• After the July 2, 2025, meeting of the Commonwealth Drought Task Force, a drought watch has been lifted for the remaining eight counties that were previously in a drought watch. 
• Berks, Chester, Cumberland, Delaware, Franklin, Lehigh, Philadelphia and Washington Counties all returned to a “normal” status. 
• While all of the Commonwealth has officially returned to a normal status concerning drought, there may be pockets of the Commonwealth that continue to experience a slow recovery. 
• The drought conditions in late 2024 were significant and in some areas were the driest on record since 2002. 

• House vs. Senate tension: The Democratically-controlled House passed a $50.6 billion spending bill in mid-July, trimming ~$900 million from Gov. Shapiro’s $51.5 billion proposal from February.

• But the GOP Controlled Senate has not agreed, pushing for further changes.

• Ongoing high-stakes negotiations: Talks are described as "cordial" but painstaking, with core disagreements over mass transit funding, Medicaid costs, tax revenues (like skill games vs. cannabis legalization), impacting tens of billions in spending.

Immediate Impacts

• $2.5 billion in delayed funding: Most of that includes:
• $2 billion for schools and educational programs
• $542 million for health and human services, including county child welfare

• Contractors with state contracts will not be paid.

• Counties alarmed: Without an enacted budget, counties can’t distribute funds for mental health, child protection, homelessness services, and other essential programs, raising serious concerns statewide.

• SEPTA faces service cuts: Southeastern Pennsylvania’s transit authority must secure $213 million by August 14 to avoid fare hikes and service reductions. Budget delay continues to threaten these vital services.

What’s Next

• Short-term plan brewing: The Senate may propose a stopgap (six-month) budget to keep programs funded temporarily, although state Democrats strongly oppose this, insisting on a full 12-month budget.

• Continued negotiation pressure: Funding for transit, Medicaid reform, and revenue streams remain top points of contention as lawmakers talk behind closed doors.

The new Annual Report filing begins in calendar year 2025. The long-time decennial report requirement has been repealed. 

NOTE: This is a new STATE requirement and is not connected to the federal Beneficial Ownership Information reports discussed here.

Similar again to other states, failure to file the Annual Report will subject the association to administrative dissolution/termination/cancellation and loss of the protection of its name.

Who Must File

The annual report filing is required for:

• Domestic business corporations
• Domestic nonprofit corporations
• Domestic limited liability companies
• Domestic limited liability (general) partnerships
• Domestic electing partnerships that are not limited partnerships
• Domestic limited partnerships (including limited liability limited partnerships)
• Domestic professional associations
• Domestic business trusts
• Foreign business corporations
• Foreign nonprofit corporations
• Foreign limited liability companies
• Foreign limited partnerships (including limited liability limited partnerships)
• Foreign limited liability general partnerships
• Foreign professional associations
• Foreign business trusts

When You Must File

For all corporations (business and nonprofit, domestic and foreign), the deadline is June 30 of each year. The deadline for limited liability companies (domestic and foreign) is September 30, and the annual report of any other domestic filing entity or foreign filing association is due on or before December 31 of each year.

• Corporations (business and nonprofit) domestic and foreign - Jan. 1 - Jun. 30
• Limited liability companies domestic and foreign - Jan. 1 - Sept. 30
• All other associations (limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, business trusts, professional associations) domestic and foreign - Jan. 1 - Dec. 3

To register your business, click here.

PLNA Members Appointed to CPE Board

So far, five PLNA members have been appointed to the CPE board of directors, Jim MacKenzie, Octoraro Native Plant Nursery in Kirkwood (second from left in picture above); Christopher Uhland, Harmony Hill Nurseries in Downingtown; Ted Ventre, Hively Landscapes in Dover; Amanda Bastiaance, Quality Greenhouses in Dillsburg; and Paul Redman, Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square. A complete list of the center's board members can be accessed here.

Critical Time for Industry

Speaking at the kick-off event, MacKenzie said, "The creation of the Center for Plant Excellence (CPE) comes at a critical time for our green industry. Horticulture in Pennsylvania is in a state of steady decline as evidenced by the USDA Agricultural Statistics center data over the past 15 years.

"But we remain hopeful as a new generation of young leaders emerge that embrace our industry, it’s lifestyle and the benefits to the environment and Pennsylvania’s citizens."

Penn State Extension to Manage Center

The center is launching in partnership with Penn State Extension. The state legislature approved $500,000 over the past two fiscal years to get the center up and running. Another $250,000 is proposed for the upcoming fiscal year.

The center’s goal is to advance research, innovation, and business growth in Pennsylvania’s plant-based agriculture sector.

Sector Contributes $52.7 Billion to Economy

The specialty crops sector includes forest products, ornamental plants, apples, grapes, and other specialty food crops. Combined, they contribute an estimated $52.7 billion annually to the state economy, according to the 2021 Pennsylvania Agriculture Economic Impact Study.

The center is meant to provide a centralized and coordinated effort for growth and innovation among the industries, as the state’s existing Centers for Animal Excellence do.

All contributions matched dollar for dollar by Mike Feeney of Feeney's Wholesale Nursery up to the goal of $5,000!

Over the past twenty years, PLNA has saved the landscape and nursery industry millions of dollars through its legislative efforts with the Pennsylvania General Assembly.  Please consider the savings that PLNA’s legislation efforts have had on your business and consider donating a small portion of those saving to PLNA’s PAC. The PAC provides PLNA the visibility and access to decision-makers on the Hill necessary to continue those successful efforts.

Help us reach our goal of $5,000 by Friday, December 13, 2024! Every contribution, no matter the size, makes a difference.

Please note that corporate funds are not permitted to be donated to political action committees in Pennsylvania, so no corporate checks or corporate credit cards can be accepted.

Thank you for your continuing support of PLNA’s legislative efforts!

Donate here: https://www.plna.com/page/PLNA_PAC

For more information on PLNA PAC, click here.

Donate to the PLNA PAC now: https://www.plna.com/page/PLNA_PAC

All contributions matched dollar for dollar by Mike Feeney of Feeney's Wholesale Nursery up to the goal of $5,000!

PLNA is conducting a Political Action Committee (PAC) Drive and here's why you should contribute:

Over the past twenty years, PLNA has saved the landscape and nursery industry millions of dollars through its legislative efforts with the Pennsylvania General Assembly:

• Stopped a fertilizer applicator registration and certification law that duplicated existing pesticide registration and certification requirements, saving the industry as much a $10 million annually in new fees and lost work hours.
• Enacted a law that exempts high tunnels, poly houses and hoop houses from real estate taxation by counties, saving the industry millions in real estate taxes.
• Enacted a law that exempted high tunnels, poly houses and hoop houses from the Storm Water Management Act (SWMA), again saving the industry millions in local government fees and the costs of engineering studies required by the SWMA.
• Enacted a law that exempted high tunnels, poly houses and hoop houses from the Unfirm Construction Code (UCC) that would have required that fire suppression systems, bathrooms and other UCC requirements be installed in these structures, saving the industry millions in design and construction costs.
• Defanged an onerous organized labor-backed bill that would have allowed unions to sue companies who hired independent contractors. Although the bill finally passed, PLNA-backed amendments stripped out the union suit provisions and made the bill a non-issue.
• Secured a provision in the home Improvement contractor law that exempts companies that do only plant installations and hold a nursery dealers’ license from registering under the Home Improvement Contractor law.
• Secured an amendment to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which brought $180 million in green infrastructure projects into Pennsylvania.
• Secured an amendment in the Pennsylvania Water Resources Planning Act to have a representative of the horticulture industry on the state and regional water planning boards.
• Secured an amendment to the state drought emergency regulations that allow water gardens and water features to continue to be installed and maintained under a general permit and allows hand watering of landscape plants during drought emergencies.

PLNA is now working with legislators:

• To head off a law that would give every one of Pennsylvania’s 2560 local governments the authority to enact and enforce their own pesticide regulations.
• To enact legislation that would NOT require the use of battery operated landscape equipment before that equipment is ready for professional use and does not cause financial hardship for the industry.

A successful PLNA government relations program needs three things:

1. Presence with legislators and regulators on a consistent basis so they know who we are and the industry’s needs and requirements. PLNA has seats at the table on regulatory and advisory boards that could affect our industry.
2. Engagement of PLNA members with legislators and regulators. PLNA’s Government Relations Committee, made up of PLNA members, monitors and reacts to legislative and regulatory issues.
3. An active Political Action Committee (PAC) that can make appropriate political contributions to those legislators who can affect legislation affecting the landscape and nursery industry. This is where we need your help!

PLNA PAC Now Depleted

The PLNA PAC is now depleted, with our last fund-raising campaign ten years ago, and we need your help to replenish it to maintain the success of our government relations program.

Help PLNA maintain and sustain our successes. Donate to the PLNA PAC now: https://www.plna.com/page/PLNA_PAC

PLNA PAC Frequently Asked Questions

1. Why is a PAC necessary? Won’t legislators just listen to the logic of our arguments?

Unfortunately, money has become a necessity to be heard and taken seriously in the Pennsylvania capitol and Washington. By attending campaign fund-raisers of those in a position to help PLNA with its legislative agenda, we are provided with access and opportunity to make our case to that legislator and the others attending. It’s a matter of showing up, being visible and having the opportunity to advocate for our position. Being present at fund raisers shows that PLNA is serious about our legislative agenda and willing to support those that support us.

2. Why can’t corporations donate to the PAC?

Pennsylvania campaign finance law prohibits corporations from donating to political action committees or directly to campaigns. Checks to PACs or campaigns must come from an individual, a sole proprietor, or a partnership.

3. To whom does the PLNA PAC donate?

The PLNA PAC is a state-level PAC that donates to Pennsylvania legislators in a position to help us with our legislative agenda. That has generally meant members of the Pennsylvania House and Senate Ag Committees and other legislators who could be or who have been particularly helpful. PLNA PAC donates only to legislative candidates currently in office due to our limited resources. PLNA PAC cannot donate to federal legislators.

A complete donation history of the PLNA PAC can be found on the Department of State website: https://www.campaignfinanceonline.state.pa.us/pages/CFReportSearch.aspx.

4. Who makes the decisions about to whom donations are made?

Recommendations for donations are made by PLNA’s lobbyist, Gregg Robertson. Donations are made with the approval of the PLNA Government Relations Committee and Board.

5. What is the PAC’s fundraising goal?

The goal for this campaign is $5,000. That amount will allow us to attend fundraisers for key legislators in next election cycle.

Donate to the PLNA PAC now: https://www.plna.com/page/PLNA_PAC

Questions? Call or email PLNA’s Government Relations Advocate Gregg Robertson: 717.533.2056 or grobertson@PLNA.com.

Learn More

Photos: (Top Right) PLNA Board Chair Rob McHale shares PLNA's long history of promoting native plants and their value in public and private landscapes. (Bottom Left) North Creek Nurseries' Steve Castorani showcases native plant landscape plugs. (Bottom Right) Attendees learn about North Creek Nurseries' trial gardens and stormwater management initiatives. 

Harrisburg -HB 1665 , the snow and ice contractor indemnification bill, was reported out of the Senate Judiciary Committee February 9 and is now on the Senate floor for a vote. That’s the good news. The bad news is that recent amendments to the bill significantly reduce the scope of the protection afforded to snow and ice contractors.

Background

It is common practice for large commercial interests (apartment complexes, shopping centers, etc.) that contract for snow and ice removal services to include clauses in the contracts that require that the snow and ice contractor indemnify and hold harmless the commercial interest for any lawsuits that emanate from snow and ice related accidents, even those which were the fault of the commercial entity. The initial language in HB 1665 made such indemnification clauses illegal and unenforceable, protecting the contractor from lawsuits in which they had no fault.

Recent Amendments Significantly Reduce Scope of Protection

Recent amendments to the bill, however, significantly reduce the scope of the protection provided to contractors. The bill now continues to allow such indemnification clauses in contracts. Such clauses, however, are not enforceable only if the commercial entity has “affirmatively directed” the contractor not to provide snow or ice removal services.

For example, if a shopping center calls their snow and ice contractor and tells them not to come out in response to a weather event, the contractor will be protected if there is a snow and ice related accident during or immediately after that event.

The bill is now on the Pennsylvania Senate floor waiting for a vote. If the bill passes the Senate, it will go back to the House which approved it in January, for concurrence with the Senate amendments.

PLNA government relations consultant Gregg Robertson testified at a House Ag Committee hearing in favor of the bill on October 25, paving the way for the committee’s positive vote. You can view the hearing and PLNA's testimony by clicking here. The first video is the committee vote on S 251 and the second is the hearing at which PLNA testified.

PLNA had negotiated significant concessions with the Department of Agriculture (PDA) and bill sponsors to make the bill more palatable to Pennsylvania’s lawn care industry.

The most significant concessions include:

• “Grandfathering” into the fertilizer applicator certification program those already holding pesticide applicator certifications.
• Aligning the pesticide applicator certification program with the new fertilizer applicator certification program to minimize employee time spent taking exams and earning recertification credits.
• Shielding lawn care company customer data reported to PDA from Pennsylvania’s Right-to-Know law.
• Preventing PDA from collecting fertilizer business registration or applicator certification fees before systems are in place to collect data to document meeting our 2025 Chesapeake Bay cleanup goals.
• Assuring that Pennsylvania receives credit from EPA for lawn care industry efforts in meeting our 2025 Chesapeake Bay cleanup goals.
• Preventing local governments from enacting their own fertilizer application ordinances that are more stringent than those contained in SB 251.

In addition, the Ag Committee adopted the following amendments to the original bill:

• If Pennsylvania does not receive credit from EPA for lawn care industry efforts by 2026, the parts of the bill dealing with fertilizer business registration and applicator certification would be rescinded.
• Exam and study materials for fertilizer certification must be bilingual in English and Spanish.
• Spent mushroom substrate (SMS) is exempted from being considered a fertilizer.
• Removed the appropriation of $100,000 to PDA to start the fertilizer certification program.
• Removed the ability of PDA to increase fees related to the program by regulation. Any fee increases must be initiated and approved by the General Assembly.
• Numerous minor changes in language to make the bill more consistent and understandable.

PLNA has proposed an amendment to be offered on the House floor that would exempt compost as fertilizer under the bill, much as SMS was exempted in the Committee amendment. Precise language is now being worked out among PLNA, PDA and House Ag Committee staff.

A synopsis of the main points of SB 251 that affect the lawn care industry are below:

• Fertilizer Application Business - Requires that each company location applying fertilizer for hire register with PDA and pay a $100 annual fee. The company must also keep detailed records of employees applying fertilizers and of all fertilizer applications. Each company must have at least one certified fertilizer applicator in its employ.
• Registration Number - Requires that a fertilizer application business display a fertilizer registration number on each vehicle involved in fertilizer application at least 3” high on each side of the vehicle. PDA has committed to allow businesses with an existing BU number to use that number as their fertilizer registration number.
• Certification Exam - Requires that commercial fertilizer applicators pass a certification exam and maintain their certification by acquiring four CEU’s over three years. A commercial fertilizer applicator must be employed by a registered fertilizer application business.
• Grandfathered - The bill allows those with existing pesticide certifications in certain categories to be grandfathered into the fertilizer program until their core pesticide license must be renewed. At that point, grandfathered fertilizer applicators must show evidence they have met the fertilizer recertification requirements for continuing education.
• Fertilizer Technicians may be trained by certified commercial fertilizer applicators within companies. Once trained, fertilizer technicians may apply fertilizer without direct supervision. Employees not trained as fertilizer technicians may apply fertilizer, but only under the direct onsite supervision of a certified applicator.
• Application Rates – The bill set limits on the rates at which fertilizer may be applied to turf grass to 0.9 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet in a single application. No phosphorous may be applied unless the purpose is to establish a new lawn. PDA has the authority to modify these application rates by regulation if research shows that such modification is warranted.
• Site-Specific Plan – The application limits in the bill may be modified according to a site-specific plan that is based on soil tests conducted every three years.
• Confidentiality of Information – Individual customer information provided to PDA under the bill would be exempt from the Right to Know Act.
• Local Preemption – The bill contains language that prohibits local governments from developing fertilizer ordinances that conflict with the bill and prohibits local governments from levying penalties for which the state has levied a penalty.

A copy of the bill as amended in committee can be downloaded by clicking here.

HARRISBURG – State Representative Carrie Lewis DelRosso (R- Allegheny) introduced HB 1021, a bill that would require all construction contractors to be “verified” by the Pennsylvania Attorney General.

What Does “Verified” mean?

To be verified, according to the bill, means that construction contractors would have to:

• Register with the Attorney General;
• Certify that they are:
  • Providing workers’ compensation insurance;
  • Paying unemployment compensation taxes;
  • Registered under the federal E-Verify system for checking new employees’ legal status;
• Provide proof of financial responsibility;
• Pay a fee of not more than $500.

Construction Contractor Defined

The bill defines a construction contractor as:

A person who, in any capacity for compensation, other than as an employee of another person, engages in the erection, reconstruction, demolition, alteration, modification, custom fabrication, building, assembling, site preparation and repair or maintenance work on real property or premises under a contract, including work for a public body or work paid for from public funds.

Contractors Registered Under HICPA Would Be Exempt

However, any construction contractor that is registered under the Pennsylvania Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (HICPA) would be deemed as having met the requirements of the bill. Most landscape contractors in Pennsylvania should already be registered with the attorney general’s office under HICPA. To find out if you should be registered as a home improvement contractor under HICPA, go this web page on the PLNA website.

As the registration fee for HICPA is only $50, if this bill becomes law, it makes sense for landscape contractors not already registered to register under HICPA.

PLNA Watching Closely

PLNA has not yet taken a position on this legistion but is watching it closely. To download the complete bill, click here.

HARRISBURG – On May 11 the Pennsylvania Senate passed SB 251, a bill to regulate the application of fertilizer, by a margin of 47-1. The bill is now awaiting action by the House Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee and the full House. PLNA is supporting the bill in its current version.

The bill would require that all commercial fertilizer applicators pass a written examination and be licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

For a synopsis of the bill see PLNA e-News April 27, 2021. For the text of the full bill, click here.

Call Your State Representative

PLNA urges its members to call their state representative and ask them to vote yes on SB 251. To look up your state representative’s contact information, click here.

In April, the Pennsylvania Senate held hearings on Lyme disease (see April 27 PLNA e-News).

Long-term Care Legislation

On May 5, the House Health Committee reported HB 1033 to the full House. HB 1033 would compel health insurers to fund long-term care for Lyme disease and other tick-borne disease sufferers. The chromic symptoms of tick-borne diseases can persist for many years and extend over a lifetime. The bill would assure that health insurance would continue to cover the costs of treatment beyond the immediate acute phase of the disease.

This bill died in the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee last legislative session due to inaction on the part of the committee and strong opposition from the health insurance industry.

Call Your State Representative

PLNA urges its members to call their state representative and ask them to vote yes on HB 1033. To look up your state representative’s contact information, click here.

The bill is in the House Labor and Industry Committee but, as yet, has seen no action.

PLNA Neutral on Bill

The bill is supported by the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, however, PLNA has not taken a position on the bill. The way that the bill is constructed, it would not only exempt employers from paying UC taxes on H-2A and H-2B workers but would also exempt employers from paying UC taxes on undocumented workers. PLNA found this broad exemption to be problematic and decided to neither support nor oppose the bill.

The full text of the bill can be downloaded by clicking here.

HARRISBURG – New initiatives to reduce the threat to humans of Lyme disease from tick bites drew support from some Pennsylvania senators this past Monday at a Senate committee hearing.

Pennsylvania Leads in Lyme Disease Cases

Pennsylvania is among the top-ranked states for the number of confirmed Lyme disease cases and other tick-borne diseases. Green industry jobs in landscaping and nursery field work are among the highest risk occupations for tick-borne diseases.

Health and Human Services Committee Hears Testimony

The Health and Human Services Committee heard testimony from state Health Department deputy secretary Nick Barishansky and Nichole Chinicci, director of East Stroudsburg University’s Tick Research Lab, about the $3 million that Pennsylvania has budgeted in Fiscal Year 2020-21 to combat the disease.

Both Barishansky and Chinicci said it’s important to educate Pennsylvania residents and doctors about Lyme disease especially since several symptoms of that disease such as chills, fever and headaches are the same for COVID 19.

“It’s time for Pennsylvania to be as proactive as possible so we can prevent these tick-borne illnesses,” said Chicinni whose lab receives $500,000 annually in state aid to support its tick testing and analysis lab.

The ESU lab is currently receiving 350 tick samples daily at a time when there is a spike in COVID-19 infections, she added. More than 50 percent of the ticks being sent came from residential backyards.

“All the ticks that survived over the winter are seeking a host,” said Chinicci.

Recommendations to Expand State Efforts

She offered several recommendations to expand state efforts, including doing more research to develop anti-tick vaccines for humans and for small mammals which are disease spreaders, more research to develop methods to reduce the number of ticks, more posting on social media about the diseases, targeted education aimed at doctors and continuing support for the ESU lab’s tick testing service.

People can send a tick sample to the lab and receive the test results free of charge.

The pandemic has had a negative impact on some of the state’s tick prevention efforts, said Barishansky. About one-third of this year’s budgeted money for such areas as surveillance, testing and planning has been spent, he added.

The state is getting ready to launch a social media awareness campaign soon, said Barishansky.

Sens. Scott Martin, R-Lancaster, and Scott Hutchinson, R-Venango, suggested it would make sense to focus more on the state’s resources on remediation efforts in the FY2021-22 budget,

Pennsylvania needs to do more to combat the tick epidemic, said Committee Majority Chair Michele Brooks, R-Mercer, adding it’s a curable disease if treated early.

Contact Your State Rep

PLNA is pleased to see the increased interest, especially by the Pennsylvania Senate. A bill introduced last session to compel health insurance carriers to cover the long-term treatment of tick-borne illnesses was passed overwhelmingly in the House (former House Bill 629) but died in the Senate. The bill has been reintroduced in the House (now HB 1033) by Representative Kathy Rapp (R- Warren) and awaits action by the House Health Committee.

PLNA members should call their state representative and urge them to ask House leadership to move HB 1033 from the Health Committee to the full House for a vote. To find you state representative, click here.

Last fall, PLNA worked with the Department of Agriculture to fine tune parts of the legislation to align it more with the existing pesticide certification program. This will help to minimize cost and effort on the part of the industry in complying with the potential new regulatory program.

PLNA Chair Katie Dubow wrote in a letter to chairman of the Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee Elder Vogel (R – Butler) whose committee was considering the bill:

We appreciate that Senator Yaw incorporated the language we negotiated with PDA into SB 251. This language will simplify the administrative aspects of the program and lead to quicker implementation and compliance by Pennsylvania’s lawn care professionals.

I would like to affirm that PLNA completely supports the water quality goals and the turf grass fertilizer application best management practices (BMPs) in §6851 and §6852. These BMPs are already embraced by most applicators in the industry.

The amended bill contains the following provisions:

• Fertilizer Application Business - Requires that each company location applying fertilizer for hire register with PDA and pay a $100 annual fee. The company must also keep detailed records of employees applying fertilizers and of all fertilizer applications. Each company must have at least one certified fertilizer applicator in its employ.
• Registration Number - Requires that a fertilizer application business display a fertilizer registration number on each vehicle involved in fertilizer application at least 3” high on each side of the vehicle. PDA has committed to allow businesses with an existing BU number to use that number as their fertilizer registration number.
• Certification Exam - Requires that commercial fertilizer applicators pass a certification exam and maintain their certification by acquiring four CEU’s over three years. A commercial fertilizer applicator must be employed by a registered fertilizer application business.
• Grandfathered - The bill allows those with existing pesticide certifications in certain categories to be grandfathered into the fertilizer program until their core pesticide license must be renewed. At that point, grandfathered fertilizer applicators must show evidence they have met the fertilizer recertification requirements for continuing education.
• Fertilizer Technicians may be trained by certified commercial fertilizer applicators within companies. Once trained, fertilizer technicians may apply fertilizer without direct supervision. Employees not trained as fertilizer technicians may apply fertilizer, but only under the direct onsite supervision of a certified applicator.
• Application Rates – The bill set limits on the rates at which fertilizer may be applied to turf grass to 0.9 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet in a single application. No phosphorous may be applied unless the purpose is to establish a new lawn. PDA has the authority to modify these application rates by regulation if research shows that such modification is warranted.
• Site-Specific Plan – The application limits in the bill may be modified according to a site-specific plan that is based on soil tests conducted every three years.
• Confidentiality of Information – Individual customer information provided to PDA under the bill would be exempt from the Right to Know Act.
• Local Preemption – The bill contains language that prohibits local governments from developing fertilizer ordinances that conflict with the bill and prohibits local governments from levying penalties for which the state has levied a penalty.

This is just a summary of bill’s provisions. if your company applies fertilizer to turf grass, please download a copy of the bill by clicking here and review the details. Call or email Gregg Robertson at 717.533.2056 if you have any questions or comments.

The bill was reported out of committee and is now awaits consideration by the full Senate.

The bill defined a synthetic herbicide as

any herbicide containing a Synthetic substance, including any material or agent containing a Synthetic substance that harms, adversely affects, or kills any plant, except synthetic herbicides that are allowed on the National List of Allowed Substances under the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA), as published by the National Organic Standards Board (7 C.F.R. § 205.601 [2020 edition]).

The Committee chair is the sponsor of the bill and robustly advocated for its passage. The National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) joined with the city’s parks and recreation department, leaders from the manufacturing industry, golf industry and others in testifying against the bill.

After four hours of spirited debate, the committee voted unanimously to favorably recommend the bill to the city council. Whether the bill will be considered by the full city council is not know at this point.

Pennsylvania’s Pesticide Control Act prohibits local regulation of pesticides. However, since this bill only deals with city-owned property, it probably will not apply. Municipalities are able to manage their own property as they see fit.

• $684 per week, $35,568 annually (per federal rule), on January 1, 2020;
• $780 per week, $40,560 annually on October 3, 2021; and
• $875 per week, $45,500 annually on October 3, 2022.

• With a few exceptions, all hourly employees who work more than 40 hours per week
• Most salaried employees who work more than 40 hours per week and earn less than the salary threshold regardless of their job duties
• Most salaried employees who do NOT perform executive, administrative, or professional duties, regardless of how much they are paid

Not Eligible for Overtime

• Salaried employees who perform executive, administrative, or professional duties and make more than the salary threshold per year
• Other occupations exempted by the Minimum Wage Act.

Exemptions

The Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act Exemption requires employers to pay their employees at a rate of not less than $7.25 an hour for all hours worked and an overtime rate of 1.5 times the employee's regular rate of pay for all hours worked above 40 in a workweek.

However, the Minimum Wage Act provides an exemption from both minimum wage and overtime pay for employees employed in a bona fide executive, administrative, or professional capacity. To qualify for the exemption, employees must meet certain tests regarding their salary and their job duties.

For more information go to the L&I website.

E-Verify is not required for employees already on board before October 7. This requirement applies to sub-contractors at all tiers, as well as staffing agencies who supply workers to the construction industry.

What is E-Verify?

E-Verify, authorized by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), is a web-based system through which employers may electronically confirm the employment eligibility of their employees. E-Verify is administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Construction Industry Defined

The construction industry is defined by Act 75 as the industry which engages in the erection, reconstruction, demolition, alteration, modification, custom fabrication, building, assembling, site preparation and repair work or maintenance work done on real property or premises under a contract, including work for a public body or work paid for from public funds.

According to Robert Schramm, Deputy Chief Counsel of the Department of L&I, the terms "real property and maintenance" take in landscape contractors, lawn care companies and arborists.

Webinar Explaining the New E-Verify Law

The Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry is holding a webinar on Wednesday September 16 from 9:30 am – 11:30 am to explain the new law and how to comply with it. For more information on the webinar, click here. If you missed this webinar, PLNA has requested that L&I schedule other webinars, so watch PLNA e-News for more information.

For more information on Act 75, click here.

Program Developed by Partnership

The Pennsylvania office of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, State Conservation Commission and Penn State Agriculture and Environmental Center worked jointly to develop a program that would direct funding to counties, and give the conservation professionals in those areas the flexibility to determine the best management practices specific to local watershed needs.

Modeled after Dirt and Gravel Road Program

This concept is modeled after the successful Dirt and Gravel Road program, funded annually through a gas tax and allocated to the State Conservation Commission. Each year, the State Conservation Commission then allocates this funding to conservation districts based on a formula that factors in miles of unpaved roads and proximity to high-quality streams. The program focuses targeted dollars to areas with the greatest need, instead of a one-size fits all approach. Counties are then able to direct funds to projects locally determined to provide the greatest local water quality benefit.

This same approach can benefit the implementation of best management conservation practices on farms and nurseries. Pennsylvania agriculture is very diversified. The approach to addressing water quality in Lancaster County might not work in Bradford County, and vice-versa. The Agricultural Conservation Assistance Program would take a needs-based approach to driving out conservation dollars to certain regions.

Legislation

The legislation being sought would establish the framework for creating the program and would authorize a broad spectrum of funding sources to support the program, including state dollars, federal allocations, grants and private enterprise investment. The legislation will be introduced in the coming weeks this fall. A draft of the legislation can be downloaded by clicking here.

Support Letter

A copy of the draft letter that PLNA signed supporting the legislation can be downloaded here.

The bill incorporates language in the original version of HB 2429, which dealt exclusively with opening “all lawn and garden equipment and supplies stores” in Pennsylvania. HB 2388 also requires the opening of vehicle dealerships, pet grooming services, hair salons, barber shops, and manufacturing facilities in addition to lawn and garden equipment supplies stores.

HB 2388 passed pretty much along party lines, with a few Democratic crossover votes for the bill. There were not enough Democratic votes to make the bill “veto proof,” however.

PLNA has written a letter to Governor Wolf asking that he sign HB 2388. We are urging PLNA members to also contact the Governor and ask him to sign the bill.

The Governor's Office has shut down their phones due to the volume of calls. Please follow this link to ask Governor Wolf to sign HB 2388 and allow independent family-owned garden centers to open. https://www.governor.pa.gov/contact/#OnlineForm

• This prohibition applies to independent lawn and garden centers and those attached to large retail chains. DCED sent letters to large retail chains providing this clarification.
• This prohibition does not apply to establishments primarily engaged in retailing farm supplies, such as animal feed. 
• Online orders and delivery of those orders are not prohibited, including for lawn and garden centers that did not apply for or were denied a waiver. 
• Curbside pickup is prohibited for businesses without a waiver, as they do not qualify for in-person operations under the Governor’s Order.

ANNVILLE - PLNA today sent over 16.000 signatures to Governor Wolf from Pennsylvanians asking him to open independent family-owned garden centers. In addition, PLNA included over 1,200 comments from the signers expressing their interest in opening garden centers so they can start planting their gardens. The petition on change.org had been up for a week and is still taking signatures and comments.

Click here to download the letter. Click here to sign onto the petition.

PDA Secretary Russell Redding at the Department’s House budget hearing called chlorpyrifos a “deadly chemical.” He promised legislators that the Department would review the use of the chemical in Pennsylvania. A bill has been introduced in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, House Bill 2091, to ban the pesticide.

Chlorpyrifos is an organophosphate insecticide, acaricide and miticide thathas been under scrutiny by the federal Environmental Protection Agency and other states for several years. The Obama Administration had begun the process of delisting the pesticide but did not complete the process before the administration ended.

Because of the potential health concerns, the EPA negotiated a deal with Dow Chemical to phase out all residential uses of chlorpyrifos in 2000, but this deal left agricultural applications intact.

The researchers at Columbia University found that when children were exposed in the womb to chlorpyrifos, they tended to be smaller, have poorer reflexes, and show higher risks of having ADHD and other developmental disorders years after being exposed. Another team of researchers in Berkeley made similar findings. Since then, peer-reviewed publications have provided strong evidence for the neurodevelopmental toxicity of chlorpyrifos.

Last July, Trump administration EPA administrator Andrew R. Wheeler, announced that EPA would not ban the widely used pesticide. As a result of EPA’s inaction, states have begun to take matters into their own hands.  

Hawaii was the first state to phase out the chemical after Jan. 1, 2019. However, the bill gives businesses the ability to apply for a three-year extension to adjust to the new law. In April 2019, New York banned the use of chlorpyrifos in the state by Dec. 1, 2021.

California is now phasing out the use of chlorpyrifos. Sales to California growers ended Feb. 6, 2020, and growers will not be allowed to possess or use it after Dec. 31, 2020.

Oregon and Connecticut are currently exploring bans on using the insecticide in their respective states.

If you use chlorpyrifos in your business and have an opinion on this potential ban, you may submit comments to PDA by downloading and completing this questionnaire and submitting it to the address on the form.

The Pennsylvania plan would meet only 73% of the goals set for Bay cleanup by the 2025 deadline. Further, the plan as submitted would require an additional $324 million a year to implement through 2025, yet the new 2019 state budget provides only $6 million in new funding for Bay cleanup and takes $16 million from green infrastructure funding that reduces Bay pollution.

What this means to the nursery and landscape industry is increased pressure for new state regulatory programs, such as legislation to control the application of turf grass fertilizer. A bill regulating the application of turf grass fertilizer died at the end of the last legislative session in 2018. A new bill has yet to be introduced.

PLNA has been working with the Chesapeake Bay Commission, the PA Department of Agriculture, which would implement the legislation, and the General Assembly to develop a bill that would meet Bay goals and be efficient to implement. PLNA supports the best management practices (BMPs) for the application of turf grass fertilizer but is seeking an easy and effective way to implement them.

PLNA’s current intelligence is that a bill will be introduced by Senator Yaw (R-Lycoming) who is a member of the federal Chesapeake Bay Commission. The bill language will likely be that which died at the end of the legislative session last year in Senate Bill 792. For PLNA’s analysis of the bill go to the June 2018 edition of e-News.

However, the fiscal code bill which accompanies the budget, gives the Secretary of the Budget permanent authority to transfer up to $45 million from ANY fund under the Governor’s jurisdiction to the operating budgets of DEP and DCNR. The Wolf administration has said that they have no plans to make any such transfers… at this time.

The Environmental Stewardship Fund and the Keystone Fund provide grants to local governments and non-profit groups for green infrastructure projects, tree plantings, park development, forested stream buffers, flood plain restoration and other environmental projects.