Pennsylvania State Capitol. Photo: Zack Frank/Shutterstock.com

Following is a listing of executive and legislative action for the week of Nov. 11. Both houses of the General Assembly were in recess at press time. Members of the Pennsylvania Senate and state House of Representatives were scheduled to return to session Monday.

Climate Change

Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale on Nov. 13 had harsh criticism for the state government's approach to climate change, calling it unfocused and reactive, and said a more proactive mindset is needed to protect lives and avoid long-term costs to taxpayers and damage to the economy.

In a special report, the auditor general's office observed that severe weather is already costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars a year and that state government needs to do more to mitigate future impacts.

"My team and I documented at least $261 million in climate-related costs to Pennsylvania in 2018 alone in this report," DePasquale said. "Half of that amount, $125.7 million, was in infrastructure damage statewide caused by record-breaking floods and landslides."

DePasquale's team reached three major conclusions:

• Local and state leaders are struggling to plan for extreme weather and other climate change impacts because of a lack of coordination and inadequate resources.
• Pennsylvania is not prepared for the severe impacts of climate change, and taking a solely reactive approach will lead to millions of dollars spent on recovery and remediation.
• Pennsylvania must join other states in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, especially carbon dioxide and methane, in the electricity, transportation, industrial and agricultural sectors.

The special report included nine recommendations, including funding increases for state agencies involved in planning for and reacting to severe weather and other climate change effects; a shift to proactive planning at all levels by improving outreach and education support to local governments and updating the state water and land use plans, and the creation of a "resiliency fund" that state agencies could draw on to pay for natural disaster cleanup.

Gun Violence

Gov. Tom Wolf announced Nov. 13 that his Special Council on Gun Violence, created in an August executive order to study and make recommendations on gun violence prevention and reduction, will host a series of five hearings to gather information and hear from Pennsylvanians.

The chairman of Wolf's special council is Charles Ramsey, the former police chief of Philadelphia.

The schedule is as follows, with all of the hearings set to kick off at 10 a.m.:

• Nov. 15, at Misericordia University in Dallas, Pennsylvania, on reducing the likelihood of accidental shootings.
• Nov. 21, at the University of Pittsburgh, on combating mass shootings.
• Nov. 22, at the York City School District Administration Building, on preventing suicide by firearms.
• Nov. 25, at Penn State, on preventing shootings related to domestic violence.
• Dec. 5, at Temple University in Philadelphia, on reducing community gun violence.

"These five hearings will help inform the work of the council and let the public hear from experts on topics pertinent to making all Pennsylvanians safer, whether they live in a city or a rural area," Wolf said in a statement.

Recordings of the hearings will be made available on the website of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, the Wolf administration said, and there will be an opportunity for the public to participate in a survey online.

Savings Program

A program to support savings for Pennsylvanians with disabilities has experienced strong growth in 2019, adding $9 million in assets to make a total of more than $21 million, Pennsylvania Treasurer Joe Torsella announced Nov. 13.

The PA ABLE Savings Program, according to a Treasury statement, has surpassed $20 million in assets, reaching more than $21.1 million. PA ABLE is the largest program in the National ABLE Alliance, with assets increasing by more than $9 million since Jan. 1, 2019. There are currently nearly 3,000 individual PA ABLE accounts open.

"PA ABLE expands opportunities for Pennsylvanians with disabilities and their families, giving them the opportunity to save in ways that were once impossible," Torsella said. "Before PA ABLE, Pennsylvanians with disabilities risked losing important benefits if they tried to save their own money. Now they have access to the tools they need to build real wealth and live more independently. This milestone shows that PA ABLE is a valuable and necessary tool for individuals with disabilities in our commonwealth."

Saving with PA ABLE does not jeopardize access to state and federal programs, such as Supplemental Security Income and Medical Assistance. The accounts also come with tax advantages. The program was made possible under federal legislation sponsored by U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pennsylvania, and the subsequent PA ABLE Act by the General Assembly.

Tax Breaks

As the General Assembly considers a proposal to establish "energy opportunity zones," areas of Pennsylvania where 10-year tax exemptions, deductions, abatements and credits would be made available to natural gas, manufacturing, petrochemical and related businesses, a free-market think tank said it should apply statewide.

House Bill 1102, sponsored by state Rep. Joshua Kail, R-Beaver, part of an eight-bill package called "Energize PA," would enumerate 20 Keystone Energy Enhancement Zones, modeled on Keystone Opportunity Zones, which aim to provide tax breaks in areas of the state needing development.

The Commonwealth Foundation in a blog post said the approach is inadequate to support economic goals and enhance energy production.

"Reducing the burden of government on business activity is a noble goal but Pennsylvania should be doing this throughout the commonwealth, not just in picked communities or for selected investors," the post concluded. "The question bears repeating: if tax breaks increase business activity then why not give tax breaks everywhere?"

The authors said the poorest communities are unlikely to benefit, and that the track record of previous opportunity zones is spotty.

"From Erie to Philadelphia one would be hard-pressed to find a clear success attributable to the opportunity zone concept, but that hasn't stopped Harrisburg from trying to expand it," the authors said.