News & Brews July 23, 2026
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Lawmakers to miss deadline on sentencing change
A few weeks after missing the state budget deadline for the fifth straight year, lawmakers will miss another deadline (is there a pattern here?). This time, it’s the state Supreme Court deadline to take action on second-degree murder sentencing after the court struck down mandatory life sentences for the conviction. In late June, the state Senate passed legislation addressing the issue, but House Democrat leadership let it languish for weeks instead of taking action. Now, they will miss the deadline.
General Services secretary to step down
Pa. Department of General Services Secretary Reggie McNeil will leave Gov. Shapiro’s administration at the end of this month, and Executive Deputy Secretary Sandra Aguilera will become acting secretary. ABC27 reports that the Shapiro administration did not give a reason for McNeil’s departure. He is the fourth cabinet secretary to leave the administration—the most infamous being former secretary of legislative affairs Mike Vereb, who resigned after sexual harassment allegations about which Shapiro still has not been transparent.
Shapiro’s fundraising machine
”More than two-thirds of Shapiro’s money has come from donors who live outside Pennsylvania.” “Shapiro has raised more than $33 million from donors who have given $100,000 or more in aggregate.” And among this $33 million, “nearly 70% has come from outside Pennsylvania, with California accounting for about 29% of the money and New York accounting for a little over 18%.” These are just a few takeaways from an Inquirer report on Gov. Shapiro’s fundraising machine, which far outpaces other gubernatorial candidates in recent years.
ICE ends plans for two Pa. detention centers
PennLive reports that the federal government has withdrawn an appeal against Pennsylvania’s effort to block ICE from using two warehouses as detention centers. ICE had previously purchased the two facilities—one in Berks County and the other in Schuylkill County. Now, “the federal government is planning to divest itself of the warehouses.”
Dems lead GOP by 11 points on generic ballot
A new Emerson College poll showed that 53 percent of voters across the country side with Democrats generically while 42 percent side with Republicans. The Hill reports that “women voters break for the Democratic candidate by a 27-point margin…. Men were more split, siding with the Democrat candidate by a 5-point margin.” Other polls have given Democrats a smaller advantage but still an advantage.
