Senate Democratic Wrap-up for the Week of June 16, 2013

  The Senate approved Senate Bill 150, by a vote of 38-9, to change how information is collected and used in Pennsylvania’s DNA database. The bill was approved by the Senate after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it is constitutional for police to collect DNA...

Senate Democratic Wrap-up for the Week of June 9, 2013

The Senate unanimously approved Senate Bill 334, which would eliminate the Philadelphia Traffic Court from the Judicial Code and transfer its duties to the Philadelphia Municipal Court. The legislation was prompted by a 2011 ticket-fixing scandal in which nine current...

Senate Democratic Wrap-up for the Week of June 2, 2013

The Senate approved Senate Bill 1, which would increase Pennsylvania’s annual transportation investment by $2.5 billion by lifting the cap on the Oil Company Franchise Tax and increasing fees for vehicle registration and drivers licenses. The legislation would provide...

Senate Democratic Wrap-up for the Week of May 12, 2013

The Senate unanimously approved Senate Bill 5, which would establish a community-based health care program within the Department of Health. This legislation is designed to expand and enhance existing resources to provide health care for the uninsured, and it...

Senate Democratic Wrap-up for the Week of May 5, 2013

The Senate unanimously passed legislation that would compel the state Department of Community and Economic Development to create standards for construction, installation and inspection of commercial modular buildings. House Bill 124 instructs the DCED to develop the...

Senate Democratic Wrap-up for the Week of April 28, 2013

The Senate unanimously approved Senate Bill 436, which would amend the election code to remove the sunset date for the voting standards adopted by the Voting Standards Development Board. The board was created following passage of a federal law that requires each state...