Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness 2025-2026
The Senate Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee met today, Wednesday, March 26, 2025 and reported out the following:
Senate Bill 90 (Mastriano) provides additional testing options for Firefighter 1 training.
- Reported as committed by a unanimous vote.
Senate Bill 91 (Mastriano) expands the Police Officer, Firefighter, Correction Employee and National Guard Member Child Beneficiary Education Act, which provides tuition and fee waivers for children of deceased public safety and military personnel, to expand the benefit to families of firefighters and police officers who are employed outside of Pennsylvania but are full-time residents of the Commonwealth.
- Reported as committed by a unanimous vote.
Senate Bill 138 (Mastriano) updates the Volunteer Service Credit Program to allow members of volunteer HAZMAT Teams to be eligible for tax credits from counties, school districts, councils of governments.
- Reported as committed by a unanimous vote.
Senate Bill 457 (Muth) updates the Fire and EMS Loan Program to increase the maximum loan amount for all the eligible loan categories in the program. The bill also updates the terms of the loans in the program to allow the Office of the State Fire Commissioner to offer a 20-year loan for loans between $50,000 and $300,000, and a 30-year loan for any loan over $300,000.
- Reported as committed by a unanimous vote.
Senate Bill 466 (Brooks) allows an individual who completes fire suppression training as a condition of employment to apply those hours toward the requirements for Firefighter 1 certification.
- Amendment A00244 to Senate Bill 466: moves several items enacted in Act 54 of 2024 (Fiscal Code) relating to the Fire & EMS Grant Program and PEMA reporting back to Title 35. The amendment also creates the ability for fire and EMS companies to request a 15-day extension to submit the reports required by the Fire and EMS Grant Program and gives the Fire Commissioner the ability to award a grant from the 2024-25 grant cycle to a fire company or EMS company if, after receiving notice from OSFC that the company was eligible, received a second notice that the company was deemed ineligible.
- Amendment A00244 was adopted by a unanimous vote and Senate Bill 466 was reported as amended by a unanimous vote.
The Senate Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee met on Monday, February 3, 2025 to hold a confirmation hearing for Acting Adjutant General John R. Pippy.
General Pippy’s nomination was reported favorably by a unanimous vote.
The Senate Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee met today, Tuesday, January 28, 2025, and reported out the following:
Senate Bill 129 (Mastriano) – reform the structure of the advisory councils that oversee the operation of each of the state veterans’ homes
- Unanimously reported as committed.
Senate Bill 130 (Mastriano) – Requires that notice of a deceased serviceperson is provided to the appropriate county director of veterans’ affairs by a licensed funeral director, funeral entity, or cemetery company within 96 hours of receiving the remains of a deceased serviceperson. The bill also requires that the family of the deceased serviceperson be provided with contact information for the appropriate county director of veterans affairs.
- Unanimously reported as committed
Senate Bill 144 (Mastriano) – Establishes the Global War on Terrorism Veterans’ Compensation Act which would award a monetary bonus ranging from $500 to $1,000 to all qualified veterans who were Pennsylvania residents at the time of their service during the Global War on Terror between September 11, 2001 and December 31, 2022.
- Unanimously reported as committed
Senate Bill 146 (Baker) – Would establish a Grant Evaluation Committee under the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to review and evaluate applications for grants under the Veterans’ Trust Fund.
- Senator Baker offered amendment A0017 to remove all language from the current bill and instead establish the Veterans’ Trust Fund Board within the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.
- Amendment A0017 was adopted by a unanimous vote
- Senate Bill 146 was unanimously reported as amended
Senate Bill 173 (Pennycuick) – Would afford the same rights, benefits, recognition, and privileges that are provided to veterans of the United States armed forces to any Pennsylvania resident who is a naturalized citizen of the United States and a veteran of the Korean Armed Forces who served on active duty during the Vietnam War.
- Unanimously reported as committed
Senator Katie Muth
Committee Chair