that additional legislative information be made available in a timely fashion on the Internet.

The governor signed the bill as Act 3 of 2008.

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The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 949, which would be the first major rewrite of the state’s “Bituminous Coal Mine Act” since 1961.

            Lawmakers said the legislation would prevent the kind of mining accidents that took place at Quecreek and Sago.

The measure would create a “Coal Mine Safety Board” to review and recommend new mine safety technologies, mandate emergency shelters in bituminous coal mines, require greater safety precautions, establish a more reliable mine mapping system, and institute tough new penalties against mining companies that fail to comply with the law.

The bill also incorporates key recommendations from the Governor’s Commission on Abandoned Mine Voids and Mine Safety, the Quecreek investigation team, and the Quecreek Grand Jury.

The bill is now in the House.

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The Senate passed Senate Bill 1027 by a 50-0 vote.  This bill would authorize the Department of Corrections to recommend to the sentencing court that an offender be re-sentenced to participate in the state intermediate punishment program if they were found to be eligible following evaluation.

            Currently the court can only commit the offender for evaluation on the motion of the prosecuting district attorney.

            The bill is now in the House.

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The Senate voted 49-1 in favor of House Bill 1691, which would exempt the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from liability for any damages that may occur during the dredging of the Delaware River.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would be free from liability of all damages arising from construction, operation and maintenance of the Delaware River Main Channel Deepening Project.  This does not include damages due to the error or negligence.

The bill now goes to the governor.

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The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 1172, which would prevent the governor from seizing, taking or confiscating lawfully possessed firearms or ammunition from citizens during a disaster emergency.

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