Following is a listing of executive and legislative action from the week of Dec. 4. The state House of Representatives returned to session Dec. 4. The Pennsylvania Senate was scheduled to come back to session Monday.

Firearms at Polling Places

State Reps. Mary Jo Daley, D-Montgomery, and Christopher M. Rabb, D-Philadelphia, announced plans to introduce legislation that would make it a third-degree misdemeanor to knowingly possess a firearm in a polling place, and a first-degree misdemeanor to use the firearm at a polling place in a commission of a crime.

“Last year's election was undoubtedly one of the most divisive in recent history,” the lawmakers wrote in a memo. “In fact, due to how contentious Election Day was gearing up to be, the Pennsylvania Department of State issued a memo to county election offices which listed the 'ostentatious showing of weapons' as a form of voter intimidation or discriminatory conduct. Unfortunately, our state laws do not reflect the concern of the Department of State, and can even be interpreted as counterproductive to voter safety. While voters can bring a handgun or rifle along to vote, law enforcement officers must stay at least 100 feet from the polling booth.”

Soda Tax

State Rep. Mark Mustio, R-Allegheny, announced his intention to introduce a
measure that would pre-empt local sweetened beverage taxes, including the Philadelphia soda tax.

“The imposition of this unfair tax is threatening those efforts in a very real way, with some grocery stores reporting as much as a 20 percent drop in overall revenue since its inception,” Mustio said. “To avoid the tax, supermarket customers are purchasing their food and beverages right over city borders. In the grocery industry, a revenue drop of this magnitude is very difficult to overcome. If the tax stays in place, it is not inconceivable that stores may begin to close, which would be a tragedy for people living in those neighborhoods.”

Pension Forfeiture

On Dec. 7, Gov. Tom Wolf urged the General Assembly to pass House Bill 939, which would require state, county or municipal government officials and public employees to forfeit their government pension and pay appropriate restitution when they plead guilty or no contest to any crime related to their official government position or any felony offense related to their office or employment. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Scott Petri, R-Bucks, also includes federal crimes that are classified as felonies or are punishable by a term of at least five years imprisonment.

“Providing pensions to those who have committed crimes related to their elected office is a betrayal of the public's trust,” Wolf said in a press release. “I am endorsing Rep. Petri's legislation that will strengthen Pennsylvania's pension forfeiture laws. We have taken important steps to reform our pension system but, as long as these loopholes exist, our pension system is vulnerable to malfeasance. Public officials should be held to the highest possible standard and we should expect more out of them and our government.”