State officials are trying again, this time with a grant program targeted at the smallest and most vulnerable operations.
Spotlight PA
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Lawmaker mimics top health official’s call for transgender acceptance to defend not wearing a mask
GOP Rep. Russ Diamond denied he was mocking the official, though he falsely equated being transgender to a “lifestyle choice.”
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Pa. health secretary denounces transphobic attacks: ‘Our children are watching’
As the face of the state’s COVID-19 response, Health Secretary Rachel Levine has been the subject of numerous personal attacks.
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Gov. Tom Wolf will allow transparency bill to become law despite veto threat
State agencies stopped processing public-record requests in mid-March as Wolf shut down much of Pennsylvania.
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Citing ‘overwhelming’ spread, Pa. moves to add staff, app to trace the coronavirus
There are currently 661 contact tracers across the state. The health department wants to add potentially thousands more.
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Lebanon County files lawsuit over Gov. Tom Wolf withholding millions in coronavirus relief funding
The lawsuit represents another test of Wolf’s emergency powers, which have been unsuccessfully challenged several times.
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More financial assistance may be on the way for Pennsylvanians struggling to pay utility bills
There’s currently a moratorium on utility shutoffs, though regulators have started to debate when it should come to an end.
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Pa. lawmakers want voters to weaken governor’s emergency powers, boost their own
The constitutional amendment process is a lengthy one with no guaranteed outcome, but it has a major benefit — it doesn’t require Gov. Tom Wolf’s approval.
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Gov. Tom Wolf imposes new restrictions on bars, restaurants, businesses as the coronavirus surges
The rollbacks are the first the administration has announced since it began reopening counties in May.
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Pa. Democratic state senator tests positive for the coronavirus
A spokesperson for Senate Democrats said Sen. Anthony Williams received the result Tuesday.
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Researchers say evidence lacking for UPMC claim of ‘less severe’ coronavirus strain in Pa.
The health system said a recent study backed up its assertion. But the study itself contradicts UPMC’s own takeaways.
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Damning report on Pa.’s failure to protect residents from fracking unlikely to result in major reform
State agencies implicated in the report dismissed it outright, calling the recommendations outdated and ill-informed.
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Pa. issues new eviction moratorium after fears rent relief would be too slow
Advocates say the order, which puts evictions on ice until Aug. 31, gives the state’s new rental assistance program more time to reach those who need help.
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Evictions loom large as Pa. renter relief program stumbles, lacks Spanish-language application
Pressure is mounting on Gov. Tom Wolf to extend his moratorium on evictions as advocates fear the relief effort is coming too late.
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Lawmakers will rule again over redrawing of Pa. political boundaries, but critics aren’t giving up
While an effort to create an independent commission to draw the state’s congressional and legislative maps has run out of time, a new bill would increase transparency and ban the most egregious practices.