Times Observer file photo Pennsylvania State Representative Kathy Rapp.

It’s been nearly two months since our representatives kicked off a new session in the General Assembly.

What are they working on?

All bills and resolutions – as well as memorandum’s seeking co-sponsors – are available online at https://www.legis.state.pa.us/.

State Representative Kathy Rapp was first elected to the state House in 2004.

She’s currently chair of the Health Committee and also serves on the Environmental Resources & Energy Committee.

Here’s a look at what legislation she’s proposed in this session:

¯ House Bill 133. HB 133 would “prohibit persons convicted of sexual offenses from serving as firefighters in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” according to the memo, which acknowledges that this legislation stems from an incident in 2018 – in the Crawford County town of Spartansburg – where a sex offender was elected fire chief. “Firefighters are an invaluable and integral part of our community,” Rapp wrote. “They are in positions of trust and authority, regularly interacting with children, seniors and families who are vulnerable. This legislation goes a long way to ensuring that fire departments have all the tools they need to protect the community as well as the department.” The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee on Jan. 28.

¯ House Bill 97 would prohibit the sale of “vaping” products to minors. The memo states that the legislation adds “‘electronic nicotine delivery systems’ to the sections that currently make it illegal to sell tobacco to minors and, for students, to use tobacco products on school grounds.” That legislation was also forwarded to the Judiciary Committee on Jan. 28.

¯ Legislation to “ensure that professional educators who provide secondary transition services are highly qualified and well trained.” Noting that similar legislation passed 194-0 in the House in May 2017, the memo states that secondary transition is the process of preparing special education students for life after they leave high school. “It is imperative that our school personnel have the skills and knowledge necessary to implement these services that will prepare and shape students for their postsecondary lives, and we believe that educators tasked with the important responsibility of imparting this instruction to students should receive, and continue to receive, specialized and detailed training in this particular area,” Rapp wrote. “With this in mind, our legislation will require professional educators providing secondary transition services to students who are in grades eight through twelve or are at least fourteen years old to complete a training program. They will also be required to complete this training again every five years.”

¯ Legislation that “will ensure patients have access to available and emerging diagnostics and treatment options for Lyme disease and related tick-borne diseases,” according to the memo, which states that the Commonwealth “has ranked highest in the country in the number of confirmed cases of Lyme disease. “My legislation will require health insurers to cover treatment plans for Lyme disease or related tick-borne illnesses as prescribed by a patient’s health care practitioner, regardless if the treatment plan includes short-term or long-term antibiotic treatment. This legislation passed the House last session by a vote of 188-6.”

She has also put forth a resolution that will recognize March 30 as “Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day.”

On the Senate side of the Capitol, all but four of Warren County’s 27 municipalities are represented by Scott Hutchinson, an Oil City native.

Here’s a look at what legislation he’s put forth this session:

¯ Legislation aimed at establishing “a sales and use tax exemption” for equipment “purchased by data centers.” Hutchinson wrote in a memo that the legislation “incentivizes companies to locate their data centers in Pennsylvania, creating capital investment and high paying jobs as a result.”

¯ Senate Bill 315, which would permit “senior disabled veterans an opportunity to purchase a lifetime (fishing) license for a discounted price” as well as non-resident active duty stationed in Pennsylvania to get a license for the resident military rate. On the hunting side, the same provisions would be made as well as other veteran-related changes to hunter safety courses and license fees fore senior disabled veterans.

¯ SB 101 would change the State Highway Law “to require that PennDOT maintain all surface and subsurface drainage facilities connected with the state highways within boroughs and incorporated towns” with populations under 2,500. Hutchinson wrote in the memo that PennDOT maintains those systems on roads in townships but not in boroughs. He cited declining population in boroughs – and correspondingly “less tax base…. This maintenance then results in a financial strain on boroughs and towns….” Hutchinson said this change in the law would “reflect the current residential trends in our state….”

¯ SB 99 aims to “simplify the process required to use products made from recycled steel in public works projects,” according to a memo on the bill. Hutchinson notes that there are “many tons of discarded steel” through the state but noted that “documentation requirements of the Steel Procurement Act… pose a substantial barrier” to such use. “The legislation would clarify the process by amending the Steel Procurement Act to permit the use of steel products made from recycled steel if the steel was rerolled and the product was manufactured in the United States.”

¯ SB 97 changes “the eligibility criteria for fundable projects under the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority (PENNVEST),” according to the memo. The City of Warren funded much of its sewage treatment plant project through a PENNVEST allocation. The memo on the bill details that there was a New Hampshire-based firm that received over $50 million in PennVEST funds to acquire “67,500 acres of premium timberland in northwest Pennsylvania.” Hutchinson said his legislation would “stop” PENNVEST from making such allocations and “offer refinancing for local governments who originally funded their storm water management systems through a private lending institution…. At a time when our small communities are struggling financially, PENNVEST should be spending their resources there and not on subsidizing the sale of private land to another private entity.”

¯ SB 102 would create a Pennsylvania Affordable Energy Development Zones program. “My legislation would incentivize new businesses to locate in counties with natural gas producing wells where they’ll have ready access to a low-cost energy source,” a memo on the bill said.

¯ SB 103 would provide a “sales tax exemption” on the purchase of firearm safes and vaults. “By exempting gun safes and vaults from sales tax, this legislation would incentivize the purchase of these very important items by making them more affordable for the citizens of Pennsylvania,” he wrote. “This bill would not only make gun safes and vaults cheaper, it would also make Pennsylvania’s homes safer.”

¯ SB 98 would eliminate “the power of the Governor or municipal government executives to restrict the purchase and possession of firearms during an emergency.”

¯ SB 203 “increase the maximum amount a taxpayer can elect to expose for Section 179 assets.”