The Allegheny County Board of Health on Wednesday endorsed paid sick leave in the county and the Mon Valley Air Pollution Episode Rule.
Both articles will be passed on to the Allegheny County Council for its review and potential approval.
The paid sick leave bill, which would mandate coverage by certain employers in the county, has already passed the council once — in March by a margin of 10-4 with one abstention — but was vetoed later that month by County Executive Rich Fitzgerald.
Mr. Fitzgerald said at the time the county’s law department recommended that such a regulation should begin with the health department, rather than the county’s legislative body.
The Board of Health approved the bill Wednesday in a 9-0 vote with one abstention
The bill will require every employer in the county with 26 or more employees to award one hour of paid sick leave for every 35 hours worked, maxing out at 40 hours. Employers are permitted to have a more generous policy.
“Down the road, we’d be happy to reconsider and revise aspects of the regulation, in light of new public health data, once the impact of this current version is better understood,” Otis Pitts, the department of health’s deputy director of public policy and community relations, said during the meeting.
One aspect that the board highlighted as a potential for revision would be the size of the business, potentially changing the requirement of having 26 or more employees.
Members of the board agreed that this regulation will need to be monitored after its implementation, though Mr. Pitts noted that it is not clear which county agency will actually enforce the bill.
The board also unanimously approved of the Mon Valley Episode Rule, which if approved by County ouncil, will require major industrial facilities to create an air pollution mitigation plan and file it with the health department.
The regulations will also require those facilities to work to reduce emissions on days when the county experiences temperature inversions.
Temperature inversions happen with a layer of warm air overrides a layer of cool air, resulting in pollution being trapped near ground level.
Once passed, these facilities will have 90 days to file their mitigation plans with the health department.
Also part of the proposed regulations would be banning residential burning during Air Quality Action Days — which are forecast by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
The majority of public comment at Wednesday’s meeting was urging the board to approve the regulations.
There was little discussion among board members prior to the vote other than Dr. Joylette Portlock noting that this “is an important step forward,” in reducing pollution.
The next Allegheny County Council meeting is on Aug. 24, though it is not yet clear if these items will be on the agenda.
Hallie Lauer: hlauer@post-gazette.com
First Published: July 14, 2021, 8:00 p.m.
