The 2025 legislative session in the Pennsylvania General Assembly is well underway. As of the third week of April, here is a look at some of the legislation introduced by state representatives from Butler County:

So far this session, Bernstine has been the primary sponsor of three bills. Legislation introduced by Bernstine includes:

• HB454 would remove the need for a permit to carry a concealed firearm.

• HB 720 would require health care providers to inform parents if they put a do not resuscitate order in a minor’s file.

• HB849 would create a registry for certain types of child abuse similar to the one created under Megan’s Law for sexual offenses involving a minor.

Additional legislation yet to be introduced but circulating in search of cosponsors:

• would make any municipality deeming itself a sanctuary city liable for any damages to person or property caused by the criminal actions of a person in the country illegally.

• would classify drag performance as an adult-oriented industry.

• would require the Department of State to update its voter list daily rather than weekly; require a county board of elections to verify whether voter registration applicant is a qualified elector within 96 hours; levy a $50,000 fine for voting fraudulently; and award 50% of any fines levied for election-related crimes to the person who reported the crime.

• would eliminate lawmakers options to choose per diem rather than submit an actual expense report for reimbursement for business-related expenses.

• would allow a deduction of up to $10,000 for child care expenses.

• would require more stringent monitoring of and reporting requirements from Pennsylvania State University, Temple and Lincoln universities and the University of Pittsburgh.

• would allow teachers with a valid concealed carry permit to carry a gun on school property.

• would preclude the state parole board from releasing an inmate at the expiration of their minimum sentence if they have been convicted of a violent offense while incarcerated.

• would prevent the use of taxpayer money to fund lobbying.

• would sanction families receiving public assistance with children age 16 and younger who fail to meet school attendance requirements. Sanctions on public assistance range from individual to full family and can be a partial or full reduction of benefits.

• would require public bodies utilizing private contractors for projects to post any attached project labor agreement to its website 20 days prior to solicitation of bids for the project.

So far this session, Bonner has been the primary sponsor of nine bills and is one of multiple primary sponsors of two more. Legislation introduced by Bonner includes:

• HB349 would allow state police to “purchase” prior years of local police service to count toward their state retirement.

• HB348 would provide notice to nursing home residents and their families that they may be entitled to legal representation in applying for Medicaid.

• HB351 would prevent cities from instructing local law enforcement not to enforce state law or from levying penalties for crimes different from what state law dictates.

• HB898 would require gas pumps to display a sticker listing the amount of the state fuel tax.

• HB164 would allow parents to request the remains of a fetus from a failed pregnancy.

• HB934 would change the distance new landfills must be built away from occupied structures.

• HB935 would prohibit landfills from being located, reopened or expanded within three miles of the border of any municipality which has a population density of 1,000 or more people per square mile

• HB167 would allow designated survivors to approach a deceased individual’s bank, credit union or other savings organization with a receipt from a funeral home to collect $20,000, instead of $10,000, to cover any unpaid funeral expenses rather than go to court.

• HB165 would require pain medication to be administered to a fetus prior to an abortion if a pregnancy is more than 15 weeks along.

In conjunction with other state representatives:

• HB166 would change the burden of proof for imposition of a death sentence to beyond a reasonable doubt rather than just by a preponderance of the evidence.

• HB27 would require operating rooms to utilize surgical smoke evacuation systems to combat the adverse health effects of surgical smoke.

Additional legislation yet to be introduced but circulating in search of cosponsors:

• would require the Pennsylvania Sentencing Commission to gather pertinent information from the state and nation to develop fair and consistent bail guidelines for county judges.

• would waive the replacement fee for armed forces, veteran or law enforcement related special plates.

Additional legislation yet to be introduced in partnership with other representatives but circulating in search of cosponsors:

• would create a new criminal offense for deed fraud. The offense would include the attempt or accomplishment of illegal and fraudulent transfers of property ownership.

• would establish an Electronic Nicotine Delivery System directory listing vapor products that can legally be sold in Pennsylvania. It would require vapor product manufacturers to certify a product is under review or has been approved by the FDA, and outlaw vapor products designed to be uniquely appealing to children.

So far this session, Mustello has been the primary sponsor of two bills. Legislation introduced by Mustello includes:

• HB196 would raise the signatures required to be put on the ballot for election to a school board from 10 to 100.

• HB885 would give local breweries the same discount restaurants receive when purchasing products from the state liquor control board and raise the number of allowed off-sit storage facilities they utilize from two to five.

Additional legislation yet to be introduced but circulating in search of cosponsors:

• would permit beer and wine delivery by wine expanded permit licensees and third parties who hold transporter-for-hire permits through an online ordering and delivery platforms that they establish. It would also grant the rights to beer distributors and add to the state’s online retail ordering process another option for local delivery from state stores.

So far this session, Scialabba has been the primary sponsor of 10 bills and is one of multiple primary sponsors of eight more, six of which are packaged together. Legislation introduced by Scialabba includes:

• HB246 would prohibit colleges from requiring diversity courses.

• HB248 would require parental notice and approval for participation in school clubs and activities.

• HB251 would require higher education and research organizations that receive state funds to report any expenditures for student or staff traveling abroad a year in advance.

• HB259 would prohibit possession of child erotica that doesn’t meet the current standard to be considered child pornography.

• HB247 would allow delivery of eminent domain notices by certified mail rather than registered mail.

• HB440 would prevent payment of reimbursements from medical assistance for provider preventable conditions.

• HB249 would require all schools to have a written, uniform school counseling plan and lists requirements for that plan.

• HB252 would require parental notice of student access to or use of digital mental health resources.

• HB256 would allow the exemption of tuition savings accounts from providers other the state treasury from the state inheritance tax.

• HB445 would call for a joint resolution to amend the state constitution to add private land to the list requiring a warrant to search.

In conjunction with other state representatives:

• HB78 would establish consumer protection guidelines in regards to personal data collected online and require certain businesses to protect consumer privacy and limit the collection of consumer data.

• HB403 would prohibit municipalities or counties from adopting policies which prohibit the enforcement of state or federal laws pertaining to immigrants or immigration; require law enforcement with reasonable cause to believe that an individual being arrested is not legally present in the country to report the individual to federal authorities; and grant legal standing to any person injured to sue a municipality or county that released an individual with a detainer and did not make a good-faith effort to contact the proper immigration authorities.

• An additional package of six bills dubbed “Healthy PA” would require disclosure of certain chemicals in food, ban certain food dyes, create a legal definition of ultra-processed food, label foods containing butylated hydroxyanisole, label foods containing certain dyes, ban use of paraquat and incentivize the use of cover crops in agriculture.

Additional legislation yet to be introduced but circulating in search of cosponsors:

• would replace the current nomination process for the state Human Relations Commission to include two members of the commission appointed by each of the leaders of the General Assembly; and an additional member appointed by each the governor, attorney general and auditor general.

• would repeal regulations guiding the certification of teachers in regard to requirements concerning “culturally relevant and sustaining education” which call for a focus on mental health; teachers to “challenge their own beliefs, attitudes, assumptions and behaviors regarding the knowledge and backgrounds of dominant and nondominant social groups”; and teachers to “acknowledge that biases exist in the educational system” and advocate and engage “in efforts to rewrite policies, change practices, and raise awareness.”

• would add incest, endangering the welfare of children, corruption of minors and human trafficking to the list of actions constituting unlawful contact with a minor.

• would require the auditor general conduct an efficiency audit of major commonwealth spending programs modeled after federal Department of Government Efficiency actions.

• would require all state documents be printed solely in English.

• would raise the cap on the amount of money businesses could receive through a discount for the sales and use tax collected and remitted to the Commonwealth from $300 per year to $600.

• would include voluntary employee beneficiary associations to the list of entities considered commonwealth agencies under the right to know law.

• would permit parents to “excuse their children from attendance at school for religious reasons, to examine the educational and medical records of their children that are maintained by a school, and to actively participate in parent-teacher groups and other school-sanctioned organizations;” and require “that parents must consent to any medical decisions that are made on behalf of a student, to biometric scans and any other biological data gathering, and to the production and sharing of videos or voice recordings of students that are produced by schools.”

• would prohibit requiring REAL ID to enter state or local government buildings.

• would establish a state cybersecurity task force to identify “critical institutions and facilities in the Commonwealth” and “require utilities, schools and local governments” to establish safeguards against cyberattacks.

• would create state level provisions mirroring those of the federal Kids Online Safety Act.

• would repeal obscenity exemptions provided to public schools in the context of teaching certain subjects.

• would prohibit the use of taxpayer dollars to settle lawsuits of a personal nature.

• would limit student screen time in school and the use of AI.

• would establish work or volunteer time requirements to receive Medicaid.

Additional legislation yet to be introduced in partnership with other representatives but circulating in search of cosponsors:

• would make those who owe back taxes at the state and local level ineligible to run for office.