Posts Tagged ‘local government’

According to the October 2019 US Bureau of Labor Statics 22.6 million workers make up the total number of public sector employees in the United States. Of those 22.6 million, 14.6 million or 64.6% are local public sector employees. The pandemic, remote working, and the idea of “gigs” over a career has sparked numerous challenges in the job market for private and public employers. As a large population of the workforce enters and nears retirement age, hiring and retaining employees at the local level will be at the forefront of many local officials minds and meeting agendas. Compliance with employment… read more »

On Monday, April 20th, 2020, Governor Tom Wolf signed Act 15 2020 (the “Act”), which, among other things, has significant implications for the administration of local government in Pennsylvania for the duration of the Disaster Emergency that was declared on March 6th, 2020.Specifically, the Act addresses three issues relevant to local government: The Act allows municipalities, for the duration of Disaster Emergency, to conduct business through telecommunication devices, provided that public participation is permitted to the maximum extent possibleThe Act tolls the time limits for applications received by a municipality or pending before the municipality for a period of 30… read more »

As some of you may be aware, a memo has been circulating regarding Pennsylvania House Bill 1564, which proposes to allow municipalities to conduct fully electronic meetings, as well as suspending some permit application deadlines, among other things. The memo that indicates that the Pennsylvania municipal codes have been amended by House Bill 1564. This, unfortunately, is simply not true. The Bill has passed the House of Representatives unanimously, but no action has been taken by the Pennsylvania Senate. As we all know, a bill does not become a law unless passed by the both the House of Representatives and the Senate,… read more »