PROOF OF CONCEPT â full quality-of-life profile for Pennsylvania, 16 dimensions of the sex-offense registry regime. Ratings are researcher judgments from the registrant's perspective; each links its statute. NOT legal advice.
Weighted burden index 47.5/100 ¡ rank 24 of 56 (1 = least burdensome) ¡ 11/16 dimensions statute-verified.
Legend: đĸ favorable (less burden) ¡ đ moderate ¡ đ´ restrictive ¡ âšī¸ context ¡ âĒ unknown. â = statute-verified.
| Dimension | Rating | Detail | Statute |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration length | đ moderate | Tiered fixed terms with a lifetime top tier â Tier I 15 yrs, Tier II 25 yrs, Tier III/SVP life â lifetime | 42 Pa.C.S. § 9799.15(a) â |
| Removal / petition off | đ´ restrictive | No term-reduction petition for Tier I/II (fixed terms only age out); only a discretionary 25-yr exemption for Tier III/SVP and a juvenile-only termination â unavailable to most registrants â â needs human review | 42 Pa.C.S. § 9799.15(a.2); § 9799.17 â |
| Individualized risk assessment | đ moderate | Risk assessment used only to determine Sexually Violent Predator status, not general tiering | § 9799.24; § 9799.58 |
| In-person reporting frequency | đ moderate | Annually (Tier I / 10-yr / lifetime), bi-annually (Tier II), quarterly (Tier III/SVP), monthly (transient) | 42 PA C.S.A 9799.25(a); 9799.60 |
| Registration fee | đĸ favorable | No registration fee â PA SORNA (42 Pa.C.S. Subch. H/I) has no fee provision and the PA State Police Megan's Law registration page describes no cost to register | 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 9799.10-9799.42 (no fee provision) â |
| Residency restriction | đĸ favorable | No statewide residency restriction â PA SORNA (42 Pa.C.S. § 9799.10 et seq.) imposes registration/notification duties only, with no limit on where a registrant may live â local: local residency ordinances largely preempted â PA Supreme Court, Fross v. County of Allegheny (2011) | 42 Pa.C.S. § 9799.11 (no residency provision) â |
| Employment restriction | đĸ favorable | No statewide employment restriction â PA SORNA imposes registration/notification duties only, with no employment-distance restriction or bar from jobs near minors | 42 Pa.C.S. Subch. H/I (no employment provision) â |
| Presence / loitering restriction | đ´ restrictive | Tier II/III may not be with a minor unless the child's parent/guardian is present (consequences fall on the parent/guardian) | n/a |
| Visitor registration trigger | đ moderate | Page cannot find controlling statute; secondary sources say within 48 hrs / 3 business days; temporary lodging defined as 7+ days | n/a |
| Internet identifiers required | đ´ restrictive | Yes â must report 'designations or monikers used for self-identification in Internet communications or postings' (§ 9799.16(b)) | 42 § 9799.16 â |
| Civil commitment | đ´ restrictive | Yes â civil commitment law cited | 42 C.S. §6402, §6403(a)(3) |
| Public website exposure | đ´ restrictive | All tiers on the public Megan's Law website â statute lists Tier I/II/III and SVP with no Tier I exemption (lowest tier public) | 42 Pa.C.S. § 9799.28 â |
| Halloween / holiday restriction | đĸ favorable | No Halloween/holiday-specific restriction in PA SORNA; PA State Police Megan's Law page lists no seasonal limitation on registrants | 42 Pa.C.S. Subch. H/I (no Halloween provision) â |
| Marked driver's license / ID | đĸ favorable | PA does not brand the driver's license or state ID; PA SORNA and the PSP Megan's Law registration page impose no license-marking requirement | 42 Pa.C.S. Subch. H/I (no license-marking provision) â |
| Community notification (& who pays) | đ moderate | Active written notice to neighbors/schools/day-cares applies ONLY to sexually violent predators and sexually violent delinquent children; provided by law enforcement, not paid by the registrant; all others get passive website only | 42 Pa.C.S. § 9799.27; § 9799.28 â |
| Age of consent (context) | âšī¸ context | 16 â with close-in-age exception (statutory sexual assault only if victim under 16 and actor 4+ years older) | 18 Pa.C.S. § 3122.1 â |
Source wiki page: Pennsylvania ¡ compare with others via the index. Weighted index from the v1 model (weighted_score.py); weights encode NARSOL's judgment about everyday lived burden. Removal ratings and the weights need NARSOL/attorney sign-off before authoritative use.