Pennsylvania Perspective for Thursday, July 25, 2024

Pennsylvania

Additional Dollars for Home Repair Initiative Absent From PA Budget 

Several Pennsylvania counties have exhibited high demand for a state-funded program that helps resident homeowners subsidize the cost of repairs. However, 18,200 applicants recently ended up on the program’s waitlist because the state budget failed to include additional funding for its administration. Spotlight PA has more.

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PA Supreme Court Will Hear Provisional Ballot Case

The Pennsylvania State Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that will decide whether two provisional ballots will count in the tight Luzerne County Republican Primary. The appeal claims that a ballot that lacks a signature and a ballot cast by a voter who had since moved out of the county should be counted. Pennsylvania Capital-Star has more.

$1B Program Seeks to Connect Disadvantaged Groups to Broadband

More than $1.25 billion will be available to help underserved groups in Pennsylvania and across the U.S. connect to high-speed internet, addressing digital divide issues and enhancing access to jobs, healthcare, education, and other essential activities. WESA has more.

EPA Funnels $400M to PA to Reduce Carbon Emissions

The Inflation Reduction Act’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program divvies up $4.3 billion between states around the country to reduce national carbon emissions. Pennsylvania will receive $396 million of the national total to cut industrial emissions- PA’s most significant source of carbon pollution. WESA has more.

Federal Funds Fueling Push Toward Solar, Hydrogen Energy Sourcing in PA

Although Pennsylvania continues to implement enhanced renewable energy policy, fossil fuels remain a quintessential part of the energy backdrop in the Keystone State. Bipartisan support for a Pennsylvania energy package fueled the passage of additional funding for renewable energy initiatives alongside a stronger footing for the fossil fuel industry. Lawmakers applauded their efforts, suggesting that such compromises arrived at the hands of increased federal cash flow. Spotlight PA has more.

PA to Enforce Additional Fee for EV Ownership

Pennsylvania will charge electric vehicle (EV) owners an extra $200 fee upon vehicle registration in 2025. In 2026, the fee will increase to $250 and follow inflation trends thereafter. Legislators argue that the fee equalizes road maintenance fees among PA drivers because EV owners are exempt from taxes at the gas station. WESA has more.

Water Privatization Becoming More Common in PA

The State of Pennsylvania regulates over 150 water utilities. However, more than of them remain under private ownership, and that number continues to increase. While water privatization has its benefits, it can be increasingly difficult for the state to administer utilities, especially when issues arise. Spotlight PA has more.

Philadelphia

Sheriff’s Office Resumes Auctions for Tax-Delinquent Properties

Philadelphia is resuming tax-delinquent property auctions after a three-year pause, addressing a backlog of over 1,000 properties and concerns about homeowner awareness, with the first auction resulting in the sale of 29 properties and the city aiming to collect overdue taxes and reduce blight. The Philadelphia Inquirer has more.

Philadelphia Takes on Stop-and-Go Stores

For years, Philadelphia residents have criticized the city’s lack of attention to liquor sales at stop-and-go stores while the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board has made it more difficult for certified vendors to legally sell alcohol. The Pennsylvania Stop-and-Go Legislative Task Force has shifted its focus to Philadelphia, seeking residents’ perspectives on how to eradicate stop-and-go stores in the city once and for all. The Philadelphia Inquirer has more.

Accessibility Declines in Philadelphia Housing Market

The Pew Charitable Trusts found that Philadelphia’s housing market still champions affordability relative to other large U.S. cities, but according to the city’s average home price, accessibility seems to have declined. Adjusted for inflation, the median home price for traditional buyers from 2000 to 2021 has increased from $98,753 to $265,000. At the same time, Philadelphia’s largest percentage of home-owning households make less than $50,000 annually. The Philadelphia Inquirer has more.

The Challenges of Mitigating Traffic Deaths in Philadelphia

With one-hundred traffic-related fatalities in Philadelphia per year, Mayor Charelle Parker has vowed  to prioritize making streets safer for bicyclists and pedestrians. However, her administration cut funding to the city’s traffic death prevention program, Vision Zero. Billy Penn has more.

Paying for Rides on SEPTA Just Got More Efficient

SEPTA has updated its payment mechanisms on buses, trolleys, and subways to incorporate Apple Wallet’s “Express Mode” as a quick, on-the-go form of payment for riders. Just like purchasing a cup of coffee, riders will hold their devices up to payment readers to complete their fare. The Philadelphia Inquirer has more.

Pittsburgh

PA Supreme Court to Hear Pittsburgh’s “Jock Tax” Case

Pittsburgh currently levies a 3% tax on athletes and performers from out-of-town when the celebrities use city venues. After a Common Pleas Judge struck down the “jock tax,” the city appealed. Claiming that the 3% levy equalizes the taxes home-town athletes and visiting players must pay, the city cited that residents already contribute 3% of their earnings to the municipality and its schools. WESA has more.

Pittsburgh Legislation Could Offer Legal Assistance to Renters 

Pittsburgh City Councilor Deb Gross introduced a bill that, if passed, will allocate one-fifth of the capital in an anti-violence fund to eviction prevention. Low-income tenants will gain access to representation in various forms of rental disputes. WESA has more.

Pittsburgh to Allocate Pandemic Funds to Paving, Mobile Restrooms

The initial $335 million from the America Rescue Plan Act has funded several of Pittsburgh’s construction projects throughout the past few years, including a bridge management program. However, the Office of Management and Budget vowed to send the remaining $8.7 million to projects most likely to finish within the federal government’s assigned capital timeline. And with five months of pandemic aid left, Pittsburgh’s city council approved the relocation of funds from construction to road paving and public restrooms. WESA has more.

Federal

Fox News Calls for a Harris-Trump Debate in Battleground Keystone State 

With ABC hosting the Second Presidential Debate on September 10th, Donald Trump’s attendance remains up in the air after the former President attacked the network. Just days after Vice President Kamala Harris emerged as the presumptive Democratic Nominee and earned her boss’s official endorsement, Fox News said that it wants to host a Pennsylvania debate just seven days after the ABC debate, on September 17th. The Philadelphia Inquirer has more.

How Will Philadelphia’s Collar Counties Vote in November?

Former President Donald Trump narrowly lost Bucks County to Biden in 2020. But for the first time in fifteen years, the purple county may turn red, according to voter registration numbers. Experts say that voter behavior tends to predict voter registration, meaning that these newly registered Republicans had most likely already voted for Trump in 2020. Nevertheless, the National Republican Congressional Committee claims that the Bucks County flip stands as proof that their campaign to flip the entire state is working. The Philadelphia Inquirer has more.

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