Crews dig into Pennsylvania nursing home rubble to see if a gas leak caused deadly blast
BRISTOL — Construction crews worked to clear the collapsed walls and roof from a Pennsylvania nursing home Wednesday to help investigators find the cause of an explosion that killed a resident and employee, and set off a dramatic evacuation amid falling debris and shooting flames. The Tuesday afternoon blast sent...
PJM’s power auction shortfall could lead to increased blackout risks in Pa., other states
Regional grid operator PJM Interconnection says people in Pennsylvania and 12 other states may face unacceptable blackout risks as data centers soak up electricity. In its annual generation capacity auction, PJM asked power producers to guarantee more than 152,000 megawatts of electricity could be available at one time from June...
Investigators sift through wreckage after 2 killed in Pa. nursing home explosion
BRISTOL — Construction crews and drones searched the rubble of a Pennsylvania nursing home Wednesday, a day after a powerful explosion killed at least two people, collapsed part of the building and left several residents unaccounted for. Emergency responders from across the region dug through debris and evacuated residents amid...
Pa.’s top election official battles DOJ demand for voter data
Pennsylvania’s top election official wants a judge to toss out a lawsuit by the federal government demanding “highly sensitive personal information” about the state’s voters. The U.S. Department of Justice sued Pennsylvania in September after the state initially failed to turn over data about its nearly 9 million registered voters....
After another death, advocates say ‘dangerous’ ICE facility in central Pa. must close
Advocates renewed calls to close the Moshannon Valley Processing Center during a press conference Monday after a man died at the privately-owned immigration detention facility near Philipsburg last week. Fouad Saeed Abdulkadir, 46, from the African country of Eritrea, died Dec. 14 in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. His...
Expanding broadband in rural Pa. was complicated by rule changes and uncertainty in 2025
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — It’s been a year of sweeping and controversial changes for a huge federal broadband initiative. The $42.45...
Pa. Gov. Josh Shapiro schedules book tour as he stands for reelection, builds 2028 profile
PHILADELPHIA — Days before his memoir is set to hit shelves Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro will kick off his book tour at Philadelphia’s Parkway Central Library on Jan. 24. Shapiro will swing through Philadelphia, New York and Washington, D.C., in the final week of January to promote his book “Where...
Trump’s ‘A+++++’ economy collides with reality in Allentown, a city critical to the midterms
ALLENTOWN — When Idalia Bisbal moved to this Pennsylvania city synonymous with America’s working class, she hoped for a cheaper, easier life than the one she was leaving behind in her hometown of New York City. About three years later, she is deeply disappointed. “It’s worse than ever,” the 67-year-old...
Federal prison guard admits he raped Pa. inmate while she was on suicide watch
When a person incarcerated at the federal detention center in Philadelphia is placed on suicide watch, they are assigned to the “dry cells” in the special housing unit to be monitored by guards. It’s a system designed to keep vulnerable people safe from themselves. But for a 35-year-old woman, the...
Squirrel Hill’s McCormick among GOP senators who urged Trump not to reclassify marijuana
U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick is at odds with President Donald Trump’s move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, arguing that it could adversely impact Americans’ health and safety, tax revenue and economic growth. McCormick, a Republican from Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill, was one of 22 GOP senators to co-sign...
Hundreds of rapes in State College area weren’t reported in public police data over nearly a decade
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for our north-central Pa. newsletter, Talk of the Town, at spotlightpa.org/newsletters/talkofthetown. Over the span of nearly a decade, the State College Police Department...
Caregivers in Pa. are celebrating a rare pay boost, but long-term funding issues linger
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Public funding for child care, home services for older adults, and disability support will increase under Pennsylvania’s...
JD Vance touts Trump record on economy during Lehigh Valley visit amid voter concerns
Vice President JD Vance touted the Trump administration’s economic record Tuesday at an address in the Lehigh Valley, highlighting jobs and inflation numbers, even as polls suggest a majority of Americans remain unsatisfied with the state of the U.S. economy. Vance, speaking before a crowd of hundreds at the Uline...
Man who torched Gov. Shapiro’s residence sentenced for assaulting ex-wife, stepkids
The arsonist who threw two incendiary devices into the Governor’s Residence in April, saying he wanted to kill Gov. Josh Shapiro, has received a second sentence Tuesday on charges related to a 2023 domestic violence incident. Cody Balmer, 38, of Penbrook pleaded guilty to three counts of simple assault in...
Final U.S. pennies sell for millions at auction after mint ends production
PHILADELPHIA — The last minted pennies sure cost a pretty penny. On Thursday, a three-coin set of the final pennies minted for circulation sold at auction for $800,000. Another of the sets sold for $180,000. In all, the final pennies sold for a combined nearly $17 million. Sold by Stack’s...
New Penn State building will remain closed next semester after ‘structural issue’
One of Penn State’s newest buildings will remain closed next semester because of a “localized structural issue.” The university’s $128 million Susan Welch Liberal Arts Building is scheduled to remain out of service for the entire spring 2026 semester. Though the building has been determined safe for limited reentry, it...
Dog licenses fees increase for 2026
Dog owners in Pennsylvania will pay more to license their pets in 2026. The state’s Department of Agriculture said dog license fees will increase $2 for the upcoming year and could rise another $1 in 2027 under legislation signed into law in 2023 by Gov. Josh Shapiro. That law set...
Shapiro admin subpoenaed for records detailing use of public funds to upgrade governor’s private home
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — A Pennsylvania Senate panel has taken the rare and dramatic step of subpoenaing the Shapiro administration for...
Plan to keep a Rocky statue at the top of the Art Museum steps in Philly moves forward
PHILADELPHIA — Keep punching, Rocky. Creative Philadelphia’s proposal to permanently install a Rocky statue at the top of the Philadelphia Art Museum’s famed steps is one step closer to reality following an Art Commission meeting Wednesday, though the plan fell short of receiving final approval following a mixed vote. Three...
Shapiro joins Utah governor in condemning political violence, extreme rhetoric
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro quickly shifted gears Tuesday night inside the Washington National Cathedral as another shouting protester tried to interrupt him during an event on political violence and civility. “By the way, I’ll just thank the cathedral for the amazing acoustics. I can’t hear a word of what these...
Feds allowed terror suspect to have truck license even after his arrest, PennDOT says
The state Senate held a committee hearing this week on Pennsylvania’s commercial driver’s license process, a month after the system became the controversy du jour with the Trump administration. Despite the political rhetoric that erupted in November, the hearing was far less dramatic and pointed to several cases where bureaucratic...
Expiring Obamacare subsidies prompt thousands to drop Pennie health insurance
For every new enrollment, two Pennsylvanians are dropping Obamacare coverage as steep government subsidies are set to expire at year’s end. About 38,000 people who have Affordable Care Act coverage through Pennie, the state’s health insurance exchange, have opted not to renew their plans for next year. That’s compared to...
Pa. transgender health leader’s name changed on federal portrait in act of ‘bigotry’
Among the portraits of agency leaders that line the hallways at the federal Department of Health and Human Services is one of Admiral Rachel Levine, who served as Pennsylvania secretary of health and physician general before being named President’s Biden’s assistant secretary of health. Levine was the first transgender person...
Shapiro pushes back on federal policy change, urges continuation of hepatitis B vaccines at birth
Gov Josh Shapiro is again pushing back on a Trump administration reversal on vaccine guidance, this time involving the hepatitis B vaccine given at birth. In a press release, the Shapiro administration said it was standing with medical experts “to ensure parents can protect children from lifelong liver disease by...
Trump to visit Pa. pushing efforts to curb inflation as high prices squeeze Americans
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump plans to travel to Pennsylvania on Tuesday to highlight his efforts to reduce inflation even as fears mount about a worsening job market and amid signs that Americans are still feeling squeezed by high prices. A White House official said Trump would be making the...
