Summary of Legislation the House Voted on 3rd from 9/30 – 10/8
Rep. Melissa Cerrato October 15, 2025 | 11:03 AM
9/29/25
HB0097 - (Kulik, Anita) 121-82
In divorce cases where there is a dispute over pet custody, either party may ask the court to decide who will have possession or care of the animal. If the pet is a service animal, custody is presumed to go to the party who relies on it, otherwise the court will weigh factors such as who meets the animal’s daily needs, provides veterinary care, ensures social interaction and compliance with regulations, and has the greater financial ability to support it.
HB0589 - (Kinkead, Emily) 152-51
This bill creates the Landslide and Sinkhole Insurance Program to provide for state-run landslide and sinkhole insurance in Pennsylvania.
HB1108 - (Nelson, Eric and Giral, Jose) 198-5
House Bill 1108 updates Pennsylvania’s Human Services Code to expand access to subsidized childcare by raising income limits, guaranteeing 12 months of continuous eligibility, and aligning the program with new federal rules. It also revises copayments by removing the five-dollar weekly minimum, setting income-based ranges, and requiring at least 25 million dollars annually to support expanded eligibility so that more families can maintain affordable, stable childcare.
HB1212 - (Abney, Aerion) 198-5
This bill amends Pennsylvania’s Health and Safety Code to promote fatherhood engagement as a way to improve maternal and infant health. It directs the Department of Health to launch a public awareness campaign and provide educational materials for providers, while the Joint State Government Commission will study the effectiveness of these efforts.
HB1667 - (Takac, Paul) 182-21
This legislation amends Title 75 to allow a parking authority or enforcement office to suspend a vehicle registration once a driver has at least six unpaid parking tickets or fines totaling five hundred dollars, provided the office has an enforcement agreement with PennDOT. It also requires advance written warning after four unpaid tickets, limits the change to violations issued after the effective date, and updates related provisions on surrender and reinstatement of registration.
9/30/25
HB1099 - (Cephas, Morgan, and; Kenyatta, Malcom) 101-102 Failed
This legislation amends Title 18 to prohibit the manufacture, sale, possession, or transfer of firearms that cannot be detected by standard security screening equipment, including those made entirely of nonmetal materials or lacking a major component such as the barrel, slide, cylinder, frame, or receiver. A violation of this section is classified as a third-degree felony.
HB1593 - (Warren, Perry) 104-99
This bill amends Title 18 Section 6111 by repealing the provision that exempts long gun purchases from background check requirements. With the exception removed, long guns would be subject to the same background check process as other firearms.
HB1615 - (Kauffman, Robert and; Briggs, Tim) 203-0
This legislation responds to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s Shifflett decision by creating a new offense, DUI following diversion, which allows a prior ARD for DUI to be considered by a jury in grading and sentencing subsequent DUI convictions. It establishes penalties equivalent to a second offense DUI, requires records of ARD completion to be retained for twelve years, amends related provisions including homicide by vehicle while DUI, and updates outdated statutory language.
HB1651 - (Freeman, Robert) 189-14
This legislation amends Section 407 of the Second-Class Township Code to clarify that when a majority of township supervisor seats are vacant, the Court of Common Pleas will fill the vacancies upon petition by the remaining supervisors or fifteen registered electors. It also creates an expedited vacancy board process, allows proceedings to end within fifteen days under certain conditions, and prohibits a vacancy board chairperson from voting to appoint themselves to an office.
HB1859 - (O'Mara, Jennifer) 101-102 Failed
This legislation amends the Uniform Firearm Act to prohibit individuals who are subject to an extreme risk protective order from possessing firearms. It creates a new chapter that allows law enforcement officers or family and household members to petition the court for such an order.
10/1/25
HB0078 - (Neilson, Ed) 127-7
House Bill 78 creates the stand alone Consumer Data Privacy Act, establishing a legal framework to protect the personal information of Pennsylvania consumers. The legislation sets requirements for how businesses collect, use, and share data, giving individuals greater control and transparency over their personal information.
HB0102 - (Kulik, Anita) 137-66
This legislation amends the harassment statute in Title 18 to elevate the offense from a summary to a third-degree misdemeanor when the victim is a sports official targeted because of their role. It also defines “sports official” broadly to include referees, coaches, umpires, trainers, school administrators, and others responsible for enforcing or supervising sporting events.
HB0722 - (Daley, Mary Jo, Rabb, Christopher M., & Major, Abby) 152-51
House Bill 722 amends Title 1 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes to add a definition of cremation that explicitly includes alkaline hydrolysis as an approved method. The definition covers the technical process of reducing human remains to bone fragments, along with their processing, pulverization, and placement in a cremated remains container.
HB0997 - (Solomon, Jared) 112-91
House Bill 997 amends the Breach of Personal Information Notification Act to require individuals and entities that collect personal data to take reasonable steps to protect it and to compensate consumers if a breach occurs. It also expands enforcement authority by allowing not only the Attorney General but also Pennsylvania residents to bring actions for violations of the act.
HB1176 - (Ciresi, Joseph) 203-0
This legislation makes three updates to Title 20 by redirecting estates without wills or heirs to local endowed community funds, raising the amount banks may release to family members for funeral expenses from ten thousand to twenty thousand dollars, and increasing the unclaimed property affidavit limit from eleven thousand to twenty thousand dollars. Together, these changes modernize estate and inheritance procedures, provide greater financial support for families, and ensure unused assets can benefit local communities.
HB1331 - (Harris, Jordan) 185-18
House Bill 1331 establishes the Capital Budget Project Itemization Act for Fiscal Year 2025–26, authorizing more than 31.3 billion dollars in capital projects across categories including public improvement, transportation, redevelopment, flood control, and the Fish and Boat Fund. Most of the funding will come from debt financing, with debt service paid from the General Fund or other applicable special funds.
HB1608 - (Neilson, Ed) 191-12
This legislation amends Title 74 to establish Chapter 98, authorizing PennDOT and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission to use Design-Build Best Value procurement for projects. The change allows these agencies to consider both cost and qualitative factors when awarding contracts, rather than relying solely on lowest bid.
HB1704 - (Warren, Perry) 203-0
This legislation amends Title 68 to require home sellers to disclose flood-related risk factors—such as prior flood damage, location in a flood zone, flood insurance requirements, and past claims—on the seller’s disclosure form. It also directs the Insurance Department to maintain a public website with flood information, mandates a standard flood disclosure form for buyers, and gives the State Real Estate Commission eighteen months to update the official disclosure form.
HB1866 - (Steele, Sanchez, Cepeda-Freytiz) 101-102 Failed
This legislation amends Title 18 Section 908 to add machinegun conversion devices to the list of prohibited offensive weapons, adopting the federal definition of “machinegun” and defining such devices as parts that increase a semiautomatic firearm’s rate of fire to mimic a machinegun. A violation is classified as a first-degree misdemeanor, carrying penalties of up to five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, and a resulting firearms disability.
10/06/25
HB0587 - (Friel, Paul) 196-7
House Bill 587 amends Title 3 to establish a certification program for Commercial Haulers and Brokers of Animal and Food Processing Residuals, modeled after the existing hauler/broker certification system. It also distinguishes between animal-derived residuals, such as those from poultry, livestock, or dairy, and non-animal sources like fruits and vegetables.
HB1418 - (Merski, Bob) 190-13
House Bill 1418 amends Title 30 to exempt operators of motorboats with 25 horsepower or less, excluding personal watercraft, from the boating safety education requirement. It also directs the Fish & Boat Commission to issue certificates to individuals who complete an approved safety course, pay the required fees, and request a replacement or duplicate, mirroring the provisions of companion bill SB 476.
10/07/25
HB0145 - (Krajewski, Rick) 106-97
This legislation amends the Unemployment Compensation Act to allow workers affected by a work stoppage to collect unemployment benefits after the standard waiting week. By repealing Section 402(d), it expands eligibility so that employees directly involved in or connected to a labor dispute may still qualify for benefits.
HB0441 - (Pielli, Christopher) 102-101
House Bill 441 amends the Wild Resource Conservation Act to authorize the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to designate wild native terrestrial invertebrates as protected species. This change expands conservation protections beyond plants and vertebrate wildlife to include insects and other land-dwelling invertebrates.
HB1734 - (Cerrato, Melissa) 203-0
This legislation amends Title 74 to extend the timeframe for rental vehicle owners to appeal electronic toll violations from 30 to 60 days. To avoid liability, lessors must provide the Turnpike Commission with rental contract details identifying the lessee, who will then be held responsible for the tolls and fees.
SB0246 - (Coleman) 202-1
This legislation amends the Public-School Code to require schools—public, nonpublic, and private—to notify parents, guardians, and employees within 24 hours of incidents involving weapons, harassment, or violations of local weapons policies. It sets rules for how and to whom notifications must be sent, ensures law enforcement reporting and emergency procedures remain intact, prohibits self-identifying details about students in most notices, and bars notifications from conflicting with collective bargaining agreements.
SB0467 - (Pisciottano, Nickolas) 102-101
This legislation authorizes the release and transfer of Project 70 restrictions on certain lands in West Mifflin, allowing the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission to use them for construction of the Mon-Fayette Expressway. In exchange, Project 70 protections will be imposed on 28 acres along Camp Hollow Road, mitigating the loss of restricted land from Fleetwood Drive Playground and West Mifflin Community Park.
10/08/25
HB0664 - (Webster, Joe) 104-99
House Bill 664 amends the State Highway Law to require PennDOT, in consultation with DEP, to develop a Road Salt Management Best Practices Guide within one year to help minimize environmental impacts. The guide must be updated annually and made publicly available on PennDOT’s website, though its use by local governments is voluntary.
HB1701 - (Fiedler, Elizabeth) 103-100
This legislation amends Section 701.1 to include administrative buildings in school district expenditure standards and creates a new Article VII-A establishing a comprehensive framework for public school facility oversight. It requires the Department of Education to provide technical assistance, maintain a statewide facility inventory, conduct condition assessments with input from a new advisory committee, and ensure each school entity develops and publicly posts a modernization plan based on its assessment.
HB1702 - (Goughnour, Dan) 150-53
This legislation amends the Liquor Code to permit liquor licensees to store and serve “ready to draft pre-mixed keg cocktails,” defined as cocktails prepared on-site by combining a non-alcoholic base with liquor in sealed kegs for on-premises dispensing. These keg cocktails are explicitly distinguished from decanters and must comply with existing cleaning standards and container expiration requirements.
HB1874 - (Powell, Lindsay) 143-60
House Bill 1874 amends Section 701 of the TRID Act to allow incremental tax revenues from value capture areas to be deposited into a dedicated fund for redevelopment authorities, both during and after the life of a TRID. The bill clarifies that revenues must be used within the area they are generated, providing redevelopment authorities with a sustainable funding mechanism while still allowing taxing bodies to benefit from an expanded tax base.
SB0160 – (Harris, Jordan) 105-98
This bill provides state and federal appropriations for the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the Commonwealth for fiscal year 2025/26, covering the period from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026. Funding is drawn from the General Fund, special funds, and restricted accounts, with no changes in appropriation levels from the prior year. The General Fund appropriations remain at $46.9 billion in state funds and $45.9 billion in federal funds, while other funds such as the Lottery Fund, Motor License Fund, Tobacco Settlement Fund, and PennVEST programs also hold steady at their 2024/25 levels. The legislation does not include executive authorizations, non-preferred appropriations, or supplemental appropriations for the prior fiscal year, effectively maintaining flat funding across all accounts.