Senators OK medical marijuana legislationHARRISBURG — State senators voted Tuesday for a second time to send legislation to legalize medical marijuana to the House of Representatives, where the GOP majority has held hearings but otherwise given no signs of support.The 40-7 vote came seven months after senators passed an earlier bill that died in the House. Every Democrat voted yes, as did 21 of 28 Republicans, including Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson, and Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman, R-Centre.Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, supports the legalization of medical marijuana. However, leaders of the House Republican majority are not saying whether they support the Senate’s approach or if they will advance their own legislation.

Pension bill comes with warningHARRISBURG — Actuaries estimate that sprawling pension legislation being fast-tracked by Republicans in the Pennsylvania Senate could save $18 billion on more than $180 billion in projected payments over 30 years.Tuesday’s estimates came with a warning by one actuarial firm’s statement it didn’t have time for a complete review of all the bill’s elements. Senate Republicans plan a vote today, although Gov. Tom Wolf says his plan is better for taxpayers.The Senate GOP bill would end the traditional pension benefit that’s owed to about 370,000 state government and public school employees. Current retirees would be unaffected.Still, actuaries say the bill gets most of the estimated savings from requiring concessions from current employees.

Committee makes no recommendationHARRISBURG — A state Senate committee on Tuesday took the unusual step of sending Pedro Cortes’ nomination for a second stint as Pennsylvania’s secretary of state to the Senate floor without any recommendation.The State Government Committee voted without dissent after an hourlong hearing that largely focused on Cortes’ role in the case of former Philadelphia abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, who was convicted of murder and is serving a life sentence for killing three babies born alive during illegal abortions at his former clinic.Sen. Mike Folmer, the panel’s chairman, said the committee is divided over Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s nominee and that sending the nomination to the floor would move the confirmation process along.