June 27, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesFights over transit, skill games, and overall spending mean the Pa. budget will again be lateby Stephen Caruso and Katie Meyer of Spotlight PAImpasses don’t mean much unless they stretch for more than a few weeks. Then, they start having serious consequences for schools, libraries, and more.
June 25, 2025Vincent DiFonzo / For Spotlight PAFree school lunch in Pennsylvania? Lawmakers want it to be part of the budget.by Vincent DiFonzo for Spotlight PAAdvocates say free school lunch would produce healthier, more engaged students — plus would save kids from stigma, and parents from debt.
June 24, 2025Amanda Berg / For Spotlight PAGOP leaders accused of pressuring lobbyists to drop gaming client in 'ugly' Pa. budget fightby Stephen Caruso and Angela Couloumbis of Spotlight PAIn a rare public rift, powerful skill games operator Pace-O-Matic is accusing the Pa. Senate of forcing lobbyists to drop them as a client.
June 24, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesShortage of new teachers is hurting Pa. kids’ academic prospects, report saysby Elena Eisenstadt for Spotlight PAPoor Pa. school districts are leaning heavily on less-rigorous emergency certifications to fill teaching gaps, a Penn State report found.
June 23, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesShapiro says prison closures will save $100M, but critics want Pa. to explore alternativesby Elena Eisenstadt for Spotlight PAGov. Josh Shapiro’s administration has delayed making a final decision on the closures as the plan faces pushback.
June 20, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesOlder, disabled Pennsylvanians could face higher fares for on-demand rides without more fundingby Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PAShared-ride services provide key transportation services in rural areas. It’s a little-known potential casualty of Pennsylvania’s transit deadlock.
June 11, 2025Amanda Berg / For Spotlight PAMinimum wage would be $15 in big counties, $12 in smaller ones under novel bill passed by Pa. Houseby Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PAThe proposal is designed to appeal to Republican senators, and comes after Pa. Democrats unsuccessfully tried for years to pass a statewide $15 minimum wage
June 10, 2025Amanda Berg / For Spotlight PAPennsylvania House advances bills to provide relief for abuse survivorsby Associated PressLawmakers advanced both a constitutional amendment and a traditional bill in a bid to create a two-year window for lawsuits.
June 9, 2025Amanda Berg / For Spotlight PAKey Pa. senator says bipartisan energy bills on hold until contested climate program settledby Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PAThe legislation would rewrite an unused tax credit in an effort to boost energy production, in PA plus promote and regulate solar energy.
June 4, 2025Nate Smallwood / For Spotlight PACyber charter reform that could save public schools $616M advances with unclear future in Pa. Senateby Katie Meyer of Spotlight PAAt least some of its concepts have support in both chambers, but the issue has always been complicated by the commonwealth’s tricky education politics.
June 2, 2025Jenny Kane / APAI boom drives states to offer big incentives for data center developmentby Associated PressIn Pennsylvania, lawmakers are writing legislation to fast-track permitting for data centers.
June 2, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesFederal uncertainty complicates Pa. budget haggling over transit, educationby Stephen Caruso, Kate Huangpu, and Katie Meyer of Spotlight PARepublicans want to balance the books and be picky about spending, while Democrats say large investments in public education and transit are needed.
May 30, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesOne question dogs Pa. cannabis debate: Should big businesses have a leg up?by Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PABalancing the desire to get recreational cannabis off the ground quickly, while giving small business a chance in the market, is Harrisburg’s toughest task.
May 26, 2025Courtesy Pa. House Democrats5 years after George Floyd’s murder, Pa.’s police misconduct database remains full of loopholesby Katie Meyer of Spotlight PASince creating the database, lawmakers have become even less focused on legislating changes to policing or fixing flawed reforms.
May 21, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesPressure from powerful hospital lobby prompts lawmakers to limit proposed merger crackdownby Stephen Caruso and Katie Meyer of Spotlight PANew legislation aims to restrict private equity's influence in hospital mergers, excluding nonprofits after pressure from industry lobby.
May 19, 2025Amanda Berg / For Spotlight PATop Pa. lawmakers took $119K in gifts, trips, and more from those seeking to influence them in 2024by Stephen Caruso and Katie Meyer of Spotlight PAThat includes trips to Israel funded by the charity arm of AIPAC and to Taiwan funded by the government.
May 13, 2025Ed Mahon / For Spotlight PABill to sell legal marijuana through state stores rejected by GOP-led panelby Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PAA leading GOP supporter of legal marijuana said the proposal would shut out the private sector and create logistical challenges.
May 13, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesPowerful health systems oppose a growing effort to prevent hospital closures through more oversightby Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PAA bill with bipartisan support would give the Pennsylvania attorney general oversight of hospital mergers and closures. The powerful hospital lobby opposes it.
May 12, 2025Matt Smith / For Spotlight PAExtra money offered this Pa. school district a lifeline. Whether more is coming is an open question.by Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PAScranton School District’s new state funding helped it compete with the cyber charters that are burdening its budget, bring back extracurriculars, and invest in STEM.
May 7, 2025Ed Mahon / Spotlight PADemocrats send ‘dead-on-arrival’ marijuana legalization bill to Pa. Senateby Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PAThe bill would create state stores where cannabis is sold to Pennsylvania adults, a legally untested model that Republicans oppose.
May 7, 2025Amanda Berg / For Spotlight PABill to ban transgender athletes in girls' sports passes Pa. Senate, but unlikely to reach governorby Associated PressThe bill passed, 32-18, with five Democrats crossing party lines to join with all 27 Republicans in voting "yes."
May 6, 2025Courtesy of Amy Kobeta of Children FirstPaid family leave is a work perk for Pa. lawmakers but probably not youby Sarah Boden for Spotlight PAAccess to paid leave in Pennsylvania is generally determined by where residents live and work. This includes the legislature, which grants paid parental leave to House staffers but not Senate ones.
May 5, 2025National Institute on Drug AbuseRecreational cannabis would be sold at state-run stores under bill advanced by Pa. Democratsby Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PADespite the committee vote, a prominent cannabis backer doesn’t think the state store model has enough support to get to Gov. Josh Shapiro.
May 5, 2025Amanda Berg / For Spotlight PABadly needed updates to Pa.'s election law unlikely despite new consensus on voter IDby Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PA and Carter Walker of VotebeatConflicting partisan priorities and disagreements over voter ID specifics continue to make election deals tricky.
April 29, 2025Amanda Berg / For Spotlight PASpooked by Alabama ‘embryonic personhood’ ruling, Pa. lawmakers aim to expand and protect IVF accessby Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PATwo bills in the Pennsylvania legislature target insurance costs for infertility treatments. Another would make access to such services a protected right.
April 18, 2025Abby Drey / Centre Daily TimesThe people who represent you in D.C. and Harrisburg are allowed to keep their calendars secretby Min Xian of Spotlight PA State CollegePennsylvania and federal open records laws don’t require elected officials to release their work calendars to the public.
April 8, 2025KENT M. WILHELM / For Spotlight PAEmails between Pa. lawmakers and lobbyists will remain hidden from the public after court rulingby Angela Couloumbis of Spotlight PAAdvocates called the ruling a missed opportunity to create more transparency around the state legislature and multimillion-dollar lobbying industry.
April 7, 2025Daniel Fishel / For Spotlight PACampaign cash flowed to key Pa. lawmakers as hunters launched an offensive to save pigeon shootsby Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PAThe proposed pigeon shooting ban passed through a Pennsylvania House committee with bipartisan support. Then it stalled, and the lawmaker in charge won’t say why.
April 2, 2025Georgianna Sutherland / For Spotlight PAProposed $25M cut to bird flu aid for farmers could leave Pa. unprepared for surge, GOP lawmakers fearby Marley Parish of Spotlight PA State CollegeThe Shapiro administration says Pennsylvania has enough in reserves to address avian influenza, but Republican lawmakers aren’t convinced that reallocating that funding is responsible.
April 1, 2025Commonwealth Media ServicesLooser education rules floated as fix to Pa.’s troubled home care workforceby Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PAA bill would require direct care workers to pass a competency exam rather than have a diploma or GED. Advocates argue a more direct solution to the staffing shortfall would be to increase wages.
Booklight PA: Read ‘The School for Good Mothers’ and discuss it with author Jessamine ChanAttendSep 25