News & Brews May 31, 2023

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In blow to transparency, Shapiro won’t share daily calendar

Spotlight PA reports that Gov. Josh Shapiro “is declining to make public his daily calendar, a policy that obscures many of the details about who he meets with and what they discuss.” The move “breaks from the practice of his predecessor, and is the latest choice by the new governor to roll back a transparency measure.” Shapiro recently defeated a Right-to-Know appeal requesting his work calendar, as the Office of Open Records ruled in Shapiro’s favor. The requester can still appeal to Commonwealth Court.

Shapiro names Pa. chief diversity officer

Gov. Shapiro yesterday announced his pick of Norman Bristol Colón as the Commonwealth Chief Diversity Officer, “where he will lead diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs across all state agencies,” PennLive reports. “Bristol Colón is currently the chief diversity officer for the Department of Community and Economic Development and chair and founder of the Pennsylvania Latino Convention (PALC).” My colleague Abhi Samuel offered a unique perspective on DEI a while back, encouraging workplaces to embrace “clarity, conflict, and conversation.” Check out his piece here.

Press conference today on budget reserves

This afternoon at 1:30 p.m., Pa. Treasurer Stacy Garrity and Republican Appropriations Chair Seth Grove (York County) will hold a press conference to discuss “the positive fiscal impact of the Commonwealth’s Rainy Day and budgetary reserve funds.” The event will be live streamed here.

As GOP eyes Senate seat, Casey ‘stands in the way’

Republicans have their eye on winning a U.S. Senate seat in Pa. next year. But to do so, they’ll have to defeat “a well-liked incumbent.” POLITICO reports that Democrat Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. “has won all of his Senate elections by double digits or close to it.” Indeed, Casey has been called “political royalty in Pennsylvania.” And Republicans pretty universally agree that he’ll be “tough to beat.” That said, they certainly intend to try.

Benefits & challenges of domestic natural gas production

In the latest episode of PMA Perspective, Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association President and CEO David N. Taylor discusses “current proposals at the federal level that would negatively impact energy producers and manufacturers.” His guest is National Association of Manufacturers’ Vice President of Energy & Resources Policy Brandon Ferris. Watch the episode here!

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