Legislative Updates: A Weekly Roundup of Federal, State, and Local Actions

Your Chamber advocacy team is working to share legislative updates and continue to advocate for your business in Washington, D.C., Harrisburg, and Philadelphia. We’ve created a round-up of recent activity including Key Takeaways for Your Business and a Detailed Legislative Update. This represents our best knowledge of the situation as of 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 19, 2020.

Chamber members are invited to join weekly legislative update calls hosted by our Advocacy team to hear the latest on COVID-19 relief and recovery efforts at the federal, state, and local level as well as other legislative matters concerning our community.

To learn more about how our region is preparing for recovery, visit our Recharge & Recover PHL Information Hub:

• Congress has until December 11 to authorize government spending for FY2021 after passing a short-term continuing resolution weeks ago.

• The House spending package includes almost $235 billion in emergency spending while the Senate’s proposed spending bills do not include any emergency spending measures.

• Democrat and Republican leaders have yet to align on the size and scale of an additional COVID-19 relief package in addition to more partisan issues like state and local government aid as well as liability protections for businesses, hospitals, and higher education institutions.

• At this juncture, there are no meaningful negotiations on an emergency relief package as both sides currently focus on the FY21 Omnibus.

• Legislative leaders and the Governor came to an agreement around a 7-month budget that changed very little from last year’s $34 billion budget.

• To fill a roughly $2 billion budget hole, members used CARES Act funding to offset General Fund budget items such as the state police and the Department of Health and Corrections.

• November 30 is the last day of the Pennsylvania General Assembly’s two-year session.

• A House-passed bill seeking to expand the scope of public-private transportation projects advanced in the Senate at the conclusion of the 2019-20 legislative session.

• Leadership for the next session of the General Assembly has been selected with top positions as follows: Bryan Cutler (R-Lancaster) – Speaker of the House, Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre) – House Majority Leader, Joanna McClinton (D-Philadelphia) – House Minority Leader, Jake Corman (R-Centre) – President Pro Tempore, Kim Ward (D-Allegheny) – Senate Majority Leader, and Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) – Senate Minority Leader.

• The Chamber will hold a virtual event with Senator Pat Browne on December 9. Read the full weekly update to learn more and register.

• Confirmed COVID-19 cases in Philadelphia have exceeded 56,400 with over 1,940 deaths.

• In response to the continued rise in COVID-19 cases in Philadelphia, City officials announced new “Safer at Home” restrictions on businesses, events and gatherings, and other activities that will go into effect on Friday, November 20, and will remain in place through January 1, 2021.

• Under the new guidelines, the following businesses and activities will be required to cease in-person operations: High schools and colleges, Indoor dining at restaurants and other foodservice businesses, theaters, libraries, museums, bowling alleys, arcades, casinos, group sports, gyms, and senior day services.

• Restaurants may remain open for outdoor dining, retail stores may operate under strict occupancy density guidelines, barbershops and salons can serve customers as long as everyone is wearing masks at all times, and offices are permitted to have only employees on-site that cannot work remotely.

• Earlier this week, the City adopted regulations for COVID-Pandemic Paid Sick Leave. Employers can contact the Office of Benefits and Wage Compliance for compliance assistance.

• Bills addressing a reduction in the ten-year tax abatement for commercial properties, the state of commercial corridors, and recognition of the University of Pennsylvania for pledging $100 million to support the Philadelphia School District were introduced during today’s City Council session.

• Legislation was reported on from the Committee on Law and Government that seeks to amend “Contracts and Procurement” in the Philadelphia Code to better understand and require reporting on the demographic characteristics of employees and board members of contractors and subcontractors that bid on City contracts.

• Today, City Council also voted to pass legislation that addresses jobs in the parking industry and the city’s Parking Tax, expands items that newsstands can sell, further legislates the landlord-tenant relationship during the pandemic, establish local business usage goals for City contracts, regulates the solicitation of property purchasers to homeowners, and provides eviction protections and financial relief to the restaurant industry.

• The Committee on Public Safety will hold a hearing on November 23 to discuss amendments to the “Fair Criminal Standards” in the Philadelphia Code.
• The Chamber will host a virtual event with Councilmembers Allan Domb on December 4. Read the full weekly update to learn more and register.

FY21 Spending

Congress has until December 11 to authorize government spending for FY2021 after passing a short-term continuing resolution weeks ago. Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee released the text of a dozen Fiscal Year 2021 spending bills in order to authorize government spending through September 30, 2021.  The House has already passed 10 of 12 of its spending bills last July, which included almost $235 billion in emergency spending – exempt from statutory spending limits – mostly in response to the pandemic. The Senate’s proposed spending bills do not include any emergency spending measures.

Senate Appropriations markups are unlikely to happen with the funding deadline only weeks away. House and Senate leaders have said that they want a full omnibus spending deal, not another stopgap measure that prolongs the debate into the next Congress and new year. Appropriations staff have therefore taken steps to negotiate top-line spending levels in order to begin drafting a final omnibus appropriations package for bipartisan, bicameral passage before the December 11 deadline. A continuing resolution that provides an additional week for negotiating and drafting is more likely to happen than a government shutdown.

COVID-19 Emergency Relief Package

Democrat and Republican leaders have said they would like to pass an additional COVID-19 relief package before the lame-duck session adjourns, but they have not agreed on size and scale of the package in addition to more partisan issues like state and local government aid as well as liability protections for businesses, hospitals, and higher education institutions.

At this juncture, there are no meaningful negotiations on an emergency relief package as both sides currently focus on the FY21 Omnibus. Talks for emergency spending may not begin in earnest until after the Thanksgiving recess. At that point, there may be efforts to attach an emergency supplemental appropriations bill to the FY21 Omnibus, or Congress may choose instead to advance a relief package separately. 

For their part, House Democrats would like to reach an agreement in December in order to clear the congressional agenda for the first 100 days of a Biden Administration. However, it’s difficult to see how that can happen.  Congressional leaders stand more than $1 trillion dollars apart on an acceptable spending level for economic relief and assistance.

Questions? Contact Anselm Sauter (asauter@chamberphl.com) for more information about federal legislative affairs.

Legislative Session Draws to a Close with Budget Agreement

Pennsylvania’s General Assembly will wrap up the Fiscal Year 2020-21 state budget today. Legislative leaders and the Governor came to an agreement around a 7-month budget that changed very little from the spending totals of FY 2019-2020. Last year’s approved spending plan was a $34 billion budget.

To fill a roughly $2 billion budget hole, members used some $1.1 billion of the $1.3 billion in CARES Act funding to offset General Fund budget items such as the state police and the Department of Health and Corrections. In addition to the CARES Act funding, roughly half of the state’s $340 million Rainy Day Fund, along with a continuation of enhanced federal matching payments for the state’s Medicaid program, and dollars from the state’s special funds were used to make up the final budget. Any increase in spending came from areas that require mandatory spending, such as state debt payments and human services programs.

In May, lawmakers approved a $25.8 billion budget. November 30 is the last day of their two-year session.

P3 Projects Bill Advances

A House-passed bill seeking to expand the scope of public-private transportation projects advanced in the Senate at the conclusion of the 2019-20 legislative session.

House Bill 2065 enables Pennsylvania’s Public-Private Transportation Partnership (P3) to take on projects involving electronic tolling, truck parking, weigh station bypassing and snow and ice removal for commercial vehicles. The bill would also allow large cities to participate in P3 agreements. The partnership’s current mandate covers road, rail, and mass transit projects.

The bill’s sponsor is Rep. Martina White (R-Philadelphia).

Senate Democrats Hold Leadership Elections

Pennsylvania’s Senate Democrats voted on new leaders on Thursday. Voting was postponed due to the delayed results of the race between Democrat incumbent Jim Brewster (Allegheny) and Republican challenger Nicole Ziccarelli. All leadership positions are as follows.

Pennsylvania House Republicans (Majority) elected the following members to leadership positions:

• Bryan Cutler (Lancaster) – Speaker of the House
• Kerry Benninghoff (Centre) – Majority Leader
• Donna Oberlander (Clarion) – Majority Whip
• Stan Saylor (York) – Majority Appropriations Chair
• Kurt Masser (Northumberland) – Majority Caucus Administrator
• Mike Reese (Westmoreland) – Majority Caucus Chair
• Martina White (Philadelphia) – Majority Caucus Secretary
• Martin Causer (McKean) – Majority Policy Committee Chair

Pennsylvania House Democrats (Minority) elected the following members to leadership positions:

• Joanna McClinton (Philadelphia) Democratic Leader
• Jordan Harris (Philadelphia) – Democratic Whip
• Matt Bradford (Montgomery) Appropriations Chair
• Mike Schlossberg (Lehigh) – Democratic Caucus Administrator
• Ryan Bizzaro (Erie) – Policy Chair
• Dan Miller (Allegheny) – Caucus Chair
• Tina Davis – (Bucks) Caucus Secretary

Pennsylvania Senate Republicans (Majority) elected the following members to leadership positions:

• Jake Corman (Centre) – President Pro Tempore
• Kim Ward (Allegheny) – Majority Leader
• Pat Browne (Lehigh) Chair, Appropriations Committee
• John Gordner (Northumberland)  Majority Whip
• Bob Mensch (Montgomery)  Majority Caucus Chairman  
• Ryan Aument (Lancaster) Majority Caucus Secretary

Pennsylvania Senate Democrats (Minority) elected the following members to leadership positions:

Pennsylvania Senate Democrats (Minority) elected the following members to leadership positions:

• Jay Costa (Allegheny) – Minority Leader
• Vincent Hughes (Montgomery) – Chair, Appropriations Committee
• Anthony Williams (Philadelphia) – Minority Whip
• Wayne Fontana (Allegheny) – Minority Caucus Chair
• Maria Collett – (Montgomery) – Minority Caucus Secretary
• Katie Muth – (Chester) – Minority Policy Chair

Upcoming Virtual State Adovocy Programs

• December 9 – State Advocacy Update with Senator Pat Browne »

Questions? Contact Liz Ferry (lferry@chamberphl.com) for more information about state legislative affairs.

COVID-19 Case Data

On Wednesday, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health reported the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Philadelphia has reached 56,472. The number of residents who have succumbed to the virus in Philadelphia has reached 1,942. Of the total deaths, 923 (48%) were long-term care facility residents.

Safer at Home COVID-19 Restrictions

In light of the continued rise in COVID-19 cases in Philadelphia, City officials announced changes to restrictions on businesses, events and gatherings, and other activities. The new “Safer at Home” restrictions will begin on Friday, November 20, and will remain in place through January 1, 2021. An extension of these restrictions and/or the implementation of additional restrictions is possible depending on trends in the spread COVID-19 in the city.

Changes to events and gatherings include:

• All indoor gatherings and events involving people from more than one household are prohibited, in public or private spaces. This includes private events such as weddings and showers, listed as “celebrations” in previous guidance, as well as funerals. 
• Religious institutions are permitted to have people indoors, but density must be capped at 5 people per 1,000 sq. ft. or 5 percent of maximum occupancy. 
• Outdoor gatherings and events are limited to 10 percent of the maximum capacity of the space, or 10 people per 1,000 sq. ft. for venues with an undefined maximum capacity — not to exceed 2,000 people in any outdoor space. In addition, all individuals at outdoor gatherings must wear masks at all times, and — to reinforce mask use — neither food nor beverages may be served.

The following businesses and activities will not be allowed:

• High schools and colleges must move to online instruction only, with the exception of clinical instruction for students in health sciences. 
• Indoor dining at restaurants and other foodservice businesses. (Takeout, delivery, and outdoor dining may continue. Additional restrictions on outdoor dining are detailed below.) 
• Theaters, including movie theaters, and other performance spaces. 
• Bowling alleys, arcades, and game spaces.
• Museums.
• Libraries. (Those serving as Access Centers may continue to operate. Curbside dropoff and pickup services for patrons are allowed.)
• Casinos.
• Recreational activities and sports for youth, community groups, and schools. 
• Gyms and indoor exercise classes. (Exercise groups and classes may continue outdoors.)
• Senior day services (senior centers and adult daycare centers) remain closed.

Additional changes to capacity limits and other precautions will be instituted for businesses and activities that are able to continue:

• Restaurants offering outdoor dining must reduce table sizes to four people. Guidance will make it clear that groups dining outdoors should be household members only, because mixing different households promotes community-wide spread.  
• Retail stores and indoor malls may continue to operate, but with a maximum density of 5 people per 1,000 square feet. The City will require these stores to enforce mask use and distancing of customers and staff.  
• Offices are permitted to have only employees that cannot work remotely.
• Barbershops, beauty salons, and similar personal services may continue to operate, but all staff and customers must wear masks at all times. These businesses cannot work on the face or otherwise perform services that require that masks be removed.
• College sports may continue if their plan is specifically approved by the Department of Public Health and no spectators are present. 
• Zoos may operate only their outdoor areas. 
• Parks, trails, playgrounds, and athletic fields will remain open for individual use only. (No group sports.) 

Businesses with questions about how to comply with the new restrictions should contact the Department of Commerce’s Office of Business Services at business@phila.gov or 215-683-2100. 

City Posts Paid Sick Leave Regulations

Earlier this week, the City adopted regulations for COVID- Pandemic Paid Sick Leave. Employers can contact the Office of Benefits and Wage Compliance at the Mayor’s Office of Labor for compliance assistance. For more information or to ask questions, email  COVID19WorkplaceProtections@phila.gov  or call (215) 686-0802. Language access is available.

Updates from City Council

Bill Introductions

• Council President Darrell Clarke introduced a bill to reduce the ten-year tax abatement for commercial properties.
• Councilmember Cherelle Parker introduced a resolution for Council to hold hearings regarding the state of commercial corridors.
• Councilmember Allan Domb introduced a resolution recognizing the University of Pennsylvania for pledging $100 million to support the Philadelphia School district.

Bills Reported from Committee

• Committee on Law and Government

Bill 200588- An Ordinance amending Title 17 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Contracts and Procurement,” by amending Chapter 17-100, entitled “Procurement Contracts,” to add disclosure requirements related to prior contracting experience and the demographic characteristics of employees and board members of contractors and subcontractors for City contracts for competitively bid goods;

Bill 200589- An Ordinance amending Chapter 17-100, entitled “Procurement Contracts,” by adding requirements related to the provision of information regarding the demographic characteristics of the employees of, and the labor force used by, City contractors and subcontractors in the performance of work under certain City contracts for competitively bid services.

Bill 200590- An Ordinance amending Title 17 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Contracts and Procurement,” by amending Chapter 17-100, entitled “Procurement Contracts,” and Chapter 17-1400, entitled “Non-Competitively Bid Contracts; Financial Assistance,” to add disclosure requirements related to prior contracting experience and the demographic characteristics of employees, other sources of labor, and board members of contractors and subcontractors for City contracts for public works, other competitively bid services, and professional services, and by adding reporting requirements.

Bills on Final Passage

This week, City Council voted to pass the following bills:

• Bill 200387- Amending The Philadelphia Code to add a new Section, entitled “Good Parking Jobs for Philadelphia Review Committee,” to provide for the creation of an advisory body to consider the quality of jobs and opportunities for workers in the parking industry and the potential to make adjustments to the Parking Tax, including with respect to the goal of reducing the parking tax to seventeen percent by July 1, 2022, based on a review of working conditions in the parking industry, and to provide reports related thereto.
• Bill 200591- Amending Section 9-212 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Newsstands,” by expanding the allowable items newsstands can sell and offer
• Bill 200420- Amending Chapter 9-800 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Landlord and Tenant,” to address matters related to the landlord and tenant relationship during the novel coronavirus of 2019 pandemic, including providing for the temporary waiver of certain fees.
• Bill 200421- Amending Chapter 9-800 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Landlord and Tenant,” to address matters related to the landlord and tenant relationship during the novel coronavirus of 2019 pandemic, including providing for repayment agreements.
• Bill 200353- Amending Section 17-109 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Local Bidding Preferences,” to amend reporting requirements to require the establishment of local business usage goals and reporting on reaching such goals as a way to assist community businesses recover from the COVID-19 pandemic
• Bill 200544- Amending Title 9 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Regulation of Businesses, Trades and Professions,” by adding a new Chapter, entitled “Residential Property Wholesalers,” to regulate the solicitation of purchases of real property and require certain disclosures by property purchasers to homeowners, and amending Chapter 9-1100 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Fair Practices Ordinance: Protections Against Unlawful Discrimination,” to provide protections to homeowners from solicitation and related problems.
• Bill 200574- Amending Title 9 of The Philadelphia Code to address matters related to commercial leases and provide eviction and financial relief to restaurant businesses that operate on leased premises.

View the status of pending bills and resolutions »

View upcoming confirmed City Council meeting dates and agendas »

City Council Hearing

• Committee on Public Safety

Monday, November 23, 2020 at 9:30 am

Bill 200479 – An Ordinance amending Chapter 93500 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards,” by amending definitions, revising restrictions, and amending and clarifying remedies.

Learn more about this bill »

City Council hearings are held in a remote manner using Microsoft Teams. This remote hearing may be viewed on Xfinity Channel 64, Fios Channel 40 or phlcouncil.com/watch.

Upcoming City Hall Connectors Virtual Programs

• December 4 – City Hall Connectors: Councilmember Allan Domb »

Sponsorship opportunities are available for our Advocacy programs to fit a variety of goals and budgets. Contact Tara Orio at  torio@chamberphl.com for more information.

The constantly changing nature of this public health crisis requires continued engagement with public policy developments. We invite you to reach out to our advocacy team directly with your questions: 

• Anselm Sauter, Federal Affairs – asauter@chamberphl.com 
• Liz Ferry, State Affairs – lferry@chamberphl.com 
• William Carter, Local Affairs – wcarter@chamberphl.com 

Chamber members are invited to join weekly legislative update calls hosted by our Advocacy team to hear the latest on COVID-19 relief and recovery efforts at the federal, state, and local level as well as other legislative matters concerning our community.

To learn more about how our region is preparing for recovery, visit our Recharge & Recover PHL Information Hub: