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2018 Pennsylvania legislative session

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2018 legislative sessions coverage
Pennsylvania General Assembly

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General information
Type:   State legislature
Term limits:   None
Session start:   January 2, 2018
Session end:   November 30, 2018
Website:   Official Legislature Page
Leadership
Senate President:   Mike Stack (D)
House Speaker:  Mike Turzai (R)
Majority Leader:   Senate: Jake Corman (R)
House: Dave Reed (R)
Minority Leader:   Senate: Jay Costa (D)
House: Frank Dermody (D)
Structure
Members:  50 (Senate), 203 (House)
Length of term:   4 years (Senate), 2 years (House)
Authority:   Art II, Sec 3, Pennsylvania Constitution
Salary:   $86,478/year + per diem
Elections
Redistricting:  Pennsylvania Legislative Reapportionment Commission has control

This page provides an overview of the 2018 Pennsylvania General Assembly and its general and special sessions. The timelines below contain noteworthy events Ballotpedia curated throughout the year.

In 2018, the Pennsylvania General Assembly was in session from January 2, 2018, through November 30, 2018.

Click the links below to access relevant session information:

If you know of any additional events that should be added to this page, please email us at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Overview

Partisan control

Pennsylvania was one of 16 states under a divided government in 2018, meaning it did not have a state government trifecta. A state government trifecta occurs when one political party holds the governor's office, a majority in the state Senate, and a majority in the state House. For more information about divided governments and state government trifectas, click here.

The following tables show the partisan breakdown of the Pennsylvania General Assembly in the 2018 legislative session.

Senate

Party As of December 2018
     Democratic Party 21
     Republican Party 29
     Vacancies 0
Total 50

House

Party As of December 2018
     Democratic Party 90
     Republican Party 112
     Vacancies 1
Total 203

Leadership in 2018

Senate

House

Regular session

Status of legislation

Status of legislation
Legislation Subject area Actions during the regular session Status at the end of the regular session
HB 2050 Prohibit abortions following prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome Passed House
 Did not see further action in Senate
HB 2138 Related to work or job training requirements for Medicaid recipients Passed House
Passed Senate 		Governor vetoed
HB 2060 Prohibit individuals convicted of domestic violence from possessing firearms Passed House
Passed Senate 		Governor signed
House Bill 2121 Budget Passed General Assembly Governor signed

April 16, 2018

State House approves bill prohibiting abortions for Down syndrome
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives voted 139 to 56 in favor of House Bill 2050 (HB 2050). The bill proposed prohibiting abortions if the reason for the procedure was a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome. Pennsylvania law at the time of the bill's passage prohibited abortions when the sole reason was the sex of the fetus.[1]

House Speaker Mike Turzai (R), who sponsored the bill, said, "I believe in the dignity of every human being. None of us are born perfect, and we all have something beautiful to contribute. Pennsylvania is a loving, compassionate community, and we want to extend welcome and support to Down syndrome families. They need to know they’re not alone."[2]

Gov. Tom Wolf (D) expressed opposition to HB 2050, saying the bill was "another example of Harrisburg Republicans exploiting vulnerable families and trying to undermine the doctor-patient relationship to score political points."[1]

The bill was sent to the Pennsylvania State Senate for consideration. According to the Longview News-Journal, it is unclear if the Senate would approve the bill.[1] Read more here.

April 17, 2018

House votes in favor of Medicaid work requirements
The state House voted 115 to 80 in favor of House Bill 2138, a bill to require the state Department of Human Services to apply for a federal waiver authorizing work requirements for eligible Medicaid recipients. The bill proposed requiring recipients to work for 20 hours per week or complete 12 job training program activities per month to satisfy the requirements. Exceptions would be made for individuals in a variety of circumstances, including full-time high school students, pregnant women, primary caregivers for children under the age of six, and caregivers of permanently disabled individuals, among others.[3]

According to the bill's fiscal note, the legislation, if passed, could potentially impact 438,000 Medicaid enrollees.[3] The Daily Item reported that 2.9 million Pennsylvania residents received health insurance through Medicaid.[4]

Rep. Matthew Dowling (R), the bill's author, said, "The goal of this bill is one we all share, to help individuals rise out of poverty and achieve independent of government aid."[4] Rep. Stanley Saylor (R), chair of the House appropriations committee, similarly said, "We can promote a pathway to a better life for Pennsylvanians, or we can simply keep the status quo of keeping individuals locked into a cycle of poverty."[5]

Gov. Wolf vetoed a similar bill in 2017, and his administration indicated that he would veto HB 2138, should it reach his desk.[5][4]

According to WITF, at the time of the bill's passage, Medicaid work requirement requests were approved in Arkansas, Indiana, and Kentucky. WITF reported that seven other states were in the process of implementing work requirements.[5] Read more here.

Update: The Senate approved HB 2138 October 17. Gov. Wolf vetoed the bill October 19.

September 26, 2018

State House passes legislation on domestic violence and firearms
The state House approved HB 2060, 131-62. Fifty-four Republicans and eight Democrats voted against the measure. The legislation would require individuals convicted of domestic violence to surrender their firearms to law enforcement, gun dealers, or lawyers, within 24 hours. State law as of September 26, 2018, allowed offenders 60 days to turn over their weapons.[6][7]

Update: The Senate approved HB 2060 October 3. Gov. Tom Wolf (D) signed it October 12.

October 19, 2018

Governor vetoes bill establishing work and job training requirements for Medicaid recipients
Gov. Wolf vetoed HB 2138, a bill to require Medicaid recipients to complete 20 hours per week of work. In his veto letter, Wolf said, "This legislation does not promote health coverage, access and treatment. Instead, this legislation increases costs, creates unnecessary delays and confusion, penalizes individuals who need healthcare, and terminates health coverage for those who need it the most."[8] Read the full veto message here.

Bill sponsor Rep. Dowling (R) said the bill was meant to assist individuals out of poverty, not to take away healthcare.[9]

Rep. Seth Grove (R) said the legislation "would have set enabled able-bodied recipients on a path to employment while also receiving assistance. The legislation was written in a manner so as not to negatively impact those who need assistance."[10]

Budget

2018

Gov. Wolf signed a $32.7 billion spending package June 22. It was the first full spending bill Wolf signed since taking office in 2015.[11] The budget passed the state House 188-10 June 21 and the state Senate approved the bill 47-2 June 22.[12]

A press release from the governor's office listed highlights of the package, including:

  • A $313.5 million increase in education funding.
  • $189.6 million for preK-12 education.
    • $25 million for preK/Head Start programs.
    • $100 million for basic education.
    • $10 million for career and technical education.
  • Higher education funding increase.
  • $1 million maintained in grant funding to address campus sexual violence.
  • $6.8 million increase in funding for child care services.
  • $5.3 million increase in funding for community-based family centers.
  • $1.2 million for the state's nurse-family partnership program.
  • $16 million to assist individuals with intellectual disabilities and autism to access waivers for support and services.
  • $2.5 million for Lyme disease awareness, prevention, and surveillance.
  • $2.35 million for processing of additional birth certificate requests.
  • $6 million to purchase body cameras for the Pennsylvania State Police pilot program.
  • $43 million for communication and infrastructure for the Statewide Radio System.
  • $2.5 million to assist the state Department of Environmental Protection to fill 35 vacant positions.[13]

Process

See also: Pennsylvania state budget and finances
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Check out Ballotpedia articles about policy in your state on:
Budgets • Civil liberties • Education • Elections • Energy • Environment • Healthcare • Pensions

The state operates on an annual budget cycle. The sequence of key events in the budget process is as follows:[14]

  1. Budget instructions are sent to state agencies in August.
  2. State agencies submit their requests to the governor in October.
  3. Agency hearings are held between December and January.
  4. The governor submits his or her proposed budget to the state legislature in February. In a governor's first term, the budget proposal is submitted in March.
  5. The legislature adopts a budget by June 30. A simple majority is required to pass a budget. The fiscal year begins July 1.

Pennsylvania is one of 44 states in which the governor has line item veto authority.[14][15]

The governor is legally required to submit a balanced budget proposal. Likewise, the legislature is required to pass a balanced budget.[14]

See also

Elections Pennsylvania State Government State Legislatures State Politics
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External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Longview News-Journal, "Pennsylvania House votes to ban abortions for Down syndrome," April 16, 2018
  2. ↑ PaHouseGOPNews.com, "House Advances Legislation to Protect Babies with Down Syndrome," April 16, 2018
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Pennsylvania General Assembly, "Fiscal note, House Bill No. 2138," April 16, 2018
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 The Daily Item, "House looks to expand work requirement for Medicaid and food stamps," April 17, 2018
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 WITF, "Wolf opposes Medicaid work requirements passed by House," April 18, 2018
  6. ↑ PAHomepage.com, "State House Passes Gun Bill," September 27, 2018
  7. ↑ WESA, "Pa. State House Passes Gun-Restricting Domestic Violence Bill. It's An Outlier." September 27, 2018
  8. ↑ Pennsylvania Legislature, "Veto No. 2," accessed October 26, 2018
  9. ↑ USA Herald, "Gov. Wolf Vetoes Bill Requiring Work or Community Engagement as Condition to Qualify for Medicaid," October 22, 2018
  10. ↑ Pennsylvania Watchdog, "Wolf vetoes bill that would've required able-bodied Medicaid recipients to find work," October 19, 2018
  11. ↑ Lancaster Online, "Pennsylvania gets a budget, and it's not late, and not entirely great, but it's progress (if only fleeting)," June 26, 2018
  12. ↑ PennLive.com, "Senate approves $32.7 billion budget with no tax hikes, sending it to Gov. Tom Wolf," June 22, 2018
  13. ↑ Governor Tom Wolf, "Bipartisan Budget Bolsters Economy, Workforce through Education, Skills Training," June 22, 2018
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 National Association of State Budget Officers, "Budget Processes in the States, Spring 2021," accessed January 24, 2023
  15. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Separation of Powers: Executive Veto Powers," accessed January 26, 2024
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