Against the background of April's record high $57 billion trade deficit, U.S. Rep.

Phil English, R-3rd, joined with other House members Tuesday in announcing a measure that seeks to halt China's currency manipulation.English along with Reps.

Mark Green, R-Wis.,

Chris Chocola, R-Ind., and

Robin Hayes, R-N.C., unveiled the Currency Harmonization Initiative through Neutralizing Action (CHINA) Act of 2005.The bill would allow for automatic tariffs if the Treasury Department finds China's exchange rate policy conforms with the World Trade Organization definition of currency manipulation.Rep.

Brian Ellis, R-11th, announced Tuesday his legislation to dismiss inactive court cases is part of a multi-bill package that would allow the Legislature to take action to reform Pennsylvania's courts and legal liability system."The 'EmpowerPA' legislative package is made up of 11 bills outlining ways that Pennsylvania can tighten its court system and basically make it harder to file frivolous lawsuits against someone else," Ellis said."My bill seeks to restore the former practice of allowing a party to motion to dismiss any case that has been inactive for more than two years."Ellis' legislation, which was recently introduced, in addition to the others in the package, would reduce legal abuse in several areas, not just the realm of medical malpractice suits."What many Pennsylvanians don't understand is that the high legal costs associated with unnecessary civil action go onto the backs of the taxpayers," he said."Companies, health care organizations and even individuals from other states are becoming hesitant to move here because of how our civil court system works. Because of this we are missing out on creating more employment opportunities."The state Senate recently approved legislation sponsored by Sen.

Mary Jo White, R-21st, to encourage development of Pennsylvania's oil and gas resources in cases where the owners are not known or can't be located.White noted that oil and gas producers who want to purchase or lease oil and gas property interests for development often find that title to the estate is incomplete or uncertain because current co-owners of the estate cannot be identified.It is particularly troublesome, she said, in the case of old Pennsylvania leases, where the estate has gone through several generations of a family."Producers are unwilling to risk capital in the development of oil and gas resources if they are unable to transfer and acquire complete legal title," White said. "Usually it is a very small interest that cannot be located and valuable oil and gas resources lie dormant as a result."The bill would allow Common Pleas Court to establish trusts to protect an unknown or non-locatable owner's oil and gas estate. The legal title of the estate could be transferred, under the protection of the court, to a lessee or purchaser for development purposes, and all royalties would be held by the trust for the unknown or non-locatable owner.The House of Representatives is now considering the bill.State Sen.

Jane Orie, R-40th, has introduced a resolution petitioning Congress to adopt measures providing states with more flexibility in administering Medicaid programs.Orie said the resolution was prompted by recommendations of the National Governors Association.The association urged Congress to allow states the freedom to use innovative methods to modernize Medicaid, with the goal of managing costs, curbing fraud and abuse, and protecting recipients.Orie said her resolution also urges Congress to reconsider the proposed $10 billion in cuts to federal funding for state Medicaid programs. It also calls for providing tax breaks and credits for the purchase of long-term care insurance, and removing the statutory impediment to forming long-term care partnerships.U.S. Rep.

Phil English, R-3rd, recently announced legislation to accelerate the expansion of Industrial Development Bonds for manufacturing facilities."IDBs are an essential tool for economic development agencies fighting to attract or retain well paying manufacturing jobs at the local level," said English, a member of the Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax issues."This bill expands the use of IDBs to help finance manufacturing facilities."The measure - the Bond Financing Renewal Act of 2005 - is vital to promoting job creation and economic development by small businesses, particularly manufacturers because it updates the eligibility requirements for certain tax exempt bonds, known as Industrial Development Bonds, that are used exclusively to finance manufacturing facilities, he said.Congress, last year, enacted the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004, which included an English provision that increased the current cap on projects funded by IDBs from $10 million to $20 million.The current cap was set in 1978 to limit the program to small industries and has never been increased to keep pace with inflation. Small manufacturers with capital expenditures above $10 million are currently not eligible to use IDBs.The new law however, is not set to take effect until Sept. 30, 2009. The proposed legislation would expedite the effective date to Sept. 30, 2006.The state Senate recently approved legislation sponsored by Sen.

Mary Jo White, R-21st, that would allow city employees to continue receiving pension benefits while serving in elected office.White drafted the measure after the state Auditor General's office determined that under current law a mayor in the senator's district could not continue to earn pension benefits and serve as mayor.The affected mayor's salary was only $2,400 and he was forced to resign to continue receiving his pension.The legislation, which was sent to the House of Representatives, would apply to retirees of Third Class Cities, which includes Butler, Franklin, Oil City, Corry and Warren in White's district.