PRINTER'S NO. 3115
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE RESOLUTION
No. 438
Session of
2024
INTRODUCED BY BRENNAN, STURLA, SCHLOSSBERG, NEILSON, HILL-EVANS,
DONAHUE, PIELLI, SANCHEZ, MALAGARI, CEPEDA-FREYTIZ, WAXMAN,
BELLMON, CERRATO, ROZZI, FREEMAN, BOROWSKI, HOGAN, DELLOSO,
DEASY, DALEY AND KAZEEM, MAY 20, 2024
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, MAY 20, 2024
A RESOLUTION
1 Directing the Joint State Government Commission to conduct a
2 study and establish an advisory committee to determine the
3 impact on Pennsylvania taxpayers of Pennsylvania State Police
4 full or partial police services for municipalities that do
5 not maintain full police coverage.
6 WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania State Police provides full-time and
7 part-time police coverage to municipalities that do not maintain
8 a local police department; and
9 WHEREAS, In 2017, Colonel Tyree Blocker, Commissioner of the
10 Pennsylvania State Police, disclosed that the per capita cost of
11 those services was $234 per person, per year for the 2.5 million
12 Pennsylvanians who live in municipalities that rely on some
13 level of Pennsylvania State Police coverage; and
14 WHEREAS, In 2013, the Pennsylvania State Police supplied 417
15 municipalities with part-time police coverage and 1,266 with
16 full-time service; and
17 WHEREAS, That amount has continued to increase, and in 2021,
18 the Pennsylvania State Police provided 428 municipalities with
 1 part-time police coverage and 1,293 with full-time service; and
2 WHEREAS, The Motor License Fund, intended to be dedicated to
3 funding infrastructure projects, has historically been tapped as
4 an additional source of revenue to fund the Pennsylvania State
5 Police, including to provide police coverage for municipalities
6 with a limited police department or no police department at all;
7 and
8 WHEREAS, In the current budget and in expected future
9 budgets, hundreds of millions of dollars of Motor License Fund
10 revenues are being redirected back from the Pennsylvania State
11 Police to the original intended purpose of funding
12 transportation infrastructure, just as more and more
13 municipalities are relying on the Pennsylvania State Police for
14 coverage; and
15 WHEREAS, Pennsylvania legislators have an obligation to
16 protect all Pennsylvania communities, law enforcement and
17 infrastructure in an equitable manner; therefore be it
18 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives direct the Joint
19 State Government Commission to conduct a study and establish an
20 advisory committee to determine the impact on Pennsylvania
21 taxpayers of Pennsylvania State Police full or partial police
22 services for municipalities that do not maintain full police
23 coverage; and be it further
24 RESOLVED, That the advisory committee be comprised of the
25 following members:
26 (1) The Secretary of Revenue or a designee.
27 (2) The Commissioner of Pennsylvania State Police or a
28 designee.
29 (3) The Secretary of Transportation or a designee.
30 (4) A representative of an organization that advocates
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 1 for chiefs of police.
2 (5) A representative of an organization that advocates
3 for municipal governments.
4 (6) Other individuals or representatives from
5 organizations selected by the Joint State Government
6 Commission;
7 and be it further
8 RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission, in
9 conducting the study, include findings and recommendations
10 regarding:
11 (1) The cost of Pennsylvania State Police full-time and
12 part-time police coverage to municipalities that do not have
13 their own local police department.
14 (2) The impact of that cost on the tax burden borne by
15 Pennsylvania taxpayers.
16 (3) The impact on police costs of municipalities which
17 do maintain a local police department regarding providing
18 police responses or services to neighboring municipalities
19 that do not maintain a local police department.
20 (4) The impact of an increasing number of municipalities
21 relying on Pennsylvania State Police for police coverage on
22 the ability of the Pennsylvania State Police to sustainably
23 provide services throughout this Commonwealth.
24 (5) An estimation of the level of fee that would be
25 necessary to cover the cost of Pennsylvania State Police
26 coverage to municipalities that do not have their own local
27 police department and municipalities that provide only
28 partial coverage if the State required a per capita fee to be
29 paid by municipalities relying entirely on the Pennsylvania
30 State Police coverage and to require municipalities and
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 1 individuals that receive part-time coverage to pay a fee
2 equal to one-third the per capita rate.
3 (6) The revenue and policy implications for police and
4 infrastructure if the Commonwealth were to impose the fee
5 calculated in the previous finding.
6 (7) The number of residents that rely entirely on the
7 Pennsylvania State Police for police service or that receive
8 part-time coverage from the Pennsylvania State Police.
9 (8) The comparative millage rates in municipalities that
10 pay for local police coverage and millage rates in towns that
11 rely solely on the Pennsylvania State Police for police
12 coverage.
13 (9) Any other costs or factors the Joint State
14 Government Commission considers appropriate in understanding
15 the impact on taxpayers of Pennsylvania State Police coverage
16 of municipalities that do not maintain a local police
17 department;
18 and be it further
19 RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission issue a
20 report of its findings and recommendations to the House of
21 Representatives no later than one year from the adoption of this
22 resolution.
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