PRINTER'S NO. 1822
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE BILL
No.
1282
Session of
2024
INTRODUCED BY MILLER, COSTA, FONTANA AND KEARNEY, JULY 12, 2024
REFERRED TO URBAN AFFAIRS AND HOUSING, JULY 12, 2024
AN ACT
Amending the act of May 28, 1937 (P.L.955, No.265), entitled "An
act to promote public health, safety, morals, and welfare by
declaring the necessity of creating public bodies, corporate
and politic, to be known as housing authorities to engage in
slum clearance, and to undertake projects, to provide
dwelling accommodations for persons of low income; providing
for the organization of such housing authorities; defining
their powers and duties; providing for the exercise of such
powers, including the acquisition of property by purchase,
gift or eminent domain, the renting and selling of property,
and including borrowing money, issuing bonds, and other
obligations, and giving security therefor; prescribing the
remedies of obligees of housing authorities; authorizing
housing authorities to enter into agreements, including
agreements with the United States, the Commonwealth, and
political subdivisions and municipalities thereof; defining
the application of zoning, sanitary, and building laws and
regulations to projects built or maintained by such housing
authorities; exempting the property and securities of such
housing authorities from taxation; and imposing duties and
conferring powers upon the State Planning Board, and certain
other State officers and departments," providing for training
requirement for members of authority.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of May 28, 1937 (P.L.955, No.265),
referred to as the Housing Authorities Law, is amended by adding
a section to read:
Section 6.1. Training Requirement for Members of
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Authority.--(a) The Department of Community and Economic
Development shall establish and implement a mandatory training
program for members of housing authorities. The training program
shall be developed by the Department of Community and Economic
Development in consultation with representatives of housing
authorities, municipal officials, public housing residents,
housing industry professional organizations or a Statewide
housing association and relevant Federal and State agencies.
(b) Each newly appointed member shall satisfactorily
complete the training program no later than one hundred eighty
(180) days following the beginning of the term of office of the
member.
(c) An individual serving as a member of an authority on the
effective date of this section shall satisfactorily complete the
training program within one hundred eighty (180) days of the
effective date of this section.
(d) Following an initial or subsequent reappointment to an
authority, a member shall complete the training program within
one hundred eighty (180) days of the member's reappointment.
(e) An authority may remove a member who does not complete
the training program.
(f) The course curriculum for the training program shall
consist of a minimum of eight (8) hours of instruction delivered
either in person, online, virtually or remotely, and shall
include, at a minimum, information modules that encompass the
following topics or areas:
(1) Fair housing fundamentals and protections, reasonable
accommodations and prevention of hate, harassment and
discriminatory practices.
(2) Fiscal management, budgeting and capital planning.
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(3) Board governance best practices and fiduciary
responsibilities.
(4) Best practices relating to building code compliance,
including the general inspection, maintenance and repair of
housing units.
(5) Strategies for crime prevention and drug elimination.
(6) Ethics and open meetings, including the requirements
under 65 Pa.C.S. Chs. 7 (relating to open meetings) and 11
(relating to ethics standards and financial disclosure).
(7) The act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the
Right-to-Know Law.
(8) Any other topic deemed appropriate by the Department of
Community and Economic Development to enable a member of an
authority to serve effectively.
(g) The training program shall be made available by the
Department of Community and Economic Development at no cost to
an authority or its members.
(h) The Department of Community and Economic Development
shall use money appropriated by the General Assembly for the
purpose of underwriting the cost of providing and administering
the training program.
(i) The Department of Community and Economic Development may
partner or contract with a third-party entity to develop and to
deliver the training program.
(j) The Department of Community and Economic Development may
approve alternative training programs that fulfill the
requirements of this section which may be provided by an
authority to its members at the authority's own expense.
(k) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit
an authority from offering additional training programs or other
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learning activities in addition to the training program. The
costs of any additional training programs or other learning
activities may not be paid by the Department of Community and
Economic Development .
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 180 days.
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