15 Pa. laws from 2021 that could affect your life

In Pennsylvania, laws to expand the pool of eligible substitute teachers, make it a crime to steal from the elderly, and improve transparency in government agencies were among those that took effect in 2021.

In all, the 100 laws enacted were a mere fraction of the more than 3,000 bills introduced in the House and Senate this past year, the first year of a two-year legislative session.

That leaves all but the five bills that Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed still alive in 2022, in what will be his final year of office.

While any new law carries an impact, perhaps the biggest game changers of the year were decisions that Wolf didn’t make. It was the voters and courts who did.

Voters sided with the majority of lawmakers who thought the governor’s emergency powers needed to be reined in, approving a constitutional amendment to limit the duration of a gubernatorial issued disaster declaration.

Then the courts came along earlier this month and dealt another blow to the executive branch’s powers when they lifted the acting health secretary’s school mask order, saying she lacked authority to issue such a mandate without going through the state’s rule-making process.

In a year fraught with distrust and discord over the response to the ongoing covid pandemic and protest over the 2020 presidential election, one thing didn’t change: Pennsylvania lawmakers still managed to pass a fair share of road and bridge namings. But they also did grind out new laws that may affect your life in some way. Here is a look at 15 of them:

Prescription assistance expansion

Two bills that were signed into law on Wednesday expand the pool of eligible seniors who can qualify for Pennsylvania’s PACENET prescription assistance program by raising income limits by $6,000, to $33,500 for individuals from $27,500 and to $41,500 for married couples from $35,500. The other related law ensures those who had qualified for PACE and PACENET programs will still be eligible regardless of the 5.9% cost-of-living increase in their Social Security benefits.

These laws are expected to help thousands of Pennsylvanians afford their medicine at a time when prices for seemingly everything else are on the rise. The increase in the PACENET income limits alone will benefit more than 10,000 Pennsylvanians who applied over the past year but their income was just over the limits, according to a spokeswoman for the state Department of Aging.

PACE and PACENET offer low-cost prescription medication to qualified residents age 65 or older. PACE has lower income eligibility limits than the PACENET program. The two programs provide prescription assistance to more than 250,000 older Pennsylvanians with the money to pay for them coming out of the state’s Lottery Fund.

Addressing the substitute teacher crisis

Schools across the commonwealth have struggled to find help to cover for teacher absences due to covid-19 and other issues that arose. That led to overcrowded classrooms, stressed-out educators, and lots of scrambling to keep schools open.

To help address this substitute teacher shortage, a new law that applies only to the remainder of this school year and 2022-23 provides more flexibility for who can fill those classroom assignments on an emergency or short-term basis. They include retired teachers, educators with inactive certificates, and college students majoring in education, as well as expanding the number of days a day-to-day substitute can work in a school.

Addressing nurse aide shortage

Students participating in state-approved nurse aide training programs will now be able to take the education portion of their training online instead of in-person. The goal is to help with the shortage of health care staff in nursing facilities and gives students the flexibility of taking classes to fit their schedules.

District attorney eligibility

A new law requires district attorneys to have an active law license. This law resulted from the actions of a few district attorneys whose law licenses fell into jeopardy after allegations of criminal misbehavior.

From now on, if a district attorney is disbarred, their office is deemed vacant. If their law license is suspended, they would be barred from the office until the license is restored or their term expires, whichever comes first.

No more surprise votes

The days of governmental boards in Pennsylvania acting on items of public interest without any notice are gone for the most part.

A new law requires boards to publish their meeting agendas at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting. Once posted, the agency cannot take official action on any item not on the agenda except in very limited situations.

Shawn’s Law

An online chat forum that contributed to a Newberry Township woman’s suicide gave rise to a new law to strengthen the penalties against those convicted of what the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Dawn Keefer, R-York County, called “murder by proxy.”

Named in memory of Shawn Shatto who was suffering from depression when she followed an online forum’s step-by-step guidance on how to die by poisoning, this new law strengthens the penalties for those convicted of encouraging or aiding a suicide of a minor or someone with intellectual disabilities.

Closing the digital divide

Republican and Democratic policymakers alike hailed a new law creating the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority as a game-changer for farmers, business owners, teachers, students, doctors, patients, virtually anyone hampered by slow or no internet service.

The authority will serve as a central point to manage at least $100 million in federal aid coming to Pennsylvania to expand broadband capabilities in underserved and unserved areas with construction of new towers, lines, and broadband equipment. Without the authority, one of the many champions behind the bill, Rep. Pam Snyder, D-Greene County, said Pennsylvania could lose out on that funding.

New state holidays

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania added a few more holidays — but no days off from school or work — to its residents’ calendar to pay tribute to the sacrifice and service of veterans and emergency responders. March 6 is now Persian Gulf Veterans Day. Oct. 7 is Global War on Terrorism Veterans Day and Sept. 27 is First Responders Day.

The legislation makes it clear schools are encouraged to participate in exercises in observance of these public servants. But specifically on First Responders Day, schools are barred from closing to observe this day.

Cracking down on child porn

A new law cracks down on anyone convicted of child pornography where the victim is 10 years of age or younger or is known by their abuser.

This law provides for upgrading the sentence for possessing, disseminating, photographing, videotaping or any other means involving pornographic images of children 10 or under. It also allows for increased penalties for those who sexually abuse children who are known to them. And it creates a task force to review the state’s child pornography laws and make recommendations for improvements.

While it doesn’t officially have his name attached to it, this law pays tribute to the late Sen. Dave Arnold of Lebanon County. Arnold, who died earlier this year, was a former district attorney who once said he had seen far too many child pornography cases and made increasing the penalties for these crimes his priority.

Longer shelf life for milk

A new law recognizes the advancement in laboratory testing that allows milk’s sell-by or best-by dates to have a few extra days on store shelves.

The law requires milk processors to apply for Department of Agriculture approval to exceed the state’s 17-day of pasteurization if they met certain testing requirements by four days, to 21 days. According to the department, three of the state’s largest volume dairy distributors — Turner Dairy, United Dairy and Dairy Farmers of America’s Swiss Premium brand — won approval.

Not only did extending the shelf life give Pennsylvania milk makers a competitive advantage in the national marketplace, it eliminates needlessly throwing away milk that hasn’t reached the sour stage.

Funding the fight against breast cancer

Donating to the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition got a bit easier this year. A new law allows drivers who apply at PennDOT for a vehicle registration or driver’s license to simply check a box to donate $5.

The funding will assist the nonprofit in its efforts to find a cure for a disease that takes an estimated 2,000 women’s lives in Pennsylvania annually.

Freeing the lemonade stand

Pennsylvania’s young entrepreneurs no longer have to worry about some of the red tape that adults encounter when operating a small business.

A new law exempts anyone under 18 years of age from having to obtain a license to operate a business that is open less than 84 days a year and generates less than $5,000 in profits (or more if for charitable purposes).

Repeat a grade by choice

While it wasn’t an idea that drew a lot of interest, state lawmakers passed a law that gave parents or guardians full control to decide whether their child should pass up being promoted to the next grade this school year.

This law, effective just for the 2021-22 school year, was intended to allow kids who suffered from covid-related learning gaps to repeat a grade if a parent felt it was necessary. But there weren’t many takers in part because of the one-week turnaround time to complete the form.

Protecting grandma’s life savings

A new law makes it a criminal offense to financially exploit an older adult or a care-dependent person.

Who would do such a thing? According to a report issued by the state Department of Aging, which examined cases that have occurred in Pennsylvania, family members were by far the most common perpetrators who exploited their kinfolk through unauthorized bank withdrawals, scams or loan fraud.

Under this law, the grading of the offense varies depending on the dollar value of the property loss taken by a person who is in a position of trust who wrongfully or without authorization rips off an older or care-dependent person.

Protecting organ donors

A new law bars life or health insurance companies from discriminating against an organ or tissue donor. It also requires employers to provide family and medical leave to eligible employees to prepare for and recover from donation surgery.

In addition to providing protections to donors who willingly give up a piece of themselves to help out another, this could help to boost the number of people willing to make such a life-saving gift.

What didn’t become law

Five bills vetoed by Gov. Wolf would have:

• Made sweeping changes to the state’s election laws

• Allowed courts to turn over unpaid fees, fines and costs to collection agency when a defendant absconds or fails to appear

• Banned proof of covid vaccination requirements on public-funded colleges and universities and governmental agencies and imposed limits on the health secretary’s authority

• Removed the need for a permit to carry a concealed weapon

• Required public schools to post online information about the educational materials they use in classrooms