5 days ago · The Pennsylvania Capital-Star is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news site dedicated to honest and aggressive coverage of state government, politics and policy.

14 hours ago · Gov. Josh Shapiro delivered his third budget address on Tuesday, calling for an increase in funding to public education, mass transit, minimum wage, and the legalization of adult use cannabis. Following Shapiro’s 90 plus minute address, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle weighed in on his proposed spending plan. So did advocacy groups representing […]

18 hours ago · Six years ago, a constituent approached Rep. Jeanne McNeill, representing Pennsylvania’s 133rd district, with a problem. Her son with special needs had been denied a public school education. The mother spent time living in both of her parents’ houses in Whitehall and Allentown. Her son was ...

2 days ago · Gov. Josh Shapiro will address a joint session of the Pennsylvania General Assembly this week to outline his 2025-2026 state budget proposal, his third since taking office in 2023. Going into the second half of Shapiro’s term, lawmakers and advocacy groups identify funding for education and ...

5 days ago · White House announces tariffs on products from Canada, Mexico, China BY: Jennifer Shutt - January 31, 2025 WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump plans to implement tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China on Saturday, potentially starting off a trade war that would likely lead to price increases on groceries and numerous other products.

5 days ago · Pennsylvania county commissioners have called on state lawmakers to address flaws in the commonwealth’s vote-by-mail law and increase funding for mental health care and 911 services. Local election officials continue to scramble to meet mail ballot deadlines and face legal challenges more than ...

Jan 17, 2025 · Four freshman senators have been tapped to serve in leadership roles on the state Senate’s standing committees for the 2025-2026 session, although most committee chairs in the Republican-controlled chamber will be unchanged from the previous session. Sens. Dawn Keefer (R-York) and Patty Kim (D ...

Dec 24, 2024 · This year’s legislative session saw fewer new laws passed than any session in more than a decade, attributable in part to the partisan divide between the Democrat-controlled House and the Republican-controlled Senate. But there were some substantial pieces of legislation and changes to the budget that made it to the …

Oct 23, 2024 · “That said, there is still time to work on critical legislation, including providing survivors of child sex abuse an opportunity to seek justice, ensuring protections from discrimination, a long-overdue cost of living increase to retired public servants, adequately funding our mass transit systems and helping counties count votes quickly and accurately with pre-canvassing, in addition to the ...

*This breaking story was updated at 6:39 p.m. on Thursday, July 6 to include additional information. The state House voted 117-86 to pass a proposed $45.5 billion state budget late Wednesday, sending the spending plan to Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro’s desk for a signature.. In a statement following Wednesday’s vote, Shapiro said he was proud of the final budget, calling it a “statement ...