News & Brews April 12, 2022
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Here’s where the gubernatorial candidates stand on term limits
Many say yes, some say no, and several say yes for state and federal offices but no for local offices. That’s a snapshot of where the candidates for governor stand on term limits. PennLive’s Jan Murphy asked the question of candidates, even as several are attacking each other for being “career politicians.” Read her piece here.
Senate committee advances election and voting changes
Yesterday, the Senate State Government Committee voted along party lines for legislation, sponsored by Republican Sen. Cris Dush, that would eliminate drop boxes. The committee also advanced legislation, sponsored by Republican Sen. Lisa Baker, that would prohibit third-party funding of elections. That vote was bipartisan, with two Democrats joining all Republicans in supporting the bill. PennLive has more.
Guide to primary challenges
With redrawn House and Senate maps shuffling seats around and leading to retirements, City & State PA has compiled a list of incumbent lawmakers who will face primary challenges on May 17. Check it out here.
Senate committee advances Fairness in Women’s Sports Act
Following recent similar action in the House, yesterday the Senate Education Committee advanced the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, which would ensure women are not forced to compete against biological males on women’s sports teams. The bill now heads to the full Senate.
Op-Ed: ‘An answer for the way Covid put our children behind’
The Commonwealth Foundation’s Elizabeth Stelle writes in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that even as “[s]eventy-eight percent of our state’s eighth-graders are not proficient in math … [and] 47% of them fall below their grade level in language arts…. [p]arents need more options in responding to the learning loss caused by the COVID shutdowns.” One way to give them those options is through Lifeline Scholarships, which “would empower parents with restricted-use funding for tuition at a school of their choice and approved education expenses like online classes, tutoring, books, and more.” Read more here.
Philly brings back masks, because … who knows
Despite low case counts, Philly is reimposing a mask mandate. As astute Twitter minds noted, the city is going by % increases in Covid cases, which means if there were 1 case and now there are 2, that’s a 100% increase—triggering masks. Or, as radio host Rich Zeoli tweeted, “Case numbers are so low and that’s why they argue the percentages of new cases is high. It’s a game.” Perhaps the best reaction is from attorney Kevin Levy, who offered a map of U.S. counties with mask mandates. You may have to zoom in to see…..
State AFL-CIO new president faces workplace harassment investigation
The progressive Pennsylvania Capital-Star reports, “An internal investigation into the Pennsylvania American Federation of Labor is set to begin after a prominent labor talk show host accused the chapter’s new president of workplace harassment.” The national AFL-CIO indicated it would hire a third party to investigate the allegations. The investigation comes at the request of the new president himself.