Following is a listing of executive and legislative action from the week of July 29. Both houses of the General Assembly were in summer recess, with the state House of Representatives set to return to session Sept. 17 and the Pennsylvania Senate scheduled to reconvene Sept. 23.

Clean Energy

Wolf on Aug. 1 said he would direct $8.5 million in funds the Pennsylvania state government secured in a settlement with Volkswagen to 34 cleaner energy transportation projects across the state.

The settlement was reached to resolve litigation over Volkswagen’s cheating on emissions tests under federal law. Pennsylvania received $118 million in the 2018 settlement.

The grant and rebate program funded by the settlement money is part of the Driving PA Forward plan, according to a Wolf administration statement.

“The funding awarded from the VW emission cheating scandal is helping Pennsylvania reduce transportation pollution statewide and will help continue our efforts to improve air quality throughout the commonwealth,” Wolf said.

The largest single grant—$2 million—will be directed toward replacing diesel trash trucks and buses for use in southeastern Pennsylvania to vehicles fueled with cleaner-burning compressed natural gas.

Wind Power

Wind turbine projects would require voter approval under a proposal advanced by a northeastern Pennsylvania lawmaker.

State Rep. Doyle Heffley, R-Carbon, in a statement July 29 said his measure is an effort to provide residents with a voice in a wind turbine project in Carbon County.

House Bill 1734 would require the developer to get voter approval first through a ballot referendum. It was part of a package Heffley proposed in response to the Bethlehem

Authority’s plan to contract with a partner to construct 37 wind turbines on land it owns in Penn Forest Township.

The bill would apply to any proposed industrial wind development project in Pennsylvania.

“I believe the feedback and approval of residents is important to obtain before the start of a windmill project that can have a huge impact on their daily lives,” Heffley said.

Heffley also announced the introduction of measures calling on Auditor General Eugene DePasquale to conduct a review of the authority and its practices, and another bill requiring it to pay taxes on land it develops.

Lead Paint

Wolf on July 31 announced the state would be providing $4.3 million in funding for lead paint stabilization in Philadelphia school buildings.

With $7.6 million provided last year, the Wolf administration has invested $11.9 million for lead paint stabilization at the city’s schools over two years, according to a statement. The district has also provided $11 million and, since June 2018, will have completed lead paint stabilization projects at 32 elementary schools by the start of the school year.

“No parent should have to worry about the health risk of sending their child to school and no student should be at risk from lead paint,” said Wolf, who was joined by Pennsylvania lawmakers and officials of the Philadelphia school district. “The safety of our children should always be a priority and our schools must be healthy environments where students and teachers can focus on learning and building bright futures. Today’s announcement is another step in the work towards this goal, but it cannot and will not be the end. We must continue to fight for every child in Pennsylvania to be able to live, learn and play in buildings and spaces free from exposure to lead.”

Nearly 18,000 students will attend schools with lead safe environments and a new coat of paint in classrooms, auditoriums, cafeterias and gyms, the Wolf administration said in a statement.

Animal Welfare

The Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Association was part of a coalition of animal-welfare advocacy groups, including the Los Angeles-based Animal Wellness Foundation and Washington, D.C.-based group Animal Wellness Action, that secured unanimous bipartisan support from Pennsylvania’s delegation to the U.S. Congress for a measure that protects Tennessee Walking Horses from cruel practices aimed at modifying their gait.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act on a 333-96 vote, with all Pennsylvania representatives signing on as co-sponsors.

U.S. Sens. Bob Casey, D-Pennsylvania, and Pat Toomey, R-Pennsylvania, are cosponsors of the Senate companion bill.

Soring is the intentional infliction of pain to horses’ front limbs by applying caustic chemicals such as mustard oil or kerosene or inserting sharp objects into the horses’ hooves to create an exaggerated gait, according to backers of the bill.

“We applaud the Pennsylvania House delegation for voting to pass the PAST Act to end this barbaric and indefensible practice that has marred the horse show world for decades,” said Marty Irby, the executive director at Animal Wellness Action.

The PAST Act would ban the use of painful, large stacked shoes and ankle chains and would also eliminate the existing system of self-regulation by the industry and toughen penalties for violators of federal law.

“Horse soring is cruel, and we must strengthen existing law with tougher enforcement and bigger penalties to ensure it comes to an end,” said U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Pennsylvania.

“I am committed to fighting animal cruelty in all forms,” said Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pennsylvania. “The PAST Act would protect horses from undue pain and distress, and I am proud to endorse this important piece of legislation.”

The act was guaranteed a floor vote under House rules when it attracted more than 250 co-sponsors, including all 18 Pennsylvania members of the House.

Coal Ash

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection on July 31 announced a settlement with Talen Energy Corp. and the Environmental Integrity Project, a nonprofit that advocates for more effective enforcement of environmental laws.

In a consent decree, Talen Energy agreed to pay a civil penalty of $1 million, the largest coal ash penalty in Pennsylvania history, for violations of groundwater degradation and regulations of discharges into the Susquehanna River at Talen’s Brunner Island Steam Electric Station.

“We are confident that the work to be performed as spelled out in this consent decree will be for the betterment of all involved—the environment and area residents,” DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell said in a statement.

Talen Energy owns and operates the 1,490-Megawatt Brunner Island Steam Electric Station, a coal- and natural gas-fired electric generating facility located in York County. EIP represented a coalition of environmental advocacy groups.

Brunner Island’s operation generated residual wastes, including fly ash and bottom ash, byproducts resulting from the combustion of coal. Talen disposed of the residual waste in seven unlined waste impoundments and one lined landfill disposal area. Contaminants from those impoundments have been leaking into groundwater around the facility.

Talen has agreed to inspect, monitor and remediate any potential seeps from the impoundments and disposal area with the intention to improve groundwater conditions around the facility.

“We are pleased to have reached agreement and appreciate the hard work and collaborative efforts of PADEP, EIP and all stakeholders to resolve this matter. Talen is committed to complying with all environmental regulations and will continue to focus on the safe, efficient and reliable operation of our plants,” said Debra Raggio, Talen’s senior vice president regulatory and external affairs counsel, in a statement.

As part of the settlement, Brunner Island agreed to investigate and abate groundwater conditions in specific areas around certain ash basins, as well as committing to a shorter timeframe for the previously planned closure of the last operating ash basin on site.

“In this settlement, Talen is addressing inherited legacy issues at these ash basins as we continue efforts to reduce Brunner Island’s environmental footprint by utilizing natural gas and phasing out coal,” Raggio said. “We will continue to work proactively with PADEP to maintain compliance with our permits.”

The consent decree is subject to approval by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.