The state Senate Judiciary Committee this week approved and sent to the House of Representatives legislation sponsored by Sen.

Mary Jo White, R-21st, that would establish a pretrial procedure to determine if a defendant in a capital penalty trial is a person with mental retardation.A version of White’s bill has passed the Senate in three different legislative sessions, but has yet to receive final passage.“It passed the full Senate by votes of 45-2, 45-3 and 48-1, so it’s pretty overwhelming that this has strong bipartisan support,” White said. “I’m willing to try it one more time.”White has introduced the measure since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2002 that applying the death penalty to people with mental retardation is unconstitutional. The court left it up to states to determine how to implement the decision.Under White’s proposal, counsel for a defendant in a capital case can request a hearing before trial to determine if the defendant is ineligible for the death.The burden of proof, she noted, would be on the defendant. If the trial judge finds for the defense, the trial would proceed as a non-capital trial.The bill also would provide a similar procedure for a defendant already sentenced to death with appeals pending.“The question of how and when courts should determine mental retardation is a serious one, and I appreciate the need to debate it,” White said.“While these cases are rare, the time has come to give guidance to our courts, and the commonsense approach is to have a pretrial hearing, rather than go through the expense and trauma of a capital trial and then determine it’s not a capital case at all.”———U.S. Rep.

Mike Kelly, R-3rd, sent a letter Tuesday to the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,

Kathleen Sebelius, calling on her to rescind a federal mandate requiring all health insurance plans to cover contraceptives, including those commonly referred to as “emergency contraception.”As part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that was promoted by President Obama, the mandate would force employers to cover FDA-approved emergency contraception.One of those funding-eligible contraceptives uses the controversial drug ulipristal acetate (Ella), which shares the relevant chemical properties of the abortion drug mifepristone, also known as RU-486.Ella has also been found to be embryotoxic in animal studies, functioning as a progesterone receptor blocker that can prevent a newly conceived human being, post-fertilization, from implanting in the uterine lining.While the mandate includes a “religious employer” exemption for certain faith-based organizations, Kelly said, the exemption is narrowly defined, excluding a number of religious institutions morally opposed to the drugs covered in the mandate.Among several organizations protesting the mandate, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops submitted a 35-page comment calling the mandate “unprecedented in federal law and more radical than any state contraceptive mandate enacted to date.”The mandate will take effect in August 2012.A copy of Kelly’s letter is available on his website at www.kelly.house.gov.———U.S. Congressman

Jason Altmire, D-4th, voiced his support for postal workers who rallied at his district offices Tuesday.“It is extremely important that we stand up for the postal workers of Western Pennsylvania and across the country,” Altmire said in a statement.“It’s time for Congress to act on this important legislation, and I will work with my colleagues in the House to help return the United States Postal Service to solvency and ensure its valuable service is not interrupted.”Postal worker unions organized hundreds of similar rallies across the country Tuesday that were intended to urge lawmakers to save the United States Postal Service without layoffs and cutbacks.Altmire noted he is a co-sponsor of the United States Postal Service Pension Obligation Recalculation and Restoration Act of 2011.The legislation seeks to reform the formulas the federal government uses in calculating postal workers retirement and returns the surplus payments to the postal service so it can meet its retiree benefit and workers’ compensation obligations.———U.S. Rep.

Mike Kelly, R-3rd, last week introduced the Transportation Funding Flexibility Act that would eliminate the requirement that states set aside 10 percent of Surface Transportation Program funds for transportation enhancement activities.The measure would remove the 10 percent set-aside mandate for enhancement projects used for museums, education and preservation projects, including scenic or historic highway programs, landscaping and other beautification.The funding would remain intact, Kelly said, but it could be used for any purpose the state chooses. Between 2004 and 2008, states allocated $3.7 billion to such programs.“Right now, Washington’s top priority should be getting Americans back to work and getting our fiscal house in order,” Kelly said.“I introduced The Transportation Funding Flexibility Act because, without raising taxes or adding to our debt, it will give states federal dollars to put toward high-priority infrastructure projects that will not only make our roads and highways safer, but will create jobs in the process.”The legislation originally was co-sponsored by Reps.

Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.;

Jeff Flake, R-Ariz.;

Gregg Harper, R-Miss.; and

Lynn Westmoreland, R-Ga.———District Judge

Lewis Stoughton of Chicora was recently recertified as a member of Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System after completing his 2011 continuing legal education work.The weeklong instruction program in Harrisburg by the Minor Judiciary Education Board and the Administrative Office of the Pennsylvania Courts is required for district judges.