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Radio PA Roundtable – August 25-27, 2017

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On this week’s Radio PA Roundtable, new DUI laws in Pennsylvania and grocery bills from the Lieutenant Governor’s residence. Also, Senate President Pro Tem Joe Scarnati takes the House to task for its summer of inaction.

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Radio PA Roundtable – May 12-14, 2017

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On this week’s Radio PA Roundtable, a new poll shows a majority of Pennsylvanians in favor of a controversial issue for the first time ever; state lawmakers grapple with REAL-ID compliance in their own defiant way; and a politically-charged House committee spends valuable time this week debating, of all things, the Syrian civil war.

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This audio/video material is being presented by Radio PA and PAMatters.com for the private use of our web visitors. This copyrighted programming may not be broadcast, reproduced or otherwise exhibited without the written consent of Radio PA.

Radio PA Roundtable – May 9, 2014

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On this week’s Radio PA Roundtable, we devote the half-hour to coverage and commentary on an explosive state house committee meeting Wednesday that included a walkout by Democratic panel members. At issue: the effort by conservative State Representative Daryl Metcalfe to impeach the Democratic state Attorney General, Kathleen Kane.

Radio PA Roundtable is a 30-minute program featuring in-depth reporting, commentary and analysis on the top news stories of the week.

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Radio PA Roundtable – June 28, 2013

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On this week’s Radio PA Roundtable, the budget deadline looms! Lawmakers have until Sunday night to wrap up their spending plan and decide whether or not to address the major issues of transportation funding, alcohol privatization and pension reform. Also, amidst all the budget week hype, two state lawmakers knocked heads over the Supreme Court ruling on DOMA.

Radio PA Roundtable is a 30-minute program featuring in-depth reporting, commentary and analysis on the top news stories of the week.

Click the audio player below to hear the full broadcast:

Metcalfe vs. Sims: The Budget Week Undercard

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State Representative Brian Sims is an openly gay member of the state House of Representatives, and on Wednesday he took to the House floor to speak about the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling invalidating key provisions of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

House members are granted the privilege of speaking on any subject they wish under “unanimous consent,” meaning no other lawmakers object. Sims was 9 seconds into his remarks when unanimous consent was withdrawn by at least a handful of lawmakers, who at that time, rejected requests to name themselves. One of those lawmakers would later be revealed to be Conservative Butler County Republican Daryl Metcalfe, who would tell a Philadelphia radio station that he objected because Sims’ words would represent an “open rebellion to God’s laws.”

On Thursday, Sims got another chance to speak and requested that Metcalfe be reprimanded for his actions.

“My understanding of the rules of this body is that I could never call another member a bigot, a homophobe or a racist, nor would I. But I do ask that this body recognize that the language that was used against me as a member does not live up to the standards set by this body,” Sims said in his remarks.

No immediate action was taken and Sims was told that his complaint would be more appropriate for the Ethics Committee.

 

Pension Reform Bills Pass House Committee

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Two bills that would drastically change the public pension system in Pennsylvania have cleared the committee hurdle in the state House of Representatives.

The legislation passed the House State Government Committee Tuesday after a lengthy partisan debate over motives, effectiveness and even the timing of the committee meeting, which began at an earlier-than-usual 8:00am. Committee Chairman Daryl Metcalfe shot down Democrat attempts to table the bills, which now go to the full House.

During the debate, Metcalfe said that curtailing the retirement benefits of public sector employees might reduce their desire to be long-term public servants, suggesting that short-term tenures would be better for the state.

Metcalfe is an 8-term Republican member of the state House (16 years), with no indications he is opposed to running for a 9th term.

The legislation would make the shift to a 401k-style defined contributions retirement plan for all new state employees starting in 2015. Metcalfe says the bills also limit so-called “spiking,” whereby a state employee can work overtime or take a short-term promotion at the end of their career in order to raise their salary and thereby collect higher benefits in retirement.

Democrats suggested during the committee debate that the focus of the discussion had shifted to an outright contempt of public employees.

The Senate is also working on pension reform legislation and the issue is one of Governor Tom Corbett’s top priorities this legislative session.