Pennsylvania category, Page 4
Shapiro, neighbors trade lawsuits over ‘disputed area’ at governor’s private Montgomery County 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 — For the past six months, Gov. Josh Shapiro has been entangled in an intense but largely behind-the-scenes...
Penn State student on life support after hit-and-run crash in State College, family says
A Penn State student is in critical condition and expected to remain in an intensive care unit for at least a month after she was hit Saturday by a driver in downtown State College. Sophia Ruscillo — a 20-year-old pursuing a career in public relations and social media, according to...
Watchdog projects Pa. will end fiscal year with $3.9B budget deficit, but reserves will grow
Pennsylvania’s Independent Fiscal Office projects the state will end this fiscal year with a $3.9 billion budget deficit but still grow its largest reserve fund to a record $7.8 billion, according to a report released Tuesday. The IFO says the deficit is expected to get bigger, growing to $6.7 billion...
Trump loyalist Sen. Dave McCormick defends controversial White House aide Stephen Miller
Sen. Dave McCormick is among more than a dozen Republican senators who are defending senior White House aide Stephen Miller amid growing calls for his removal. McCormick, a staunch ally of the president, on Sunday told The Hill that Miller has been “instrumental in delivering on the promises President Trump...
Former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett critical of Trump’s election gambit
In the days since President Donald Trump called for the federal government to “nationalize” elections, two former high ranking officials from Pennsylvania, former Gov. Tom Corbett and former U.S. District Court Judge John Jones III, have spoken out. Both have a history in Republican politics. Corbett was the last Republican...
John Fetterman asks DHS to halt development of ICE detention centers in Pennsylvania, saying they will burden local communities
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Braddock, is calling on the Department of Homeland Security to hit the brakes on its plan to develop two Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers in Pennsylvania, saying they would have a negative impact on local communities. “While I have been clear in my support for...
Shapiro condemns Trump’s post about Obamas as ‘racist garbage’
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has condemned a video shared by President Donald Trump depicting former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama as apes as “racist garbage.” “The idea that anyone would post a video like that, let alone the president of the United States, someone who is supposed...
Creating art for U.S. coins is tricky. These Pa. artists have made a career of it
This story first appeared in PA Local, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA taking a fresh, positive look at the incredible people, beautiful places, and delicious food of Pennsylvania. Sign up for free here. PHILADELPHIA — If you’ve got coins in your pocket, purse, or wallet, you’re likely carrying around...
State budget plan includes $30M performance-based fund for Pitt, Penn State
The state’s proposed budget for the coming fiscal year includes $30 million in performance-based grants to be distributed among the University of Pittsburgh, Penn State University and Temple University, through a new state-related university performance fund. General support appropriations, however, remain flat for Pitt, at $151.5 million, and Penn State,...
Pa. House panel approves bill to limit exceptions to Sunshine Act notice requirement
State lawmakers hope to close a loophole in one of Pennsylvania’s government transparency laws with a bill headed to the House for consideration. The state Supreme Court in November clarified a 2021 amendment to the state Sunshine Act that created four exceptions to the law’s public notice requirement. One, the...
Emergency crews evacuate patients and battle blaze at Pennsylvania hospitalVideo
A fire tore through a northeastern Pennsylvania hospital, sending smoke billowing into the air as dozens of patients were evacuated and emergency medical crews were rushed in from across the region, authorities said. No one was reported injured by the Wednesday night blaze at the Lehigh Valley Hospital campus in...
ICE buys $87M warehouse in Berks County as it plots expansion of detention centers across U.S.
This story was produced by the Berks County bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom. Sign up for Good Day, Berks, a daily dose of essential local stories at spotlightpa.org/newsletters/gooddayberks. UPPER BERN — The Trump administration has quietly purchased a nearly 520,000-square-foot warehouse in Berks County as it plans...
Shapiro proposes record $53.3B in spending for coming fiscal year
Gov. Josh Shapiro on Tuesday unveiled a proposed $53.3 billion budget for the coming fiscal year that would use nearly $4.6 billion, or more than half, of the state’s largest reserve fund to balance. Shapiro said in an address to a joint session of the state House and Senate that...
Western Pa. casinos report mixed results despite 5th year of statewide gambling revenue growth
For the fifth consecutive year, gambling revenue statewide reached a record high in 2025, according to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. Gambling revenue hit nearly $6.8 billion last year, the board said, which is a 10.7% increase from 2024 and more than double the state’s 2016 figure of $3.2 billion....
Gov. Shapiro wants to ban cellphones from Pennsylvania schools
Gov. Josh Shapiro is backing a proposal to ban cellphones from Pennsylvania classrooms, joining a growing chorus of parents, teachers, and officials seeking to curb school disruptions and detach kids from addictive devices. “It’s time for us to get distractions out of the classroom and create a healthier environment in...
New documents show Jeffrey Epstein tried to buy Bill Cosby’s home and closely followed entertainer’s sexual assault case
PHILADELPHIA — In the mid-2010s, well after he was already a convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein began closely following the sexual assault case against another prominent figure: Philadelphia-born actor and comedian Bill Cosby. Among the millions of documents released Friday by the U.S. Department of Justice — in the latest...
Pa.’s budget impasse ended in November. It’s already time to talk about the next budget
Here we go again. Pennsylvania’s latest budget impasse, which dragged on for 135 days, just ended in mid-November. Now, less than three months later, state government leaders are preparing to begin the often-tortured process of trying to hammer out a budget for the coming fiscal year. The budget process formally...
Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow — predicting no early springVideo
PUNXSUTAWNEY — Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of wintry weather Monday, a forecast sure to disappoint many after what’s already been a long, cold season across large parts of the United States. His annual prediction and announcement that he had seen his shadow was translated by his handlers in...
Sen. John Fetterman supports ICE agents’ mask use amid rising doxxing threatsVideo
Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, during a Fox News interview on Sunday, said he was in support of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents wearing masks to protect them and their families from being identified and pursued by left-wing protesters. “Some of those agents wearing masks, primarily that’s driven by...
Deadline for 2026 health insurance through Pennie is almost here
Pennsylvanians still searching for a 2026 health insurance plan are running out of time to secure it through the Affordable Care Act. Open enrollment on Pennie, the state’s Obamacare marketplace, ends just before midnight Jan. 31. Pennie officials had extended the deadline from an original cutoff of Jan. 15. The...
York County GOP Rep. Seth Grove to leave office, 5th opening in the House this year
A former state House Republican leader who served as the caucus’ budget watchdog announced he would resign from office effective Sunday. Rep. Seth Grove (R-York) revealed in May that he would not seek reelection for a 10th term, ending the announcement with “Lets get back to work,” but no indication...
What is the fate of some 2 dozen ICE bills before Pa. state lawmakers?
About two dozen proposals related to immigration enforcement are percolating in the state legislature in response to the Trump administration’s crackdown and tactics – including increased reliance on county jails and local police departments. Lawmakers acknowledge it’s a long shot to enact reforms in a federally-governed arena and with a...
Allegheny County GOP Chairman Jason Richey to run for lieutenant governor
A Sewickley attorney who serves as Allegheny County’s GOP chairman said Thursday that he is running for lieutenant governor with the endorsement of the presumptive Republican nominee for the state’s highest office, Stacy Garrity. Jason Richey, 54, said he arrived at the decision to run over the past two weeks...
Gas smell at nursing home was reported hours before deadly explosion, report says
HARRISBURG — Hours before a deadly explosion ripped through a Pennsylvania nursing home last month, staff grew concerned about the smell of natural gas on several floors and brought in workers from the local utility company to check it out, federal regulators said Wednesday. The preliminary report by the National...
Trump endorses Stacy Garrity in race for Pa. governor
President Donald Trump threw his support behind Republican Stacy Garrity on Tuesday night as she aims to unseat Gov. Josh Shapiro as Pennsylvania governor. In an evening Truth Social post, Trump called Garrity — who serves as Pennsylvania treasurer — a “true America First Patriot.” “Stacy Garrity has my Complete...
