HB 1062 — An Act amending Title 53 (Municipalities Generally) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, in neighborhood blight reclamation and revitalization, providing for State blight data collection system; and establishing the Property Maintenance Code Serious Violations Registry and the Property Maintenance Code Serious Violations Registry Account.

PRINTER'S NO.   1157

                     THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



                         HOUSE BILL
                         No. 1062
                                                  Session of
                                                    2025

     INTRODUCED BY MARKOSEK, HILL-EVANS, WAXMAN, GIRAL, KUZMA,
        KENYATTA, SANCHEZ, BURGOS, KAZEEM, MADDEN, MALAGARI, DONAHUE,
        KINKEAD, CIRESI, DEASY, DOUGHERTY, STEELE AND SCHLOSSBERG,
        MARCH 26, 2025

     REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT,
        MARCH 26, 2025


                                     AN ACT
 1   Amending Title 53 (Municipalities Generally) of the Pennsylvania
 2      Consolidated Statutes, in neighborhood blight reclamation and
 3      revitalization, providing for State blight data collection
 4      system; and establishing the Property Maintenance Code
 5      Serious Violations Registry and the Property Maintenance Code
 6      Serious Violations Registry Account.
 7      The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
 8   hereby enacts as follows:
 9      Section 1.    Chapter 61 of Title 53 of the Pennsylvania
10   Consolidated Statutes is amended by adding a subchapter to read:
11                               SUBCHAPTER C.1
12                    STATE BLIGHT DATA COLLECTION SYSTEM
13   Sec.
14   6135.1. Definitions.
15   6135.2. Property Maintenance Code Serious Violations Registry.
16   6135.3. Property maintenance code serious violation reports.
17   6135.4. Dissemination of information by department.
18   6135.5. Changing status of property on registry.
 1   6135.6. Administrative requirements.
 2   6135.7. Audit.
 3   6135.8. Imposition of registry penalty.
 4   6135.9. Property Maintenance Code Serious Violations Registry
 5               Account.
 6   6135.10. Duty of Attorney General.
 7   § 6135.1.   Definitions.
 8      The following words and phrases when used in this subchapter
 9   shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
10   context clearly indicates otherwise:
11      "Account."    The Property Maintenance Code Serious Violations
12   Registry Account established under this subchapter.
13      "Department."   The Department of Community and Economic
14   Development of the Commonwealth.
15      "Municipal claim."      The term shall mean the same as defined
16   in the act of May 16, 1923 (P.L.207, No.153), referred to as the
17   Municipal Claim and Tax Lien Law.
18      "Registry."   The Property Maintenance Code Serious Violations
19   Registry established under section 6135.2 (relating to Property
20   Maintenance Code Serious Violations Registry).
21   § 6135.2.   Property Maintenance Code Serious Violations
22               Registry.
23      (a)   Establishment.--The Property Maintenance Code Serious
24   Violations Registry is established. The department shall
25   implement and administer the registry.
26      (b)   Purpose.--The registry shall contain property
27   maintenance code serious violation reports filed by
28   municipalities under section 6135.3 (relating to property
29   maintenance code serious violation reports).
30   § 6135.3.   Property maintenance code serious violation reports.

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 1      (a)   Filing.--A municipality may file a property maintenance
 2   code serious violation report for a person who owns real
 3   property within the municipality with current serious property
 4   maintenance code violations that remain unabated for at least
 5   one year unless the municipality can demonstrate that it has,
 6   for at least one year, cited serious violations on a property
 7   prior to establishment of the registry.
 8      (b)   Forms provided.--Property maintenance code serious
 9   violation reports shall be made on forms provided by the
10   department and submitted electronically.
11      (c)   Information included.--Property maintenance code serious
12   violation reports shall include the following information:
13            (1)   The name of the owner whose real property has been
14      cited for a serious property maintenance code violation. If
15      the property owner is a limited liability company or other
16      business entity that does not list the principals of the
17      limited liability company or other business entity, the
18      department or the department's third-party entity shall
19      attempt to find those principals or their agents and add
20      their names to the registry, in addition to the name of the
21      limited liability company or other business entity.
22            (2)   A copy of the citation issued to the real property
23      owner.
24            (3)   The physical address, tax parcel number and county
25      of the real property.
26            (4)   The number of municipal claims or liens attached to
27      the real property by the filing municipality.
28      (d)   Access.--The department shall make the registry
29   accessible electronically to all municipalities and the public.
30      (e)   Database.--The database shall be searchable by property

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 1   owner and by property address.
 2   § 6135.4.      Dissemination of information by department.
 3      (a)   Availability of information.--Information contained in a
 4   property maintenance code serious violation report shall be
 5   accessible for inspection and duplication in accordance with the
 6   act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the Right-to-
 7   Know Law.
 8      (b)   Requests by municipalities.--
 9            (1)    A municipality may request a copy of a property
10      maintenance code serious violation report on a pending
11      applicant for a municipal permit by submitting a property
12      maintenance code serious violation report request form to the
13      department or by requesting the form electronically.
14            (2)    The department shall disseminate a property
15      maintenance code serious violation report relating to a
16      municipal permit applicant to the requesting municipality
17      within five business days of receipt of a property
18      maintenance code serious violation report request from the
19      municipality.
20            (3)    The municipality shall notify an applicant in
21      writing of the reasons for a decision that denies the
22      applicant a municipal permit if the decision is based in
23      whole or in part on information contained in the registry.
24      (c)   Requests by Commonwealth and Attorney General.--
25            (1)    A Commonwealth agency or the Attorney General may
26      request a copy of a property maintenance code serious
27      violation report on a pending applicant for a permit,
28      licensing or certification by submitting a property
29      maintenance code serious violation report request form to the
30      department or by requesting the form electronically.

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 1            (2)   The department shall disseminate a property
 2      maintenance code serious violation report relating to a State
 3      license or certification applicant to a requesting
 4      Commonwealth agency within 30 days of receipt of a property
 5      maintenance code serious violation report request from the
 6      agency.
 7            (3)   The Commonwealth agency shall notify the applicant
 8      in writing of the reasons for a decision that denies the
 9      permit, licensing or certification requested by the applicant
10      if the decision is based in whole or in part on information
11      contained in the registry.
12      (d)   Hearing requested by applicant.--
13            (1)   The department shall hold a hearing regarding why
14      the property owner is listed on the registry, as applicable.
15      If the applicant can produce a certificate or letter of code
16      compliance from the municipality, the department shall update
17      the official record within 48 hours to reflect the new
18      information.
19            (2)   The municipality or Commonwealth agency shall hold a
20      hearing regarding administrative appeals related to permit
21      denials.
22      (e)   Record of dissemination.--The department shall maintain
23   a listing of Commonwealth agencies, municipalities and other
24   entities that have requested information on a particular real
25   property owner and the date on which the information was
26   disseminated. The Attorney General shall be exempt from this
27   listing in order to protect the confidentiality of
28   investigations. This listing shall be maintained separate from
29   the registry.
30      (f)   Fee.--The department may not assess a fee for the

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 1   dissemination of property maintenance code serious violation
 2   information.
 3   § 6135.5.      Changing status of property on registry.
 4      A municipality that files a report with the department shall
 5   subsequently supply the property owner with a certificate of
 6   compliance once the real property is declared to be brought back
 7   into code compliance. The property owner shall forward a copy of
 8   the certificate of compliance to the department if the property
 9   owner wishes to have the property's status changed to "cured" on
10   the registry. The department shall include the information as
11   part of the official record for the specific property and owner
12   of the real property.
13   § 6135.6.      Administrative requirements.
14      (a)   Procedures.--The department shall issue guidelines to
15   effectuate the purposes of this subchapter, which shall include
16   procedures to ensure the completeness and accuracy of
17   information in the registry. The department may contract with a
18   third-party entity to assist in carrying out the department's
19   duties under this subchapter.
20      (b)   Forms.--The department shall develop property
21   maintenance code serious violation report forms and property
22   maintenance code serious violation report request forms, as well
23   as procedures to obtain the information electronically.
24      (c)   Security requirements.--The department shall maintain
25   the confidentiality and security of the information contained in
26   the registry by providing that:
27            (1)    Procedures have been instituted to reasonably
28      protect the registry from theft, fire, sabotage, flood, wind
29      or other natural or manmade disasters.
30            (2)    All personnel authorized to access registry

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 1      information are selected, supervised and trained accordingly.
 2   § 6135.7.      Audit.
 3      (a)   Duty of Auditor General.--The Auditor General may
 4   conduct annual performance audits of registry operations for the
 5   first three years of the registry's existence and then every
 6   five years thereafter.
 7      (b)   Access to records.--The department shall provide
 8   auditors with access to all records, reports and listings
 9   required to conduct an audit of property maintenance code
10   serious violations record information. Persons that have
11   supervision of or are authorized to receive registry information
12   shall cooperate with auditors and provide requested information.
13      (c)   Contents of audit.--The audit shall report in writing
14   deficiencies and recommendations for correcting the
15   deficiencies. The department shall respond to the audit
16   recommendations within a reasonable period of time.
17   § 6135.8.      Imposition of registry penalty.
18      A property owner that is in serious violation of a municipal
19   property maintenance code for more than one year that has been
20   placed on the property registry by a municipality may be subject
21   to a registry penalty in the amount of $1,000 for each serious
22   violation. The following apply to the penalty:
23            (1)    The penalty shall be in addition to any other
24      applicable fees or charges lawfully collected by the
25      municipality and court.
26            (2)    The municipality shall collect the penalty, deduct
27      administrative costs and transmit the remaining money to the
28      department on a quarterly basis.
29            (3)    The penalty may take the form of a lien on the real
30      property, and the municipality may file the lien with the

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 1      county prothonotary or equivalent office.
 2            (4)    Money transmitted to the department under paragraph
 3      (2) shall be deposited into the account.
 4   § 6135.9.      Property Maintenance Code Serious Violations Registry
 5                  Account.
 6      (a)   Establishment.--The Property Maintenance Code Serious
 7   Violations Registry Account is established within the State
 8   Treasury. The money in the account is appropriated on a
 9   continuing basis to the department for the purposes provided in
10   this subchapter. The account shall consist of money transmitted
11   under section 6135.8(2) (relating to imposition of registry
12   penalty), transferred or appropriated from the General Fund to
13   the account or otherwise made available to the account.
14      (b)   Distribution.--The department may distribute money in
15   excess of the money transferred or appropriated from the General
16   Fund to municipalities participating in the registry.
17      (c)   Purposes.--In addition to the purpose under subsection
18   (b), money in the account may be used for the following
19   purposes:
20            (1)    By the department to reimburse the department for
21      its administrative costs in carrying out its responsibilities
22      under this subchapter.
23            (2)    By the unified judicial system to conduct training
24      of the judiciary in accordance with 42 Pa.C.S. § 1907
25      (relating to deteriorated real property education and
26      training programs for judges).
27            (3)    By the Department of the Auditor General to
28      reimburse that department for the costs of conducting the
29      audits authorized by section 6135.7 (relating to audit).
30   § 6135.10.     Duty of Attorney General.

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 1      (a)   Out-of-State property owners.--For a person who lives or
 2   has a principal place of residence outside this Commonwealth and
 3   owns real estate property in this Commonwealth, upon written
 4   request by a municipality, the Attorney General may assist the
 5   municipality in pursuing compliance of the property owner in
 6   order to bring the property up to municipal code if:
 7            (1)   A serious code violation has been cited.
 8            (2)   The property owner is charged under 53 Pa.C.S. §
 9      6115 (relating to failure to comply with a code requirement).
10            (3)   The property owner was properly notified of the
11      violations.
12      (b)   Remedies.--For a violation under subsection (a), the
13   Attorney General may send a warning letter to the property owner
14   or file a court proceeding on behalf of the municipality.
15      Section 2.    This act shall take effect in 120 days.




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