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Agriculture & Rural Affairs 2021-2022

The Senate and House Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committees held a joint meeting on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 regarding Enhancing Meat Processing Opportunities in Pennsylvania

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a meeting on Wednesday, June 22, 2022 to consider the following legislation:

SB 1289 (Sen. Vogel) – amends the Dog Law providing updates in kennel fees and licensing.  Passed as amended by a 10-1 vote

  • Amendment AO4915 (Sen. Vogel):  removes incorrect language.   Passed unanimously

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a meeting on Monday, June 20, 2022 to consider the following legislation:

HB 2157 (Rep. Farry):  removes the Fireworks article from the Tax Code and adds it as a new chapter to the Agriculture Code.  The bill also outlines time constraints when fireworks can be used and provides guidance to local municipalities.  VOTE as amended 6-5

  • Amendment A0457 (Sen. Vogel): updates The American Pyrotechnics Association Standard and adds language regarding fund transfers.  VOTE on the amendment 11-0

HB 223 (Rep. Lawrence):  creates the Keystone Opportunity Dairy Zones (KODZ) to encourage new or additional processing capacity for Pennsylvania milk.  VOTE 11-0

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a meeting on Tuesday, May 24, 2022 to consider the following legislation:

SB 1236 ( Sen Vogel ) – Updates the Very Small Meat Processor Federal Inspection Reimbursement Grant Program.

*Amendment A04288 ( Sen. Vogel ) – updates changes and makes technical changes to definitions.  

SB 1236 ( Sen Vogel ) – Updates the Very Small Meat Processor Federal Inspection Reimbursement Grant Program.

*Amendment A04288 ( Sen. Vogel ) – updates changes and makes technical changes to definitions.  

SB 1237 ( Sen Vogel ) –  Extends the expiring Horse Racing Temporary Regulations.

Salvo que se indique lo contrario, todas fueron aprobadas por unanimidad con 11 votos a favor y 0 en contra.


The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a meeting on Tuesday, April 5, 2022 to consider the following legislation:

SB 907 (Sen. Yaw) – establishes The Animal Welfare Board

  • *Amendment A03845 (Sen Yaw); updates and adds the Northeast Beagle Gundog Federation and the PA State Police to the board

SB 960 (Sen. J. Ward) – repeals the ACT 215 of 1965 known as the Frozen Dessert Law

SB 1032 (Sens Schwank & Vogel) – amends Title 3 (Agriculture); provides for licensing and regulation of agricultural commodity handlers and creates the Agricultural Commodity Indemnity Fund

  • *Vote: 10-1 (Sen. Brooks)

SB 1181 (Sen. Brooks) – establishes the Whole Milk in Pennsylvania Schools Act

Unless noted, all were passed unanimously.

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs and Games & Fisheries Committees held a Joint Hearing on Wednesday, February 9, 2022 to receive testimony on Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD):


The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a Panel Discussion on Tuesday, January 11, 2022 on Mental Health in Agriculture at the Farm Show Complex:

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a meeting on Wednesday, November 10, 2021 to consider the following bill which was amended and reported out unanimously by a 10-0 vote:

SB 450 (Sen. Yaw) – amends the Rural Pennsylvania Revitalization Act of 1987 to restructure the board of directors for the Center for Rural Pennsylvania.

  • Amendment A02901 (Yaw) – The amendment was technical in nature and uniformly specified that the new board position would consist of one member from the Penn State Extension.  The amendment passed 10-0.

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a public hearing on Tuesday, September 21, 2021 on utility scale solar development and agricultural land.

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee Hearing on Wednesday, August 11, 2021


The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a hearing on Thursday, June 24, 2021 where the nomination of Mr. Robert Barley for re-appointment to the Milk Marketing Board was reported out favorably.

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a hearing on Tuesday, June 15, 2021 where the nomination of Ms. Kristi Kassimer for the Milk Marketing Board was reported out favorably.

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a meeting on Monday, June 7, 2021 to consider the following bill which was reported out by unanimous vote: 

SB 465 – (Sen. Yaw) – creates the Agricultural Conservation Assistance Program Act within the State Conservation Commission.  The program will assist conservation practices on farmland operations that are required to meet pollution reduction goals for the Chesapeake Bay and other major watersheds in Pennsylvania.

Amendment A01472 – The bill was amended in committee to allow third-party technical providers to participate in the program and clarifies that if a county chooses not to participate, any application from that county may be submitted directly to the Commission.

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee and Local Government Committee held a public hearing on utility scale solar development :: May 25, 2021

The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a meeting on March 23, 2021 to consider to the following bills. All bills were reported by unanimous vote:

SB 251 – (Sen. Yaw) – amends Pennsylvania’s Fertilizer Act, and will assist in the reduction of nutrient runoff in the waterways and allow PA to receive credits towards the state’s Chesapeake Bay Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP).   

SB 434 – (Sens Vogel/Schwank/J.Ward)  – creates the Milk Sell By Date and Best By Date Labeling Act.

HB 101 – (Rep. Gleim) – provides agritourism businesses with limited liability protection. 

A00374: was amended in committee to include overnight accommodations, weddings, concerts or provisions for food and beverage services.  And the definitions of “Normal agricultural operation” and “Agriculture Land” were added.

 HB 110 – (Rep. Causer) –  provides for changes in membership of the Hardwoods Development Council

 


The Senate Agriculture & Rural Affairs Committee held a meeting on February 3, 2021 to consider to the following bills.  All bills were reported by unanimous vote.

SB 36 (Sen. Phillips-Hill) – adds license fee exemptions for service dogs that are used by a fire department, sheriff’s office or emergency medical services in the performance of rescue services.

SB 64 (Sen. Martin) – directs a portion of the state-allocated farmland preservation funding to be set aside annually for use by land trusts.

 

Senadora Judy Schwank

Senadora Judy Schwank

Presidente del Comité