Hi coyotegd,
by boilerplate I assume you refer to code that you reuse over and over like TRIS and Config fuse settings, that can be dicey in programming PICs as so many have their own quirks. You might think good thoughts about posting that boiler plate code so as we can smoke it over. You know, I think I would try your code on a port B pin, as Port A has lots of confusing analog stuff to contend with, the process of elimination.
JS