HERITAGE AFFAIRS ACT - REPEALED — 1992 Pa. Act 156 (historical enacted text)

Historical Act text

SENATE AMENDED
PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 1253, 1630, 4190, PRINTER'S NO. 4245
1630
INTRODUCED BY FREEMAN, McHUGH, SCHULER, COHEN, VEON, BILLOW,
PISTELLA, WOZNIAK, MELIO, DALEY, HERMAN, KOSINSKI, ARGALL,
LAUGHLIN, ITKIN, McCALL, STURLA, TIGUE AND BATTISTO,
APRIL 10, 1991
AS AMENDED ON SECOND CONSIDERATION, IN SENATE, NOVEMBER 18, 1992
AN ACT
1 Establishing the Pennsylvania Heritage Affairs Commission and
2 prescribing its powers and duties; and providing for a
3 director of State folklife programs and the Folklife Advisory
4 Council.
5 The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
6 (1) This Commonwealth has historically served as a
7 homeland for people from nations of the world seeking a new
8 life in freedom and dignity.
9 (2) These peoples and their succeeding generations have
10 made worthy contributions to the development and growth of
11 this Commonwealth.
12 (3) The Commonwealth recognizes its responsibility to
13 foster the awareness, understanding and appreciation of the
14 many and varied contributions to the quality of life made by
15 its diverse ethnic communities.
16 (4) The values and beliefs of this Commonwealth's many
1 ethnic communities shape and affect public and private life.
2 (5) It is in the public interest for the Commonwealth
3 and its citizens to develop programs to identify, conserve
4 and perpetuate the diverse cultural and ethnic heritage of
5 this Commonwealth and to promote greater awareness and
6 understanding for the education, inspiration and the general
7 public welfare of all the people, including future
8 generations.
9 (6) Both the Commonwealth and its diverse population
10 have a vital interest in promoting ethnic understanding for
11 their mutual benefit and in providing a unity of purpose.
12 (7) It is in the interest of the Commonwealth and its
13 citizens to be aware of cultural heritage as a key element in
14 public policy, its planning and program development.
15 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
16 hereby enacts as follows:
17 Section 1. Short title.
18 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Heritage
19 Affairs Act.
20 Section 2. Definitions.
21 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
22 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
23 context clearly indicates otherwise:
24 "Commission." The Pennsylvania Heritage Affairs Commission.
25 "Cultural heritage." The traditional expressive culture
26 within the various groups in this Commonwealth, including
27 familial, ethnic, occupational, religious and regional groups.
28 Expressive culture consists of a wide range of creative and
29 symbolic forms, including, but not limited to, custom, belief,
30 technical skill, language, literature, art, architecture, music,
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1 play, dance, drama, ritual, pageantry and handicrafts. These
2 expressions are mainly learned orally, by imitation or in
3 performance and are generally maintained without benefit of
4 formal instruction or institutional direction. Cultural heritage
5 encompasses the values, beliefs and community structures that
6 underlie its expression.
7 Section 3. Pennsylvania Heritage Affairs Commission.
8 (a) Membership.--The Pennsylvania Heritage Affairs
9 Commission is established within the Department of Community
10 Affairs. The commission shall consist of:
11 (1) Not less than 37 citizens of this Commonwealth who
12 shall be appointed by the Governor upon demonstrated support
13 from ethnic community organizations. These members shall be
14 broadly representative of the ethnic communities within this
15 Commonwealth.
16 (2) Nine citizens of this Commonwealth who shall be
17 appointed by the Governor as at-large members.
18 (3) Four members who shall be appointed from the General
19 Assembly in the following manner:
20 (i) two members of the Senate, one from the majority
21 party appointed by the President pro tempore, and one
22 from the minority party appointed by the Minority Leader;
23 and
24 (ii) two members of the House of Representatives,
25 one from the majority party appointed by the Speaker of
26 the House and one from the minority party appointed by
27 the Minority Leader.
28 (4) The Lieutenant Governor who shall serve as the
29 chairperson of the commission and executive committee. The
30 chairperson shall not be a voting member of the commission.
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1 (5) Representatives of State departments or agencies who
2 may be designated by the Governor as ex officio members.
3 (b) Executive committee.--The at-large members and the
4 legislative members shall constitute an executive committee
5 responsible for the ongoing programs of the commission under the
6 direction of the executive director.
7 (c) Terms.--Members shall serve for two years. The terms of
8 legislative members shall correspond with the beginning and <--
9 close of each regular session of the General Assembly. COMMENCE <--
10 ON THE FIRST TUESDAY OF EACH ODD-NUMBERED YEAR AND SHALL
11 CONTINUE UNTIL SUCCESSORS HAVE BEEN APPOINTED.
12 (d) Vacancies.--Appointments to fill vacancies created by
13 the resignation, removal or death of a member shall be for the
14 unexpired term of the vacancy.
15 (e) Quorum.--A majority of the members shall constitute a
16 quorum for conducting official business of the commission.
17 (f) Compensation.--Members of the commission and its
18 advisory councils shall serve without salary or compensation,
19 other than reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses
20 incurred while attending official meetings or performing other
21 official functions in accordance with procedures established by
22 the Executive Board.
23 Section 4. Powers and duties of commission.
24 The commission shall:
25 (1) Coordinate government programs and activities
26 relating to or affecting ethnic groups, individuals,
27 organizations, institutions or communities in general,
28 including their social, economic, educational and cultural
29 concerns.
30 (2) Assist government agencies and nongovernment
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1 organizations in understanding unique cultural traditions
2 when providing human services and health care to ethnic
3 groups, individuals, organizations or communities in general.
4 (3) Assist government agencies and nongovernment
5 organizations to avoid unnecessary disruption and mitigate
6 the possible negative impact of programs and projects on the
7 cultural heritage of this Commonwealth.
8 (4) Assist government agencies and nongovernment
9 organizations to address and reduce ethnic tension and crimes
10 motivated by hatred toward the race, color, religion or
11 national origin of another individual or group of individuals
12 in this Commonwealth.
13 (5) Commemorate historical events and officially
14 recognize accomplishments and contributions to this
15 Commonwealth by individuals or organizations within the
16 ethnic communities of this Commonwealth.
17 (6) Sponsor and promote events and projects that will
18 increase the public's knowledge and appreciation of the
19 diverse cultural heritage of this Commonwealth.
20 (7) Establish and maintain associations with ethnic
21 organizations and associations in this Commonwealth.
22 (8) Provide technical and financial assistance to public
23 agencies and private organizations engaged in ethnic or
24 cultural awareness activities.
25 (9) Solicit, receive and utilize funds from public or
26 private sources to promote awareness of the ethnic and
27 cultural heritage of this Commonwealth.
28 (10) Establish advisory councils as appropriate to
29 provide specialized expertise to the commission and its
30 staff.
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1 (11) Meet at the call of the chairperson.
2 (12) Adopt appropriate procedures for the implementation
3 of this act.
4 Section 5. Executive director.
5 The commission shall have an executive director, to be
6 appointed by the Executive Committee to administer the programs
7 of the commission and other personnel as may be necessary to
8 assist the executive director and the commission. The executive
9 director shall have a demonstrated sensitivity toward cultural
10 conservation and competence in administrative procedures.
11 Section 6. Director of State folklife programs.
12 To aid the conservation of the diverse cultural heritage of
13 this Commonwealth, a director of State folklife programs shall
14 be appointed by the executive director of the commission upon
15 recommendation of the Folklife Advisory Council. The director of
16 State folklife programs shall serve as a resource and as a
17 catalyst to individuals, organizations and communities
18 throughout this Commonwealth who seek to preserve and present
19 their cultural heritage to the general public. The director of
20 State folklife programs shall seek appropriate means for
21 documentation, presentation and interpretation of the diverse
22 folklife cultural traditions of this Commonwealth.
23 Section 7. Folklife Advisory Council.
24 (a) Appointment.--Upon recommendation by the executive
25 committee and the executive director, the Governor shall appoint
26 specialists in ethnic and folklife cultural studies and
27 programming to serve on the Folklife Advisory Council which
28 shall advise the director of State folklife programs.
29 (b) Membership.--The council shall be composed of 11
30 members, reflecting a broad geographic distribution within this
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1 Commonwealth.
2 (c) Terms.--Council members shall serve for a period of two
3 years.
4 (d) Chairperson.--A chairperson shall be chosen by a
5 majority vote of the advisory council members present at a
6 regularly scheduled meeting.
7 Section 8. Interagency cooperation.
8 Staff and resources in the various State agencies are
9 directed to cooperate with and assist the commission in
10 fulfilling its duties at the request of the commission's
11 chairperson.
12 Section 9. Allocation of appropriations. <--
13 Appropriations to the commission shall be allocated to the
14 general government operations fund of the Department of
15 Community Affairs.
16 SECTION 9. FUNDING. <--
17 FUNDING FOR THE OPERATION OF THE COMMISSION SHALL BE DRAWN
18 FROM THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS APPROPRIATION TO THE
19 DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS OR FROM APPROPRIATIONS MADE TO
20 THE COMMISSION FOR SUCH PURPOSE.
21 SECTION 10. INVALIDITY OF EXECUTIVE ORDER.
22 EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 6 OF 1988 IS DECLARED TO BE INVALID.
23 SECTION 11. EXPIRATION.
24 THIS ACT SHALL EXPIRE DECEMBER 31, 1997.
25 Section 10 12. Effective date. <--
26 This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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