2009-2010 Session of the General Assembly
Bills Reported and Hearings Held by the Senate Judiciary Committee
Updated as of June 30, 2009

2/10/09

SB53:   Senator Greenleaf's legislation amending the Probate, Estates and Fiduciaries Code, Title 20 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, making omnibus amendments to the Probate Code generally relating to trusts, and making a conforming amendment to the Associations Code, Title 15. 

SB73:  Senator Greenleaf's legislation to expand and clarify the provisions prohibiting contraband in facilities such as correctional institutions, youth development centers, and forensic units of state mental hospitals. 

SB112:   Senator Greenleaf's legislation to consolidate in Title 61 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, the acts relating to prisons, probation and parole, and makes conforming amendments to the Judicial Code, Title 42; Title 61 will be known as the Prisons and Parole Code. 

SB124:  Senator Gordner's legislation to make it a crime to operate a methamphetamine laboratory. 

SB125:  Senator Gordner's legislation creating the violation to knowingly possess ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine with the intent to manufacture methamphetamine.  

SB126:  Senator Gordner's legislation requiring a person who is convicted of operating a methamphetamine laboratory to reimburse the law enforcement agency, emergency medical services or fire company for the costs of cleaning up the environmental hazards associated with the laboratory.  

SB127:  Senator Gordner's legislation amending the Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act, to add a section relating to offenses for operating a methamphetamine laboratory and for illegal dumping of methamphetamine waste.  

SB221:  Senator Greenleaf's Bail Bond Enforcement Agent Law providing for the licensing of bail bond enforcement agents (fugitive recovery agents, bounty hunters).  

3/10/09 

SB366:  Senator Browne's legislation amending section 5701 of the Judicial Code, Title 42 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, relating to the right to bail, to make the section consistent with Article I, Section 14, of the Constitution of Pennsylvania.  

SB383:  Senator Orie's legislation providing for problem solving courts (drug courts, mental health courts, DUI courts).  

SB387:  Senator  Tartaglione's legislation amending section 2702 of the Crimes Code, Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, relating to aggravated assault, adding "an employee of an agency, company or other entity engaged in public transportation" to the list of officers, agents and employees enumerated in the statute.  

SB391:  Senator Greenleaf's legislation repealing Act 513 of 1862 which purports to give any judge, mayor, alderman or justice of the peace of the City of Philadelphia the authority to commit "orphan, destitute, abandoned or vagrant children" to one of two named orphanages.  

SB432:  Senator Greenleaf's Sexual Violence Victim Protection Act to authorize a sexual assault victim to petition the court requesting protection from the defendant.  

SB434:  Senator Greenleaf's legislation increasing the monetary limits of parental liability for the tortious acts of their children.  

SB436:  Senator Costa's legislation clarifying the definition of burglary.  

3/24/09

SB351:  Senator Greenleaf's legislation amending the Associations Code, Title 15, and Title 54 (Names) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, to complete the codification of the Nonprofit Corporation Law (Title 15, Part II, Subpart C) and to revise the laws relating to limited liability partnerships and limited liability companies. 

SB488:  Senator Rafferty's legislation providing a person with immunity from prosecution for underage drinking when the person calls 911 because someone else needs medical attention. 

SB515:  Senator Greenleaf's legislation expanding the list of qualified individuals who are authorized to perform drug and alcohol assessments for the commitment of minors to involuntary drug and alcohol treatment services. 

SB531:  Senator Browne's legislation providing for county interagency sharing of juvenile records.  

SB573:  Senator Corman's legislation defines and grades the new criminal offense of "failure to provide identification to law enforcement authorities." 

SB605:  Senator Waugh's legislation to make it a second degree felony to take or remove money from a financial institution without permission by making a demand of an employee orally or in writing with the intent to deprive the financial institution of the money.  

SB628:  Senator M. White's legislation preventing the sentence of death from being imposed upon any person who establishes by a preponderance of the evidence that he or she is a person with mental retardation.  

6/2/09

SR52:  Senator Greenleaf’s legislation directing the Joint State Government Commission to establish an advisory committee to study the effects of parental incarceration on the children of incarcerated parents.  The advisory committee will recommend a system for determining and assessing the needs of the children of incarcerated parents, the services available to them, and the barriers to accessing those services. 

SB220:  Senator Greenleaf’s legislation proposing integrated amendments to the Constitution of Pennsylvania making editorial changes that replace "justice of the peace" with "magisterial district judge."  

SB264:  Senator Costa’s legislation providing that all deeds and conveyances concerning any real property conveyed or sold at sheriff sales must be recorded within 45 days of the conveyance or sale. 

SB746:  Senator Rafferty’s  legislation providing immunity for physicians who report the suspected illicit use of prescribed controlled substances and to allow the judge or jury to make a finding that an insurance company acted in bad faith toward an insured and to award punitive damages.

6/16/09

HB89:  Representative Mann’s legislation creating a criminal offense for intentionally viewing any book, magazine, pamphlet, slide, photograph, film, videotape, computer depiction or other material depicting a child under the age of 18 years engaging in a prohibited sexual act or in the simulation of such an act.  

HB270:  Representative Costa’s legislation to allow certain former judges and former mayors to solemnize marriages.  

SB919:  Senator Washington’s legislation amending the Children’s Trust Fund Act, to increase the $10 surcharge on marriage licenses to $35 and to increase the $10 surcharge on divorce complaints to $25.  

SB920:  Senator Washington’s legislation to increase the marriage license fee so that domestic violence programs will receive $35 instead of $10 from each fee collected.  Also imposes a fee of $25 on divorce complaints to support domestic violence programs.  

SB949:  Senator Baker’s legislation establishing the Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice Act.

Public/confirmation hearings held by or presentations before the judiciary committee: 
1/27/09:  Public hearing on parole and violent offenders  

3/10/09:  Consideration of County Probation and Parole Officers' Firearm Education and Training Commission Final-Form Regulation #41-018

4/28/09:  Budget hearing on the state judicial system  

6/16/09:  Presentation by Marissa B. Bluestine, Legal Director, Pennsylvania Innocence Project  

6/30/09:  Confirmation hearings for Robert O. Baldi, Esquire, Judge, Court of Common Pleas, Bucks County; Farley Toothman, Esquire, Judge, Court of Common Pleas, Greene County; Kenneth A. Mummah, Esquire, Judge, Court of Common Pleas, Juniata/Perry Counties; John H. Pavlock, Esquire, Judge, Court of Common Pleas, McKean County; Roger F. Gordon, Esquire, Judge, Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia County; Kenneth J. Powell, Jr., Esquire, Judge, Philadelphia Municipal Court; and Joseph C. Waters, Jr., Esquire, Judge, Philadelphia Municipal Court.