Nov. 02, 2015

HARRISBURG – Legislation sponsored by Rep. Mauree Gingrich (R-Lebanon) to reform the First Class Township Code and update how first-class townships operate was signed into law by Gov. Tom Wolf.

Act 51 of 2015 is the latest in a series of municipal code reform bills that Gingrich has sponsored and shepherded through the General Assembly and to the governor’s desk. In 2012, she sponsored legislation to overhaul Pennsylvania’s Borough Code for the first time in 45 years and make it a freestanding statute. Then, last year her bill to modernize and recodify the Third Class City Code was signed into law.

“These reform bills essentially rewrite the laws governing Pennsylvania municipalities, removing obsolete language, consolidating common subjects and updating the roles and responsibilities of government officials, personnel, contractors and others,” said Gingrich. “As a member of the Local Government Commission, I have worked with my colleagues on the commission to bring these codes up to date, making them easier to understand and use. The updates will also make the codes easier to amend as language becomes outdated.”

The amendments to the First Class Township Code specifies that township regulations governing construction must conform with the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act and reserves the power of townships to enact and enforce building codes and property maintenance codes.

This brings the First Class Township Code into conformity with similar changes made to the Borough Code and the Third Class City Code, and proposed for the Second Class Township Code.

Representative Mauree Gingrich
101st District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives

Media Contact: Donna Pinkham
717.260.6452
dpinkham@pahousegop.com
RepGingrich.com
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