SUCCESSES BY CHIAVETTTA CONSULTING
Philadelphia Inquirer article "No telling what's taxable (and what's
not) in Pa" quoting RC
September 27, 2009
here
Pennsylvania Association of Numismatists (PAN)
January – July, 2006; June – October, 2009
For ten years PAN had tried to get a sales tax
exemption on the sale of investment coins and precious metal bullion.
Because Pennsylvania was one of the few states in the nation that still
taxed these small investments, coin dealers preferred to sell outside the
state, and Pennsylvania was losing the opportunity to attract national coin
fairs into Pennsylvania.
PAN hired Chiavetta Consulting and its President,
Rosemary Chiavetta, in January of 2006 to lobby all four Caucuses of the
General Assembly and the Governor’s Budget Office. Chiavetta Consulting
successfully argued that if the exemption were granted, (1) Pennsylvania
coin dealers – mostly small businesses - could compete on a level playing
field with other states; (2) small investors would no longer be penalized;
and, (3) it would invigorate new economic development through tourism,
especially for cities to attract coin shows and conventions.
The result was all four Caucuses and the
Administration agreeing to the exemption, and instead of it being placed in
the annual state budget, where it would have to be reexamined every fiscal
year, the exemption was placed in a separate tax bill – Senate Bill 300 -
making it permanent. Pennsylvania coin dealers now enjoy an exemption for
investment coins and precious metal bullion that began on September 4, 2006.
In 2009, due to revenue shortfalls, the Rendell
Administration proposed rescinding the sales tax exemption granted to the
coin dealers in 2006. PAN rehired Rosemary Chiavetta to stop the
Administration’s intent and convince the General Assembly and the Governor
that it was more beneficial for Pennsylvania to retain the exemption. In
reliance of the exemption, state and national organizations of coin dealers
and precious metal merchants, such as the Whitman Coin and Collectibles Expo
and the American Numismatic Association, arranged to hold their state and
national conventions in Philadelphia and other Pennsylvania locations. If
the sales tax was to be reinstated, the City of Philadelphia and the
Commonwealth would lose 35,000 visitors and the tourism dollars that
followed. After intense lobbying efforts by Rosemary Chiavetta, culminating
in a front page article by the Philadelphia Inquirer (found at
www.chiavettaconsulting.com), Mayor Nutter was convinced to support the
continued tax exemption and the Rendell Administration withdrew his
proposal.
Contact Person: Kathy Sarosi, President of PAN
814-535-5766
Pennsylvania Chiropractic Association (PCA)
May, 2005 – December, 2009
Four years ago the PCA and other medical
associations in Pennsylvania were in a losing battle against major insurance
carriers who were retroactively reviewing the records of all doctors. These
audits would reach back into a doctor’s records for up to four years. If
the insurance company found that the doctor had billed any patient at any
time under the wrong billing code – regardless of the fact that service had
been rendered – the insurance company would demand its payments for
legitimate claims be reimbursed. As a result, doctors were receiving
demands for reimbursements totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars per
doctor. These retroactive reviews were bankrupting sole practitioners and
small clinics because the insurance company would demand full reimbursement
within 30 days. Another irony discovered was the insurance companies’
policy of changing billing codes without notifying doctors.
PCA hired Rosemary Chiavetta in 2005 to devise a
strategy of legislative intervention and stop this infamous practice.
Chiavetta Consulting put together a coalition of other doctors’ groups and
associations and together introduced and passed legislation limiting
retroactive reviews to a one year look back. This measure was strongly
opposed by the Pennsylvania Insurance Federation and the “Blues” health
insurers, but the PCA and the Coalition built by Rosemary Chiavetta
prevailed with overwhelming legislative support in the Pennsylvania House of
Representatives. The Pennsylvania State Senate has yet to act on the
measure.
Contact person: Gene Veno, Executive VP – PCA
717-979-2821
Allegheny Energy
June, 2007 – December, 2009
Allegheny filed with the Pennsylvania Public Utility
Commission (PUC) in April, 2007 to build a new 36 mile high voltage
transmission line through Washington and Greene Counties in southwestern
Pennsylvania. Allegheny was currently experiencing a very difficult public
relations battle over the siting of this line. Allegheny recently hired
Rosemary Chiavetta and Chiavetta Consulting to mend and heal the bad public
relations that exist between Allegheny and local state and municipal
officials over the construction of this project strongly recommended by the
Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland (PJM) grid. This led to a multi-party
Agreement which was adopted by the PUC in 2009.
In April of 2008, Allegheny expanded its contract
with Chiavetta Consulting to obtain the services of Rosemary Chiavetta as
counsel and consultant on the Company’s ongoing matters before the
Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and on energy legislation before the
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Through the building of a consensus between
utilities, legislators, and the Administration, House Bill 2200 was adopted
by the General Assembly in October of 2008. That legislation includes the
grandfathering of Allegheny’s successful procurement and rate mitigation
decision adopted by the PUC in July of 2008.
During 2009, Rosemary Chiavetta was assigned the
task of helping to create and supply with information a new website called
Pennsylvanians for Reliable Energy. This website featured important
information to more than 50 members of a coalition promoting new electric
and gas infrastructure in Pennsylvania, as well as online interviews by
Rosemary Chiavetta with top legislative and industry policymakers.
Contact person: Mike Kriner, Director, Govt.
Affairs, 717-377-6058
Aldie Warnock, VP, Govt.
Affairs, 724-331-9545
Lincoln University, Chester County, Pennsylvania
October, 2003 – August, 2007
Although Lincoln University enjoyed the prestige of
being an historic African American university and one of the oldest
educational institutions of its kind in the United States, it had suffered
financial woes and poor political connections. Chiavetta Consulting was
hired in 2003 to restore Lincoln’s clout on Capitol Hill in Harrisburg and
obtain state funding that would enable Lincoln to rebuild its infrastructure
needed to attract top notch students and faculty.
Chiavetta Consulting, through the numerous political
connections and experience of its President, Rosemary Chiavetta, provided a
strategy for Lincoln that would regain the University the respect it
deserved. The result has been Lincoln receiving more than $60 million in
state capital budget appropriations for the rebuilding and maintenance of
its infrastructure and for the design and construction of several new
buildings on campus. Lincoln is now enjoying a renaissance on its beautiful
campus in Chester County, Pennsylvania, and its President, Dr. Ivory Nelson
and staff enjoy tremendous political success with legislators and the
Administration of Governor Rendell.
During the budget debate of 2007 regarding
appropriations for the next fiscal year, Rosemary Chiavetta brought to the
attention of legislative leaders that Lincoln’s annual base line funding is
very low when compared to the other state-related universities. Therefore,
whenever there is a percentage increase, Lincoln barely benefits from such
an increase. Rosemary Chiavetta devised a strategy to get Lincoln a $2
million “bump” in its base line for fiscal year 07-08, thus providing
Lincoln with a better opportunity to benefit in future increases based on a
percentage of its bottom line appropriation. Although that “bump” was not
included in the final budget deal, Lincoln gained considerable ground for a
future commitment to improve its financial situation.
Contact person: Dr. Ivory Nelson, President
610-932-8300 Ext. 3400
SEPTA Transport Workers Union (TWU),
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
October, 2006 – August, 2007
When Governor Rendell formed the Transportation
Funding and Reform Commission by Executive Order in February of 2005, it was
important for major labor leaders in the area of mass transit to be a part
of the process. Through the connections and lobbying efforts of Rosemary
Chiavetta, the President of the SEPTA TWU, Jeffrey L. Brooks, Sr., was
appointed to the Commission. When the Commission released its Final Report
in November of 2006, mass transit became a major issue on the agenda of the
Pennsylvania General Assembly in 2007.
During the spring of 2007, it was imperative for the
TWU to obtain additional funding for mass transit in the SEPTA system.
While there were many proposals floating through the Legislature, with
everyone trying to find the “silver bullet” to fund mass transit, Rosemary
Chiavetta counseled the TWU not to endorse any one or particular plan. It
takes 26 votes in the Senate and 102 votes in the House of Representatives
to pass legislation. With so many various proposals, it was obvious to
Rosemary Chiavetta that to endorse any one plan could alienate a legislator
or group of legislators, or worse yet, close the door to any funding at
all.
Therefore, Rosemary Chiavetta put together a
strategy which made the TWU indispensable to legislative leaders with
particular emphasis on the newly elected Republican leadership in the State
Senate – giving the TWU significant input on helping legislators to craft an
acceptable plan with the ability to pass both chambers of the General
Assembly. While other labor union groups were promoting one plan over
another – Rosemary Chiavetta gave the TWU the notoriety as the “go to” union
due to its reasonable negotiations toward a compromise piece of legislation
and its ability to deliver votes from rural areas of the Commonwealth. One
other problem existed – the State Senate had decided to postpone debate on
transit funding until the Fall of 2007. However, it was vital for a funding
solution to occur immediately or hundreds of transit workers would be facing
lay-offs during the summer of 2007. Rosemary Chiavetta devised a series of
meetings with Senate leaders to persuade them into considering transit
funding without delay. Part of the 07-08 budget deal included this
groundbreaking legislation.
Contact Person: Jeffrey Brooks, Jr., President, TWU
215-430-1801
FirstEnergy Corp., Akron, Ohio
April, 1999 – April, 2008
Chiavetta Consulting and Rosemary Chiavetta
represented FirstEnergy Corp, the nation’s fifth largest investor owned
utility, for more than nine years. Rosemary Chiavetta’s strategic advice to
the utility had been instrumental in:
·
the successful merger/acquisition of GPU;
·
passage of Senate Bill 1030 providing Pennsylvania with
alternative energy;
·
passage of Senate Bill 677 creating Chapter 14 of the
Pennsylvania Public Utility Code changing consumer responsibility for
payment of utility bills in which Rosemary Chiavetta helped to negotiate the
final language between the General Assembly and the PUC;
·
recovery from regulatory problems associated with the
Davis-Bessie nuclear reactor in Ohio;
·
recovery from Federal Energy report on the Blackout of
August, 2003
·
passage of Senate Bill 1201 by the Pennsylvania State
Senate codifying the Federal Mercury Reduction Rule
·
Ongoing assistance in current cases filed before the
Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.
·
Ongoing representation on major energy legislation
currently before the PA General Assembly.
Contact Person: David C. Luff, Sr. VP 330-384-5798
First Health Services Corp., Glen Allen, Virginia
August, 1999 – December, 2006
First Health has been the administrator of the PACE
program – prescription drugs for Pennsylvania senior citizens – for more
than twenty years. The PA PACE and PACENET programs are the envy of every
state in the country because of their tremendous service and efficiency.
Recently with the enactment of the new Medicare law, it was necessary for
the PA Department of Aging to amend the PACE law so Pennsylvania’s senior
citizens would be able to continue to get the first rate service to which
they are accustomed.
First Health hired Chiavetta Consulting and its
President, Rosemary Chiavetta, in 1999 as its sole lobbyist in Harrisburg,
which has resulted in First Health retaining its lucrative state contract
and successfully negotiating several legislative changes to the PACE program
to enhance eligibility requirements. Chiavetta Consulting’s most recent
assignment was to prepare a strategy to get an amendment to the PACE law
passed in record time so it could coincide with the start of the new
Medicare law in May of 2006. The result was the enactment of Senate Bill
1188, occurring in plenty of time to make a seamless transition for
Pennsylvania’s seniors. Although every large pharmaceutical company
lobbyist in Harrisburg was on the opposing side of the issue, Rosemary
Chiavetta made First Health the “go to” experts, thus giving First Health
the inside track in writing the language eventually adopted by the General
Assembly. As a result, First Health enjoyed the majority of the credit for
this victory due to the efforts of its lobbyist in Harrisburg – Rosemary
Chiavetta of Chiavetta Consulting.
First Health has since been acquired by another
company which decided not to pursue the PACE contract when it came up for
renewal.
Contact Person: James G. Council, Esq., former Chief
Counsel 804-347-0503
SBC Communications Merger/Acquisition of AT&T
March – December, 2005
In March of 2005, SBC began its merger/acquisition
of AT&T in 30 jurisdictions throughout the United States including
Pennsylvania. SBC retained the services of Chiavetta Consulting and its
President, Rosemary Chiavetta to provide and execute a strategy to complete
the regulatory approval needed before the Pennsylvania Public Utility
Commission.
Due to the experience of Rosemary Chiavetta and her
knowledge of the intricate, internal workings of the Pennsylvania Public
Utility Commission, the merger/acquisition was completed three weeks ahead
of schedule and provided both companies with an unconditional and immediate
regulatory approval by the Commission. This allowed SBC to concentrate its
resources on the remainder of jurisdictions that were still outstanding and
necessary for the completion of the $17 billion merger/acquisition
nationwide.
Contact person: Mr. James Smith, VP of Government
Affairs (retired)202-213-4430
Mr. Martin Grambow
210-394-9194
Randy Johnson, Esq.
214-464-3620