House committee orders study of conservation officer pay and benefits

The House Environmental Committee voted to report House Resolution 218 on a study of salaries and benefits for game wardens, waterway conservation officers and Department of Conservation and Natural Resources rangers, sending the measure to the full House. The resolution directs the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to complete the study and report back to the House, the Senate and the governor within one year.

Committee members said the measure aims to document whether pay and benefits may be contributing to staffing shortages in Pennsylvania’s three conservation agencies. Representative Haddock, who presented the resolution, said agency leaders have told him that classification and contract negotiation issues have hampered recruitment and retention. "These conservation officers are law enforcement officers by definition," Haddock said during his remarks, noting officers carry firearms as part of their duties.

Supporters said the study is a fact-finding tool to compare compensation with neighboring states and with other Pennsylvania law enforcement positions. Representative James asked whether the study would cost taxpayers additional money; committee staff and Haddock said the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee conducts studies as part of its existing duties and, in their view, the study itself would not require a separate appropriation. The committee voted to report the resolution to the House as a whole.

The resolution does not itself change pay or benefits. It only directs the budget-and-finance committee to investigate and report findings. If the study recommends legislative or budgetary changes, those would require separate action by the General Assembly. The committee recorded its approval and the resolution will be considered by the full House.