Pennsylvania State Capitol building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Photo: Shutterstock

Following is a listing of executive and legislative action from the week of Feb. 24. Both houses of the General Assembly were in recess at press time. Pennsylvania senators and members of the state House of Representatives were scheduled to return to session March 16.

Mail-In Voting

Gov. Tom Wolf announced Feb. 27 that more than 20,000 Pennsylvania voters have already used a new online application to sign up to use a mail-in or absentee ballot for the April 28 primary election.

The Department of State launched the online application Feb. 11. The deadline for county election offices to receive applications is 5 p.m. April 21.

"The immediate popularity of the application site shows that Pennsylvania voters have welcomed the new bipartisan voting reforms and the convenience of mail-in voting," Wolf said in a statement. "Pennsylvania has joined many other states in giving voters options in how they cast their ballots, making voting easier and more accessible than ever before."

The primary is the first election for which Pennsylvania voters have the option of voting by mail-in ballot, without having to provide a reason for choosing it, thanks to historic legislation signed into law last fall.

Act 77 of 2018 made the most significant improvements to the Pennsylvania Election Code in more than 80 years, including longer voter registration periods—up to 15 days before an election—and permanent mail-in and absentee ballot voter lists. The voter registration deadline for the April 28 primary is April 13.

Pennsylvanians who are registered to vote now have several ways to vote—including mail-in or absentee ballots—either of which they may use via the mail or in person at their county election office.

College Scholarships

Wolf on Feb. 26 met with high school students and parents to discuss a $204 million college-scholarship program unveiled during his budget address, saying it would help ease student loan debt and help them graduate on time.

The Nellie Bly Scholarship Program would close the gap after a student's Pell Grant and other state grants to cover tuition and fees at the 14 state-owned and -operated universities, allowing more students to graduate on time with less student loan debt.

"The student debt crisis is a burden on young people and their families that can last for years," Wolf said. "It holds young people back from finishing their degree, buying a car or a home and saving for retirement. The Nellie Bly Scholarship is an investment in young people so they can graduate, stay in Pennsylvania and build rewarding careers and lives here."

Students taking advantage of the program must commit to live in Pennsylvania after graduation for the same number of years they received the scholarship. If a student leaves the state early, they must repay the money.

"The Nellie Bly Scholarship Program is good for our communities, it's good for our PASSHE schools, and it's good for young Pennsylvanians," Wolf said. "It's also the perfect next step to strengthen our workforce after expanding apprenticeships and hands-on job training for those who don't want to go to college."

The namesake of the program, Nellie Bly, was forced to leave Indiana University of Pennsylvania in the 19th century because of costs, but became a muckraking journalist.

Custodial Banking

Pennsylvania Treasurer Joe Torsella on Feb. 24 announced a first-ever service level agreement with a custodial banking partner, Bank of New York Mellon, which covers all public funds, including the state's largest pension systems—Public School Employees' Retirement System (PSERS), State Employees' Retirement System (SERS), and the Pennsylvania Municipal Retirement System (PMRS).

Torsella, in a statement, said the agreement afforded Pennsylvania best-in-the-nation standards and lowest fees.

"Every dollar in commonwealth funds comes from the hard work of Pennsylvania taxpayers. As treasurer, I work to make sure every taxpayer dollar is valued as much as the hard work that earned it," Torsella said. "This historic agreement elevates the level of service by BNYM. The agreement lays out very specific service details with financial repercussions if BNYM violates the commitments and strict standards we expect."

In partnership with the three pension systems, the Treasury conducted an independent review of custodial banking options, and negotiated an agreement that would lock in needed services at the best price, according to the statement. BNYM has agreed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in financial penalties for failure to meet these standards.

Auditor's Budget

Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale told lawmakers at budget hearings that his office was wrapping up reports on Medicaid funding, repeat Pennsylvania Lottery winners and college affordability.

DePasquale said that by the end of the year, he would report out a special financial audit of vendors hired by the Department of Human Services to provide direct care to Medicaid patients receiving services for older adults and people with intellectual disabilities; a special performance audit of the Department of Revenue to evaluate the agency's fraud prevention system; and a follow-up review to an audit of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency.

"The quality and quantity of our results are examples of how we, in public service, can make government work better for the taxpayers of this state," DePasquale said in prepared testimony.

"But our work is not complete. And, because our work is extremely labor-intensive, we need to have ample resources available to continue to identify inefficient practices and make recommendations for improvement."

DePasquale also discussed numerous special reports that have continued to shed light on state funding and regulatory shortcomings, including two special reports examining the role of pharmacy benefit managers and their impact on the cost of prescription drugs for

Pennsylvanians, and another finding that $425 million of taxpayer money has been spent over the last 10 years to administer the Keystone Exams, despite the fact that they haven't been federally required since 2015 nor are they a graduation requirement.