PENN TWP – At the behest of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors, the township’s board of supervisors recently wrote a letter to members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly opposing House Bill 299.

The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Pat Harkins, D-1st, aims to provide minimum occupational safety and healthy standards for public employees. This essentially would subject all levels of local government in Pennsylvania to the standards of private institutions, which are regulated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

“The General Assembly ... finds it inappropriate to continue two standards for employee safety, one applicable to those who work in the private sector, and one for those who are employed by a public employer,” reads Section 1 of the bill.