State Rep. Tina Davis Introduces Bill Aimed At Resolving Recovery House Issues

State Representative Tina Davis of the 141st district has introduced a legislation in Harrisburg aimed at resolving issues impacting the recovery community and it’s neighbors in Bristol Township.

The bill, which Davis told LevittownNow.com will take quite some time to go into effect if passed, is her answer to the growing resident concern over the 93-plus recovery homes clustered into 17 square miles.

The Certified Recovery Residence Act, initiated by Davis despite no formal report from the Recovery House Task Force, would create a nine member state board responsible for recovery residences, and enact a voluntary certification program with safeguards and regulations ensuring a safe environment for the residents of the recovery homes and their surrounding community.

Davis compared her proposed voluntary certification program to that of Keystone Stars, which recognizes well performing schools in the early childhood industry, allowing quality schools to get involved and parents to make informed educational decisions about their child’s care. Recovery homes which proceeded with such voluntary certification, would be the only homes that recovering addicts leaving treatment would be offered referrals to, according to Davis. The goal of the certification program is to increase the number of quality homes that treatment centers feel comfortable recommending, which Davis says is less than 10 according to staff at nearby Livengrin in Bensalem.

“I was at the last state task force meeting maybe a month or so ago, and they still had no report, and they’re not scheduled to have their next meeting until April,” said Davis, who decided she couldn’t wait any longer to release the bill to other lawmakers in Harrisburg. “No one really wants to deal with this in Harrisburg, they don’t even want to talk about it.”

Davis told LevittownNow.com that part of the recovery house problem lies with the county. “They put people from drug court or prison in these houses,” she said. “They have to know they can’t put these people in some of these properties.” Davis, who pointed back to the Fair Housing and Amendments Act of 1988, cited that those who were incarcerated or currently using drugs are not classified as handicapped, and therefore, not protected by the law; yet many offenders continue to reside in Bristol Township ‘flop homes’ potentially jeopardizing the community’s safety.

Davis’ proposed bill also hopes to develop a code of ethics for recovery residence administrators, conduct annual inspections and certification renewals, align procedures for drug testing, a prohibition of alcohol and illegal drugs inside recovery homes, a policy for residents who relapse or must be evicted, and regular background checks during intake, including a ban of any persons registered on Megan’s List or who have been found guilty of a felony or misdemeanor or child abuse.

“Basically, my point is that the only people that should be running these homes and dealing with this is people who really care and what to do it,” she said. “I really believe if I get my bill passed and the township does their job then we won’t have all these bad players.”

Davis, who said she’s approached township leadership multiple times to reconcile the growing recovery house situation, says she’s been left empty handed.

“The township has a lot more areas to move towards and they’re not doing it,” she told LevittownNow.com. “I’ve been working on this for three or four years now and so has Amber [Longhitano], and unfortunately they haven’t listened to her and now they’re trying to play catch up.”

According to Davis, the township solicitor, Randy Flager, who regularly practices personal injury law, is “in over his head,” and hasn’t taken the situation seriously since the only person bringing it up on council was Vice President Amber Longhitano.

“To sit in a room full of people who don’t know a thing about recovery houses,” Davis said while groaning. “I have to literally walk away. I’ve given all of this information [to the township] and I don’t agree with how they’re handling it.”

In a letter dated January 19, Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick (PA-8) also reached out to the township’s manager Bill McCauley regarding the recovery home issue. “As hesitant as a municipality may be to incorporate zoning designations related to recovery homes for fear of coming in conflict of federal law, by the same token, if a municipality fails to account for recovery homes in their zoning, do they risk a legal challenge for failing to provide the protections guaranteed to those with disabilities under the Fair Housing Act?,” the letter read.

Falls Township, which passed zoning regulations in January, and Bensalem Township, which according to Davis is also exploring the issue, has taken steps to define different types of housing and demanding regulations, putting an end to the proliferation of recovery homes before it even begins.

“I’m guessing that what Falls Township did is a result of [Bristol Township],” said Davis. “[Bristol Township] better do something at their next council meeting or the residents, I think, will go crazy.”

For Longhitano, she’s been consistently pushing for better leadership across the board for the recovery house issue, and her role is far from over. “It has been my pleasure to work side by side with State Rep. Davis on such a pertinent issue,” Longhitano told LevittownNow.com. “Her bill is one step closer to creating balance and oversight that is much needed. As federal level is re-looking at their responsibility it is now in the hands of local township officials to also look at their responsibility.”