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HARRISBURG — A new legislative session starts today in Harrisburg, kicking off a two-year period that will likely feature debates over transit funding, the size of the budget, marijuana legalization, and more.
But first, state House and Senate lawmakers must elect chamber leaders and pass key rules that govern their behavior and influence how power is wielded in the commonwealth.
Negotiations could be tumultuous in the lower chamber, which Democrats control by a single vote.
Because of the narrow majority, any absence or vacancy could compromise Democrats’ ability to do business. The party is expected to start the session down at least one person after state Rep. Matthew Gergley (D., Allegheny) had a medical emergency during the holidays.
If Gergley is absent on Tuesday, Democrats and Republicans will have an equal number of votes, and Democrats will need at least some GOP lawmakers to get on board with their plans to elect a speaker and pass rules.
In a similar situation two years ago, a small group of powerful Republicans used Democratic vacancies to elect a speaker of their choice. The situation devolved into a bitter partisan struggle that left the legislature unable to function for three months, and contributed to a relatively slow and testy two years of legislating.
Neither caucus seems interested in another public battle, lawmakers privately told Spotlight PA, though it’s not clear where closed door negotiations over the rules will lead.
Here’s what to watch as Pennsylvania’s legislature grinds into operation once more:
What is the balance of power in Harrisburg?
Republicans control the state Senate 27-22, with one vacancy in a safe Republican district. The vacancy aside, that’s the same balance the chamber had last session.
In the state House, Democrats maintained their one-seat majority in November.
At least one member of the party is expected to be absent on Tuesday when the new session begins. State Rep. Matthew Gergley (D., Allegheny) had a medical emergency over the holidays, caucus spokesperson Beth Rementer said last week. Democrats haven’t offered additional information on his status.
What happens on the first day of session?
Passing rules is the biggest event of the first session day, but it isn’t the only one.
Both chambers also elect their presiding officers, which can sometimes be a dramatic or uncertain process — take 2023, for instance.
State Senate Republicans are expected to nominate Kim Ward (R., Westmoreland) to continue as the chamber’s president pro tempore, and the GOP has more than enough votes to ensure she wins.
State House Democrats are expected to again nominate Joanna McClinton (D., Philadelphia) for speaker. If Gergley is absent, she’ll need GOP votes to retake the office.
What do the rules do?
Rules are important because they set the guidelines lawmakers follow while passing legislation.
They cover everything from the size, number, and partisan makeup of legislative committees; to the step-by-step process to pass a bill; to etiquette when speaking on a chamber floor.
While rules don’t typically change significantly from session to session, small tweaks can make a big difference. For instance, state House Democrats passed a new definition of “majority” in 2023 that helped them run the chamber during a string of absences. They also made a few tweaks to the rules to empower the minority party, though the changes have had little impact.
Good-government groups often lobby for changes to the rules, like ending committee chairs’ abilities to single-handedly block legislation.
Which rules might change this session?
No major rule changes are expected in the state Senate.
State House leaders, meanwhile, were discussing a package Monday that could please both parties and avert another long, messy start to the session, Capitol sources told Spotlight PA.
Among the biggest changes under consideration in the lower chamber is expanding the number of committees. That would give both parties’ leaders more powerful committee chair positions to distribute to their membership.
That is of particular interest to Democrats, who historically have distributed chairs by seniority. Due to a wave of retirements, the party will need to pick new committee chairs from among a large class of lawmakers first elected in 2018. Democrats have privately told Spotlight PA that the question of who will get a chair position has been a sticking point.
Republicans, meanwhile, are hoping to gain a closer divide on committees — which currently have a 14-11 Democratic advantage — and remove Democrats' ability to table their floor amendments as a group rather than vote on each individually. Both concessions, they argue, would allow them to have a larger voice in legislative debates.
What legislation is on the table this session?
One of the biggest things lawmakers left unfinished in the last legislative session was a deal to provide additional funding to Pennsylvania's transit agencies. The largest, Philadelphia’s SEPTA, has warned of service cuts and fare hikes if more recurring funding doesn’t come through.
The issue is a priority for Democrats, but Republicans have signaled they’re open to working on it as long as the funding deal includes money for roads and comes with a dedicated revenue stream.
That revenue could come from regulation and taxation of skill games — slot-machine-like terminals that currently operate in a legal gray area. The issue is politically complicated, but members of both parties and chambers support regulation.
GOP leaders also say they want to pass more economic development measures while limiting budget growth.
Democrats, meanwhile, remain hopeful they can move a long-stalled amendment that would allow victims of child sexual abuse to sue the perpetrators. They also say they want to continue talks on legalizing recreational marijuana.
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