News & Brews August 22, 2023
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Pa. Senate to convene August 30 for budget’s ‘next steps’
Pa. Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward said yesterday that the state Senate will reconvene on August 30 to address the unfinished state budget. Ward said the “next steps” for the budget “include funding for emergency medical services and hospital and health system relief. Other matters will continue to be negotiated with our counterparts in good faith and in the best interests of Pennsylvanians.” A spokesperson for the Senate Republicans said, “We are in communication with House leaders, and we remain hopeful the House will also choose to reconvene before September 26.” The House is currently not scheduled to return until then, following a Sept. 19 special election to fill a vacant seat.
The fight to elect school choice lawmakers in 2024
The Delaware Valley Journal reports on our (Commonwealth Partners’) announcement that our PACs plan to invest $10 million-plus to elect school choice lawmakers in Pennsylvania in 2024. “Gov. Shapiro has repeatedly stated his support for school choice,” said CP President and CEO Matt Brouillette. “He knows that rescuing kids from failing schools is the right thing to do. But union-owned lawmakers who control the House have thwarted him so far. We plan to remove that barrier so Shapiro will have no roadblock to keeping his word.”
Shapiro heads to New Hampshire
Gov. Josh Shapiro will keynote the New Hampshire Democratic Party Convention next month in a visit that has folks talking about his (widely known) presidential ambitions. The visit comes as NH will hold a gubernatorial election next year. PennLive notes, “Shapiro is no stranger to the national spotlight.” And, “While Shapiro’s camp has demurred on any presidential talk, the New Hampshire Democrats’ statement acknowledged that ‘every national Democratic leader in the last 50 years has spoken at a [New Hampshire Democratic Party] convention….’”
Lehigh Valley homeschool program is one face of school choice
School choice has many faces. And just as a one-size-fits-all public education system doesn’t meet every student’s needs, so, too, no single school choice option will work for every student. The Allentown Morning Call looks at one homeschool program in the Lehigh Valley—how it works, how it’s growing, and why some parents love it.
Op-Ed: Permitting reform critical to Pa.’s energy leadership
Pa. Chamber of Business and Industry Vice President of Public Affairs Jon Anzur writes that “comprehensive permitting reform” is needed to “make an LNG export terminal a reality” in Philadelphia. Such a terminal could make Pennsylvania “a leading player in the global energy marketplace by exporting liquid natural gas (LNG).” Additionally, it would “create jobs in the skilled trades” and “support permanent employment opportunities throughout the entire greater Philadelphia region.”