Notice

Act 110 of 2024

Act 110 of 2024
Borough Code Amendments

Act 110 of 2024 was signed into law by Governor Josh Shapiro on October 16, 2024. This Local Government Commission sponsored bill makes four changes to the Borough Code that will take effect on December 14, 2024. The four changes are as follows:

1. Amends Section 1059.3 to add language providing that an elected or appointed official of a borough may not be surcharged if the official acted in good faith and relied on a written or publicly disclosed opinion of the borough solicitor. Similar to language in the Ethics Act in 65 Pa.C.S. §1109(g), this new language provides that an officer may not be surcharged if the officer acted in good faith reliance on a written, non-confidential opinion of the solicitor of the borough or on the solicitor’s publicly stated opinion at an open meeting and recorded in the official minutes of the meeting. This does not apply if the solicitor’s opinion was rendered under duress or if the parties seeking the opinion colluded to purposefully commit a violation of law.

2. Amends Sections 1141-1143 of the Borough Code to enable a borough to appoint a partnership, limited partnership, association or professional corporation as the borough manager. PSAB has heard about the struggles of many boroughs across the Commonwealth to hire a borough manager. This change would enable a borough to hire a firm similar to a solicitor or engineer to manage the borough. This addition fulfils Resolution 2014-05 that was adopted by PSAB at the 2014 Annual Conference.

3. Amends Section 1174 of the Borough Code to permit the civil service commission of a borough to reorganize within 30 days of the first Monday in January of each even-numbered year. Currently, the civil service commission is required to organize on the first Monday in January of every even numbered year. This change adds extra flexibility for newly organized councils to organize their civil service commission.

4. Amends Section 1307 of the Borough Code by simply removing the requirement that a preliminary budget be prepared beginning at least 30 days prior to the adoption of the budget. This requirement to prepare the preliminary budget 30 days before the adoption of the final budget was often confusing. Now Act 110 clarifies that you may prepare the preliminary budget at any time before the adoption of the final budget so long as you have the 10 day public inspection of the preliminary budget and public notice.