Code of Laws Remains Just Out of Reach

In 1970, a resolution was passed that would codify all of Pennsylvania's laws in an understandable and user-friendly compilation that citizens could access for free. Almost 40 years later, no such compilation exists, and Pennsylvania remains the only state in the union without this resource.

State Senator Stewart Greenleaf of Bucks and Montgomery Counties says the current lawmaking process in Pennsylvania leaves citizens alone in the dark. "We can pass laws in Harrisburg, and the average person has no access to those laws to find out what they are. Even though there's a principal of law that says 'Ignorance of the law is not a defense,' we don't make it available to the public what [the laws] are. But you're still subject to provision," says Greenleaf. "It's just an intolerable situation."

Granted, there is a commercial version of Pennsylvania's code of law -- Purdon's Pennsylvania Statutes Annotated -- available for a hefty fee of over $1000, says Greenleaf. However, the fact remains that the work started in 1970 is largely unfinished.

Greenleaf says there are two primary reasons why codification has become nearly a four-decade process. "There's not a lot of interest in doing it, number one," he says. "Number two, there's been quite a bit of special interest opposition to codification, because when you codify there are changes that are made in updating, changing a section, things like that, and special interest groups have been very much opposed to that."

There is hope, however, for the state's own code of laws. However slowly, the codification process has been taken on by the senator and a few determined companions. Greenleaf wants to simply take the raw language of the statutes, "warts and all," codify it, then, when all the laws have been entered, make any necessary revisions. The Commonwealth can only hope it's not another 40 years before he finishes his work.