The Lancaster Chamber and City of Lancaster To Testify at ...

1 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Dana Bowman Corporate Communications Specialist p. (717) 397-3531 The Lancaster Chamber and city of Lancaster To Testify at Act 111 Hearing All municipalities with full time police and fire personnel could see significant impact Lancaster , PA (October 16, 2012) Tom Baldrige, president, The Lancaster Chamber of Commerce & Industry and, J. Richard Gray, Mayor, city of Lancaster , will Testify in front of the Senate Local Government Committee regarding Act 111 this Thursday, October 18, at the North Office Building, Harrisburg. The hearing begins at 10 but the exact time of their specific presentation has not been determined. The Chamber and the city of Lancaster , who have been partnering in support of a variety of statewide reforms for local governments, will discuss how Act 111 impacts the city of Lancaster . Act 111 is the long-standing law that dictates how municipalities must conduct contract negotiations with police and fire unions.

2 The law has been in place and unchanged since 1968. At the hearing, Gray and Baldrige will be offering their support of Senate Bill 1570, the first bill in a long time aimed at restructuring the currently mandated bargaining process put forth under Act 111. Senate Bill 1570 will level the playing field between municipalities and the unions, making the process more fair for municipalities, less costly to taxpayers while still ensuring arbitration rights are retained for future generations of police and fire fighters. Act 111 Page 2 of 2 The bill encompasses the general reform concepts that were addressed within the Mayor s Prosper or Perish report and within the recommendations of the statewide Chamber effort, Coalition for Sustainable Communities. The legislation: Removes pensions and post-retirement health care from the collective bargaining process; Places limits on the ability of the arbitrator to impose new costs; Mandates that arbitration awards contain findings of fact based on substantial evidence of record; Expands the scope of review to allow the court to vacate an interest arbitration award and allows for broader review based on the absence of or inadequate findings of fact and new costs exceeding certain limits; Expands the arbitration strike list provided by the AAA; Reverses the sequence of striking from the arbitrator list provided by the AAA; Mandates that the costs of the neutral arbitrator shall be shared equally by the parties; and, Mandates that the arbitration hearing shall be open to the public (bargaining sessions and executive sessions are not open to the public).

3 For more information, contact The Chamber at -30.