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A Harrisburg-based nonpartisan, nonprofit news site dedicated to fact-based, nuanced, fair, and transparent coverage focusing on how policies implemented in Harrisburg and Washington D.C. impact you and your community. info@penncapital-star.com
A Lehigh Valley man who voted twice for President Donald Trump in the 2020 election is facing prison time.
On Wednesday, Matthew Laiss, who lives in Bethlehem, was convicted of felony voter fraud charges by a federal jury.
From @iankarbal.bsky.social
The Shapiro administration stepped up its opposition to two proposed immigrant detention centers in Berks and Schuylkill counties Thursday, issuing administrative orders claiming that housing anyone at either location would violate state water regulations.
From @wdownard.bsky.social
This week's episode on the Stories from the States podcast takes you into a 50-state investigation examining state and federal budgets, as well as the tax records of hundreds of crisis pregnancy centers around the country.
From @statesnewsroom.com and @stateline.org
The bulk of the money Missouri gives to crisis pregnancy centers comes from federal funds meant to assist families experiencing poverty.
Read part three of @statesnewsroom.com's analysis that found 21 states funneled nearly a half-billion dollars in public money to these organizations.
The platforms are raising bipartisan alarms, especially related to sports gambling.
As states have legalized sports betting in recent years, they’ve required legal sportsbooks to jump through multiple hoops.
Online prediction markets circumvent all those rules.
From @stateline.org
Questions spanned a slew of election administration topics, from when the state’s new voter management system will be ready to how artificial intelligence is changing elections.
From @votebeat.org
The Week in Focus is a video recap of our top stories:
1. How will the war with Iran impact gas prices in Pennsylvania?
2. Pharmacists are calling on state leaders to have a bigger say in Medicaid payment policies.
3. Pa. House Democrats are pushing to prioritize universal
pre-K.
Pennsylvania Rep. Brendan Boyle, the top Democrat on the U.S. House Budget Committee, sent a letter to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office on Thursday, asking its experts to determine how much the war in Iran could cost.
From @statesnewsroom.com
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro joined the lawsuit to block the latest tariffs instituted by President Donald Trump.
From the @azmirror.com
The Democratic senior from Pennsylvania isn't waiting for confirmation hearings.
The Local Farmers Feeding Our Community Act effectively seeks to revive a program axed during the early months of the Trump administration.
The previous program saw the U.S. Department of Agriculture provide funds for states to pay farmers who supply food banks.
From @iankarbal.bsky.social
The Pennsylvania Army National Guard will be transformed as part of a larger national initiative from the U.S. Army with a focus on agility.
The effort will start with the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, a 4,400-soldier brigade that was deployed to Iraq in 2009.
From @wdownard.bsky.social
This year, Delaware, Maine and Minnesota began or planned to start offering benefits through new paid leave programs.
And the report cites growing momentum in six more states, including Pennsylvania.
From @stateline.org
Commentary:
For Pennsylvania, the stakes are even higher. In agricultural states, cockfighting presents an additional threat that extends beyond criminal enforcement into animal health, biosecurity and the economic stability of farming communities.
While the proposals vary, they broadly seek to combat the prospect of chaotic confrontations between federal agents and voters this November.
The U.S. Constitution gives states — not the president or federal government — the responsibility for running elections.
From @stateline.org
States Newsroom conducted a 50-state investigation examining funding for crisis pregnancy centers.
The facilities offer limited services related to pregnancy and are guided by a religious mission to stop people from considering abortion.
From @statesnewsroom.com and @stateline.org
As hundreds of pharmacies close across Pennsylvania, pharmacists are asking state lawmakers to pass a bill that would see the commonwealth play a bigger role in how they’re paid for drugs dispensed to Medicaid patients.
via @penncapital-star.com
By 2034, Medicaid will have 7.6 million fewer enrollees, the authors estimated. The federal government will save about $714 billion from 2025-2034.
California and New York will see the biggest total drop in their Medicaid budgets, $112 billion and $63 billion, respectively.
From @stateline.org
Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman was the lone Democrat to vote against moving ahead with the measure.
From @statesnewsroom.com
U.S. House Republicans spent am oversight hearing with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blasting local governments for policies that limit immigration cooperation, while Democrats slammed her leadership, saying it led to the deaths of two people in Minneapolis.
From @statesnewsroom.com
Commentary:
"Quakers from around the region were joined by other witnesses from allied faith traditions to manifest a message of hope, love and acceptance for all of our friends and neighbors, and most especially for the most powerless and marginalized amongst us."
As hundreds of pharmacies close across Pa., pharmacists are asking state lawmakers to pass a bill that would see the commonwealth play a bigger role in how they’re paid for drugs dispensed to Medicaid patients.
It would sideline middlemen known as PBMs.
From @iankarbal.bsky.social
Twenty-one states funneled nearly a half-billion dollars of taxpayer money to crisis pregnancy center organizations between fiscal years 2022 and 2025.
In Pa., Gov. Josh Shapiro terminated the state's contract with its crisis pregnancy network in 2023.
From @statesnewsroom.com
Under the proposed changes, those 30 days would give way to older standards, which vary by housing program and state law, and which can be as little as a few days’ notice.
From @stateline.org
With a stinging rebuke of the credibility and motives of the U.S. Department of Justice, a federal judge issued a final order rejecting the agency’s demand for medical records of minors who received gender-affirming care at a Pittsburgh hospital.
From @petehallpa.bsky.social
All were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command in Des Moines.
They were killed during a March 1 drone attack on a commercial port in Kuwait, a U.S. ally.
From @statesnewsroom.com
Less than half of the state’s 3- and 4-year-olds participate in high-quality, publicly funded pre-K, according to Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children.
Research indicates that a quality pre-kindergarten education prepares children for kindergarten and beyond.
From @wdownard.bsky.social
“We expect exceptional leadership and you’ve demonstrated anything but that,” North Carolina GOP Sen Thom Tillis said. “What we’ve seen is a disaster under your leadership. What we’ve seen is innocent people getting detained that turn out are American citizens.”
From @statesnewsroom.com
