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Committee reports bipartisan bills to give second‑class townships hiring flexibility, speed borough vacancy fills
Summary
Two Local Government Commission bills were reported: HB 1185 would allow second-class townships to appoint a professional corporation or firm to serve as township manager; HB 1195 would add an expiration process to fill borough vacancies. Both measures were reported unanimously.
The committee unanimously reported two bills from the Local Government Commission intended to harmonize municipal codes and help local governments fill management and elected‑office vacancies more quickly.
House Bill 1185, sponsored by Representative Lee James, would amend the second-class township code to permit townships to appoint a professional corporation or firm to serve as township manager and would absolve township managers from actions taken under the legal opinion of a township solicitor, aligning second-class township code with recent changes made for cities and boroughs.
Julia Frey of the Local Government Commission told the committee the language mirrors changes enacted last session for cities of the third class (Act 3 of 2024) and boroughs (Act 110 of 2024) and already exists in the first-class township code; the bill is intended to provide consistent authority across municipal codes and practical flexibility when officials are hard to recruit.
House Bill 1195, also presented by Chairman Lee James, would amend the borough code to provide an expedited or clarified expiration process for filling borough vacancies so governing bodies can continue to operate. Frey said similar provisions were enacted previously for first-class townships (Act 130 of 2024), and the bill extends consistency to boroughs.
Committee members said the measures deliver administrative flexibility for smaller municipalities and address recruitment and continuity challenges; both bills passed the committee by unanimous voice votes and will be reported as committed.
