In its second week of session after winter recess, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed 18 pieces of legislation ranging from updates to laws allowing county governments to operate to the illegal purchase, sale and production “ghost weapons”.
Here’s a look at some of the legislation that will await the state Senate when it returns for a week of bipartisan session on April 8.
Kayden’s Law
Named for 7-year-old Kayden Mancuso, who was murdered by her father in 2018 during a court-ordered custody visit, Kayden’s Law would require family court judges to include safety conditions and restrictions when a parent has a history or constant risk of abuse.
Despite an evaluation showing Jeffrey Mancuso had suicidal thoughts, depression and violent tendencies, a judge granted Mancuso unsupervised visits with Caden.
“What happened to Kayen was a heartbreaking tragedy, but, unfortunately, not a unique one,” Sens. Steven Santarsiero (D-Bucks) and Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne) said in a 2023 memo calling for support for their bill. They noted that in a review of 4,000 cases, an abusive parent was awarded custody 81 percent of the time.
The bill, which passed the House 119-82, will go to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s desk after it is signed into law in the Senate.
A bittersweet proposition
The Hershey Co. Virtual Kisses they will join the ranks of the noble mountain laurel and the less beautiful but still noble Eastern Greek as a symbol of the Keystone State.
Like the Hellbender salamander, Hershey’s Kisses began its journey to state symbol status by endorsing students with a dream.
A group of students in Bucks County’s Council Rock School District, who called themselves the Kiss Committee, began their quest to make Kisses the state candy as part of a high school politics class. He is now in the 11th grade, said Rep. Kristin Marcell (R-Bucks).
On Tuesday, students heard from the House gallery that even the sugariest proposal can inspire heated debate. Rep. Paul Schemel (R-Franklin) suggested that the selection of Kisses as the state candy was unfair to the manufacturers Tweets the Mallo Cupsamong other Pennsylvania confections.
Rep. Russ Diamond (R-Lebanon) raised Hershey’s history of labor disputes and Pennsylvania jobs to warn about conflating the commonwealth’s name with that of a shareholder-owned company that could be sold tomorrow.
Despite strong opposition, House Bill 1030passed by a vote of 130-71.
Better odds
Pennsylvanians returning to their families and communities after being released face steep barriers to success, said sponsors of two bills aimed at reducing recidivism.
Parliamentary Bill 1678 it would build on Pennsylvania’s investment in job training for the incarcerated, allowing those who complete programs to earn credit that would allow them to be considered for parole sooner. The credits will also count toward the waiting period faced by those with a criminal record before obtaining a professional license.
The bill, introduced by Rep. Napoleon Nelson (D-Dauphin), passed 152-49.
Parliamentary Bill 1601introduced by Rep. Emily Kinkead (D-Allegheny) would require the departments of corrections, health and transportation to coordinate to help inmates obtain documents needed to obtain work and housing, such as work permits, state ID, birth certificates and social Security cards.
The bill passed 102-99 along party lines, with Republicans in opposition.
Accountability of the owner
When a rental property is condemned as a result of landlord neglect, the consequences for tenants can be devastating financially and emotionally, Rep. Dave Madsen (D-Dauphin) said in a memo seeking cosponsors for his bill to hold landlords accountable .
The legislation would require landlords to pay permanently displaced tenants the equivalent of six months’ rent if property code violations result in a building being declared uninhabitable. It would also require a landlord to pay one month’s rent to tenants temporarily forced out of their homes.
Parliamentary Bill 1549 passed with a 106-95 vote.
Food allergies
Physician-legislator Rep. Arvind Venkat (D-Allegheny) said in a memo that he is seeking sponsors for House Bill 1869 that almost half of fatal allergic reactions to food occur in restaurants. The bill would require food allergy awareness posters to be displayed in restaurant employee areas. It would also require menus to list food allergens and require customers to notify their servers of any allergies.
The bill passed 148-53.
Bridge safety
A day before Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge was struck by a freighter and collapsed with the loss of six workers, the Pennsylvania House repealed a bridge safety law that had been in place since 1836.
Enacted at a time when wooden covered bridges dotted the Pennsylvania landscape, the law made it illegal to drive a horse or cattle across the bridge faster than a walking pace. It also banned the carrying of lighted lanterns on a bridge. The fine for doing so was $5.
Members of Parliament voted unanimously to repeal the archaic law.
