Pa. lawmakers begin new session, but who's in power?
HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- Just like Congress, Pennsylvania lawmakers will be back at the state Capitol in Harrisburg today for the start of a new session.
But there's a lot of uncertainty about who will lead them in the state House.
That's because Democrats and Republicans can't agree on who has the majority.
Democrats won 102 out of 203 seats on Election Day.
But three of those Democratic seats are now vacant after one lawmaker died and two others resigned.
That gives Republicans a temporary majority until special elections are held in the coming months.
A group called "Fix Harrisburg," a joint venture between Fair Districts PA and the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania, is trying to get the chamber to pass more bills that have bipartisan support, like one that would make carbon monoxide detectors mandatory in schools and day care centers.
During the last session, 293 bills (7% of the legislature's 4,108 bills) became law. A similar number of bills was passed in the most recent session West Virginia's state legislature.
Legislators in West Virginia work part time and paid $20,000 a year. Legislators in Pennsylvania are full time and make $95,000 a year.
Fix Harrisburg planned a rally on the Capitol steps in Harrisburg Tuesday morning before legislators were sworn in at noon.
