Bill Text: PA HB1020 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Amended

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Bill Title: Further providing for powers and duties of the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and for disbursement of fund amounts by agency.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-1)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2012-10-25 - Referred to VETERANS AFFAIRS AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS [HB1020 Detail]

Download: Pennsylvania-2011-HB1020-Amended.html

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PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 1109, 4066 PRINTER'S NO. 4187
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 1020 Session of2011
INTRODUCED BY PAYTON, B. BOYLE, MILNE, K. BOYLE, CALTAGIRONE, GERGELY, PARKER, WATERS AND WILLIAMS, MARCH 14, 2011
AS AMENDED ON SECOND CONSIDERATION, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, OCTOBER 3, 2012
AN ACT
Amending Title 35 (Health and Safety) of the Pennsylvania
Consolidated Statutes, further providing for powers and
duties of the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and
for disbursement of fund amounts by agency.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Section 5311.2(a) of Title 35 of the Pennsylvania
Consolidated Statutes is amended by adding a paragraph to read:
§ 5311.2. Powers and duties of agency.
(a) Administration.--The agency shall have the following
powers and duties in relation to a wireless E-911 system:
* * *
(4) To provide counties with suggested plans that <--
contain cost-saving measures that provide joint purchasing
opportunities and facilitate regionalization of technology
and consolidation of PSAPs and their operations. The agency
may shall provide suggested industry-acceptable and uniform <--
standards for levels of staffing and uniform standards of
operation.
* * *
Section 2. Section 5311.5(b), (c) and (d)(3) of Title 35 are
amended to read:
§ 5311.5. Disbursement of fund amounts by agency.
* * *
(b) Limitations on use of fund amounts by PSAPs.--No PSAP
shall receive a disbursement from the fund for any cost
necessary to house the wireless E-911 system or for the purchase
of real estate, cosmetic remodeling, ambulances, fire engines or
other emergency vehicles, utilities, taxes and other expenses as
determined by the agency. [No more than 70% of the disbursements
which a PSAP receives from the fund during the agency's fiscal
year may be utilized to fund personnel training, salary and
benefit costs.] No PSAP may be funded for more than 70% of its
agency-approved personnel training, salary and benefit costs
during the agency's fiscal year.
(c) Manner of payment.--Each PSAP and wireless provider
shall submit to the agency each year, not later than 120 days
before the first day of the agency's fiscal year, the eligible
costs it expects to incur for wireless E-911 service during the
next fiscal year of the agency. The submission may include
eligible costs that the PSAP or wireless provider has already
incurred for wireless E-911 service at the time of the
submission. The agency shall review the submission, ensure that
the costs are eligible for payment from the fund and notify the
submitting PSAP or wireless provider, not later than 30 days
before the first day of the agency's fiscal year, of the
eligible costs. [The agency shall pay to each PSAP and wireless
provider, from the fund, the amount of the submitted costs the
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agency determined to be eligible, whether or not the costs have
been incurred at or before the time of payment and whether or
not the costs, if already incurred, were incurred prior to March
29, 2004.] The agency shall disburse funds to each PSAP and
wireless provider for costs the agency determines to be eligible
only up to the amount of fund revenue available for distribution
during the agency's fiscal year. No costs may be carried forward
for payment by the agency in subsequent fiscal years, except
that the agency shall fund all approved and unfunded costs
submitted in wireless fiscal year 2012-2013 that are applied for
in wireless fiscal year 2013-2014. Payment shall be made in four
equal payments during the first month of each quarter of the
agency's fiscal year as follows:
(1) The agency shall first pay the costs approved for
each PSAP that are payable in the quarter.
(2) Following the payment of approved costs to a PSAP
for Phase I deployment of wireless E-911 service as set forth
in the FCC E-911 Order, but only after the PSAP has issued
its request to wireless providers to furnish Phase I wireless
E-911 service pursuant to the FCC E-911 Order, the agency
shall pay the approved costs of wireless providers that are
payable in the quarter to provide the requested wireless
E-911 service to that PSAP.
(3) Following the payment of approved costs to a PSAP
for Phase II deployment of wireless E-911 service as set
forth in the FCC E-911 Order, but only after the PSAP has
issued its request to wireless providers to furnish Phase II
wireless E-911 service pursuant to the FCC E-911 Order, the
agency shall pay the approved costs of wireless providers
that are payable in the quarter to provide the requested
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wireless E-911 service to that PSAP.
(4) In any quarter of the agency's fiscal year, all
costs specified in section 5311.4(a)(1) that are approved by
the agency for payment to PSAPs or wireless providers shall
be paid before any other costs payable under this chapter are
paid to any PSAP or wireless provider. In the first quarter
of the agency's fiscal year, the agency shall determine
whether payments to PSAPs and wireless providers during the
preceding fiscal year exceeded or were less than the eligible
costs incurred by each PSAP and wireless provider submitting
costs during the fiscal year. Each PSAP and wireless provider
shall provide verification of the costs as required by the
agency. Any overpayment shall be refunded to the agency or,
with the agency's approval, may be used to pay agency-
approved costs the PSAP or wireless provider submitted for
the current fiscal year of the agency. [The amount of any
underpayment will be paid to the PSAP or wireless provider in
accordance with this subsection and subsection (d) within the
current fiscal year.] The agency shall reconsider a
determination of eligible costs under this subsection upon
request by a submitting PSAP or wireless provider and shall
provide a procedure for the reconsideration.
(d) Pro rata sharing of fund amounts.--
* * *
[(3) Any remaining unpaid agency-approved PSAP costs or
wireless provider costs shall be carried forward for payment
during the next fiscal quarter. The carryforward process
shall continue each fiscal quarter until all agency-approved
PSAP costs and wireless provider costs have been paid. Pro
rata and other payments under this subsection, including, but
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not limited to, payments of costs which are carried forward
for payment in subsequent fiscal quarters, shall also be
subject to all provisions and requirements of subsection (c)
except for subsection (c)(1).]
* * *
Section 3. The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency
shall, within 120 days of the effective date of this section,
promulgate updated program guidance to incorporate the following
provisions:
(1) The addition of 35 Pa.C.S. § 5311.2(a)(4).
(2) The amendment of 35 Pa.C.S. § 5311.5(b) and (c).
Section 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
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