2020 Pennsylvania Consolidated & Unconsolidated Statutes
Act 37 - ADMINISTRATIVE CODE OF 1929 - STATE GEOSPATIAL COORDINATING BOARD, ADDITIONAL DUTIES AND COVID-19 DEBT COST REDUCTION REVIEW

Session of 2020

No. 2020-37

 

HB 2418

 

AN ACT

 

Amending the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.177, No.175), entitled "An act providing for and reorganizing the conduct of the executive and administrative work of the Commonwealth by the Executive Department thereof and the administrative departments, boards, commissions, and officers thereof, including the boards of trustees of State Normal Schools, or Teachers Colleges; abolishing, creating, reorganizing or authorizing the reorganization of certain administrative departments, boards, and commissions; defining the powers and duties of the Governor and other executive and administrative officers, and of the several administrative departments, boards, commissions, and officers; fixing the salaries of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and certain other executive and administrative officers; providing for the appointment of certain administrative officers, and of all deputies and other assistants and employes in certain departments, boards, and commissions; providing for judicial administration; and prescribing the manner in which the number and compensation of the deputies and all other assistants and employes of certain departments, boards and commissions shall be determined," in organization of departmental administrative boards and commissions and of advisory boards and commissions, further providing for State Geospatial Coordinating Board; in independent fiscal office, further providing for additional duties; and providing for COVID-19 debt cost reduction review.

 

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania hereby enacts as follows:

 

Section 1.  Section 432.1(b)(1)(vii) and (viii) and (j) of the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.177, No.175), known as The Administrative Code of 1929, are amended, subsection (b)(1) is amended by adding a subparagraph and the section is amended by adding a subsection to read:

Section 432.1.  State Geospatial Coordinating Board.--* * *

(b)  (1)  The State Geospatial Coordinating Board shall consist of the following members:

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(vi.1)  The Secretary of Agriculture or a designee.

(vii)  Three members appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate in consultation with the Majority Leader and Minority Leader of the Senate. One member shall be a representative of a municipal authority. [One member] Two members shall be [an elected] local government [official representing a rural community. One member shall be an elected local government official representing a suburban community] officials or employees.

(viii)  Three members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives in consultation with the Majority Leader and  Minority Leader of the House of Representatives. One member shall be a local [elected] government official or employe representing an urban community. One member shall be an employe of a county emergency management agency. One member shall be an individual with expertise in geospatial technology.

* * *

(f.1)  The board may, with the approval of the Governor, appoint an executive director who shall serve at the pleasure of the board. The selection and removal of the executive director shall be made by a simple majority of the voting members of the board that constitute a quorum. Compensation for the executive director shall be set by a vote of a majority of the board members identified in subsection (b)(1)(i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), (vi) and (vi.1), subject to the approval of the Executive Board. Funding for the executive director's compensation shall be evenly apportioned amongst all of the Commonwealth agencies represented by members in subsection (b)(1)(i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), (vi) and (vi.1) and administered by the Governor's Budget Office. The executive director shall be qualified for the duties of the position, as determined by the board, and shall conduct the work of the board under the board's direction and supervision. No current member of the board may serve as the executive director. The executive director's appointment shall not continue beyond the expiration of this section. The executive director shall be subject to the same policies and procedures as employes of the Office of Administration.

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(j)  This section shall expire June 30, [2020] 2024.

Section 2.  Section 615-B(a) of the act is amended and the section is amended by adding a subsection to read:

Section 615-B.  Additional duties.

(a)  Actuarial notes.--The office shall prepare actuarial notes by selecting an enrolled pension actuary to prepare [an actuarial note] actuarial notes for bills or amendments which could have a material actuarial impact on a public employee retirement plan. Actuarial notes shall include a reliable estimate of the financial and actuarial effect of the proposed change in any pension or retirement system. The financial analysis contained in actuarial notes for legislation that proposes substantial benefit design changes under 24 Pa.C.S. Pt. IV (relating to retirement for school employees) and 71 Pa.C.S. Pt. XXV (relating to retirement for State employees and officers) shall include, but not be limited to, a risk transfer analysis and, if requested by an officer listed in this subsection, an analysis of the potential impact on the asset allocation and related costs for the systems. The actuarial note shall be factual, and shall, if possible, provide a reliable estimate of both the immediate cost and effect of the bill and, if determinable or reasonably forseeable, the long-range actuarial cost and effect of the bill. The State Employees' Retirement System or the Public School Employees' Retirement System shall provide the office with all information necessary to complete an actuarial note within 14 days of the request for information by the office. The office shall transmit actuarial notes in electronic form to the Governor and all members of the General Assembly within the time periods specified under this section upon the request of any of the following:

(1)  The President pro tempore of the Senate or the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

(2)  The Majority Leader or the Minority Leader of the Senate.

(3)  The Majority Leader or the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives.

(4)  The chairperson or minority chairperson of the Appropriations Committee of the Senate.

(5)  The chairperson or minority chairperson of the Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives.

(6)  The chairperson or minority chairperson of the standing committee of the Senate to which the bill is referred.

(7)  The chairperson or minority chairperson of the standing committee of the House of Representatives to which the bill is referred.

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(l)  Submission of baseline data.--No later than October 1, 2020, July 31, 2021, and July 31 of each year thereafter, the State Employees' Retirement System and the Public School Employees' Retirement System shall each submit to the office data showing the 30-year baseline projections for the retirement systems based on the State law in effect at the time of the submission. The office may specify the data fields and the file format for the data to be transmitted under this subsection. Data submitted under this subsection shall include projections which simulate a 1.0 percentage point increase and a 1.0 percentage point decrease to the official assumed rate of return used by each retirement system.

Section 3.  The act is amended by adding an article to read:

ARTICLE XXI-C

COVID-19 DEBT COST REDUCTION REVIEW

Section 2101-C.  Review of refinancing opportunities.

The Treasury Department, in conjunction with the Secretary of the Budget, the Auditor General and any chairperson of an authority, commission, agency or board that has the power to issue debt, shall identify and review all outstanding debt obligations of the Commonwealth and its authorities, commissions, agencies or boards and submit a report of the findings to the General Assembly no later than October 30, 2020. In addition to the identification and review of all outstanding debt obligations, the report shall identify options for the refinancing of the outstanding debt obligations to reduce the costs to the Commonwealth and its authorities. Each agency identified under this section shall provide to the Treasury Department, within 30 days after the effective date of this section, information requested by the Treasury Department, including the following, related to all outstanding debt obligations of the agency:

(1)  Total outstanding amount of all obligations.

(2)  Most recent audited financial statement of the agency.

(3)  Description of each obligation, identifying senior or subordinate debt and Federal tax treatment.

(4)  Account of all security pledged for each obligation.

(5)  Most recent rating associated with each debt obligation, including rate covenant and maturity date.

(6)  List of all additional associated agency obligations or covenants.

(7)  Annual debt service cost, debt service fund and debt service reserve fund for each debt obligation.

(8)  Risk factors and disclosure statements associated with each debt obligation.

(9)  Pending litigation that may financially impact the debt obligations of the agency.

Section 4.  This act shall take effect immediately.

 

APPROVED--The 30th day of June, A.D. 2020.

 

TOM WOLF