HARRISBURG, PA — State Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, outlined his plan that would require municipalities to pay a fee if the Pennsylvania State Police provides part or all of their local municipal police patrol services.
House Bill 959 would phase in a municipal fee with a formula that replaces funding the Pennsylvania State Police is losing as a result of the cap on the Motor License Fund. The measure would charge a per capita, part- or full-time fee based on the most recent decennial census population. Municipalities receiving part-time state police coverage would be charged a rate of one-third of those receiving full-time state police coverage.
“The Pennsylvania State Police estimates that it costs them $234 per capita to provide local municipal patrol services to areas without local police. This bill offers these municipalities a bargain by phasing in a max fee of $110 over a 10-year period,” Sturla said. “It’s really about fairness and asking people to pitch in and pay for the services they are receiving. About 28 percent of the population is receiving coverage from PSP without paying for it and that’s really unfair to the other 72 percent of Pennsylvanians that are subsidizing free PSP coverage while paying for their own coverage.”
Municipalities that opt in after the enactment date would enter into an agreement with the Pennsylvania State Police commissioner for part- or full-time patrol services. The commissioner would establish fee schedules and agreement terms and renewals.
Sturla said H.B. 959 would generate more than $2 billion over an 11-year period for Pennsylvania State Police operations and protect the General Fund.
A stop to the Motor License Fund raid translates to more than 1300 lane miles of roadway improvements or the design, replacement and maintenance of 165 bridges.
Additional information about the bill is available at www.pahouse.com/Sturla or by clicking here.
SOURCE: Rep. Mike Sturla press release
