March 30, 2012
On a party-line vote of 29-19, the Senate passed a joint resolution that would amend the state Constitution to prohibit Pennsylvanians from being required to obtain health insurance coverage or from being penalized for not doing so. Senate Bill 10 would amend the...
March 22, 2012
The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 623, which would require the Department of General Services to set an annual contracting goal of not less than 5 percent for contracts of small businesses owned by veterans. Currently, these targets exist for businesses owned...
March 9, 2012
By a narrow 26-23 vote, the Senate passed House Bill 934, the controversial Voter ID bill that will require voters to present photo identification each time they vote. Democrats railed against the Republican pushed initiative, calling it a “solution in search of a...
February 23, 2012
By a 31-19 vote, the Senate approved controversial legislation that taxes and regulates the gas drilling industry. The conference committee report (approved 4-2 on a party line basis) on House Bill 1950 establishes a drilling “impact fee” on a sliding scale over 15...
February 23, 2012
By a vote of 43-7, the Senate approved a measure that allowed 17,000 Pennsylvanians to continue to receive extended unemployment benefits. The legislation, Senate Bill 1375, was needed for the state to draw down federal money that would pay for the extension. The...
February 1, 2012
By a vote of 44-6, the Senate approved House Bill 169, which would increase the prize limits allowed for organizations conducting small games of chance. The legislation is similar to Senate Bill 444, which passed the Senate last year. HB 169 has slightly higher...
