Top 10 Stories: Harrisburg/PA Politics Reported By Local News Media Last Week

Because In Politics Everything Is Connected To Everything Else--

-- Gov. Shapiro

-- WHYY: Shapiro Signs First Bill Expanding PA Health Coverage To Include Breast Cancer Screenings

-- Post-Gazette - Ford Turner: Only 2 Of Shapiro’s 20+ Cabinet Nominations Approved By Senate

-- PennLive - Jan Murphy: Shapiro’s Nominees For Transportation, DCED, Aging Win PA Senate Confirmation

-- Post-Gazette/Capitolwire.com-Robert Swift: Senate Panels Recommend 2 Shapiro Cabinet Nominees For Transportation, DCED

-- Gov. Shapiro Receives State Agency Reports On Permitting, Next Step Is To Set Money-Back Permit Review Times  [PaEN] 

-- Williamsport Sun Editorial: Governor’s Leadership On Job Creation Worthy Of Praise

-- PA Senate/House

-- PennLive - Jan Murphy: Shapiro’s Nominees For Transportation, DCED, Aging Win PA Senate Confirmation

-- PennLive: More Convictions Could Be Sealed After ‘Clean Slate’ Expansion Passes PA House Committee

-- PA Capital-Star: PA House Lawmakers Show Bipartisan Support For Republican Gun Safety Bill Amendments

-- AP: Democrats Move Pro-Union Constitutional Amendment Out Of Divided PA House

-- AP: PA Senate Backs Bill To Narrow Philadelphia Commuter Tax

-- AP: Bill To Broaden LGBTQ+ Protections Passes PA House

-- PennLive - John Baer: Hey, It’s May And PA Legislature Is Working!  Will It Produce?

-- PennLive: Questions About Sen. Mastriano’s Thesis Spur University Fraud Probe, Reports

-- U.S. Senate/House

-- Post-Gazette: Sen. Casey Starting His Reelection Campaign With Big Head Start, Millions In The Bank

-- PA Capital-Star: What 2022 U.S. Senate Race Says About 2024 Election

-- TribLive: PA Cong. Summer Lee One Of 19 To Vote Against Resolution Honoring U.S. 0 Israel Relationship

-- WHYY/BillyPenn: Pennsylvania Has Lost Control Of U.S. Senate Candy Desk

-- Election Reforms

-- PA Capital-Star: PA Senators Introduce Bipartisan Open Primary Election Bill

-- Post-Gazette Editorial: Legislators Should Give Counties Authority To Pre-Canvass Mail-In Ballots

-- TribLive Editorial: Pennsylvania Elections Need Uniformity

-- Post-Gazette Editorial: Open Up Primaries To Give All Voters A Voice

-- TribLive Editorial: Cross-Filing And PA Political Identities

-- Scranton Times Editorial: Move Presidential Primary, Retool Election Calendars

-- Scranton Times Editorial: End Partisan Gerrymanders

-- May 16 Primary Election

-- TribLive: Incorrect, Undated Mail-In Ballots Won’t Be Counted In Westmoreland County

-- Norfolk Southern Train Derailment

-- House Committee Moves First PA Bill Setting New Rail Safety Requirements In Response To Norfolk Southern Train Derailment  [PaEN] 

-- TribLive: PA House Committee Approves Bill Tightening Railroad Regulations After Norfolk Southern Train Derailment

-- Post-Gazette/Capitolwire.com-Robert Swift: PA House Panel Approves First Rail Safety Bill After Norfolk Southern Train Derailment

-- PennLive: PA House Committee Approves Bill Tightening Railroad Regulations After Norfolk Southern Train Derailment

-- Post-Gazette: Most Train Derailments In Western PA Happen Near Major Rivers, New Study Shows 

-- UnionProgress.com: Pittsburgh Fire Chief Says City Ready To Deal With A Hazardous Train Derailment 

-- WESA/The Allegheny Front: EPA Says Soil At Train Derailment Site Looks ‘Really Good,’ But Some See A Disconnect With Their Health

-- WTAE: Norfolk Southern Environmental Consultant-- Center For Toxicology & Environmental Health--  Accused Of ‘Questionable Practices’

-- TribLive Guest Essay: Leadership Needed On Air, Water Quality In Norfolk Southern Train Derailment - By Environmental Medicine Education International

-- WESA: 3 Months After Norfolk Southern Train Derailment, Deep Anxiety Lingers

-- PA Politics Of Russian Invasion

-- TribLive: Rising Gasoline Supplies Expected To Increase Downward Pressure On Prices, Analyst Says

-- AAA Gasoline Prices: Pennsylvania Average $3.70; National Average $3.54

-- Scranton Times Editorial: U.S. DOT Rejects LNG Natural Gas Rail Shipment Permit From Proposed Bradford County LNG Plant

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Equitrans Acknowledges ‘Narrower’ Path For Mountain Valley Natural Gas Pipeline Completion

-- Reuters: Equitrans May Still Complete Mountain Valley Natural Gas Pipeline By End-2023

-- Reuters: Chesapeake Energy Expects Natural Gas Volatility To Remain, Could Hold Off Bringing Some Wells Online If Low Prices Continue  

-- Reuters: Chesapeake Energy Profit Beats Estimates On Higher Output Of Natural Gas

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Consol Energy Expands Share Repurchasing Program To $1 Billion

-- Argus: Coterra Energy Plans Delay In Natural Gas Well Completions Due To Low Gas Prices, Drop 2 Drill Rigs In Marcellus Areas  

-- Bloomberg: U.S. Shale Drillers See Natural Gas Price Rebound In 2024 After Prices Tumbled More Than 50% This Year 

-- Baker Hughes: PA Natural Gas Drilling Rigs - No Change From Last Week - 26

-- Reuters: New York State Bans Natural Gas In Some New Construction

-- Bloomberg: World’s Top LNG Natural Gas Buyer Sees Risk Of Another Price Spike This Year

-- Bloomberg: European Natural Gas Prices Extend Slide As LNG Imports Swell To Record 

-- Financial Times: European Natural Gas Price Sinks To Lowest Level Since Energy Crisis Began

-- PA’s Role In Assault On U.S. Capitol

-- Inquirer: Philly Proud Boys President Sedition Conviction For Crimes Related To Assault On U.S. Capitol Rests Largely On His Own Words

-- Inquirer: PA Proud Boys Played Big Role In Planning Assault On U.S. Capitol, Key Takeaways From Capitol Sedition Trial

-- PittsburghUnionProgress.com: Former Fayette County Welder Gets 14 Years In Prison For Crimes Related To Assault On U.S. Capitol

-- PA/Harrisburg Politics Potpourri

-- City & State PA: 5 Things You May Have Missed In Harrisburg This Week

-- TribLive: Westmoreland County Again Expected To Be Major Factor In 2024 Presidential Race

-- Observer-Reporter: Once A Stronghold, Washington, Greene, Fayette Counties Slipped Away From Democrats

-- Inquirer: Democrats Have Controlled Montgomery County For a Decade, The Primary Will Test Their Political Machine

-- TribLive: Bernie Sanders Endorses Sara Innamorato In Allegheny County Executive Race

-- Budget 2023

-- Dept. Of Revenue Reports April Tax Collections $51.1 Million Over Its Estimates; Fiscal Year Up $1.2 Billion

-- Independent Fiscal Office Reports April State Revenue $434.4 Million Over IFO Estimates; Fiscal Year Up $2.53 Billion

-- PA Capital-Star: PA April Tax Collections $51.1 Million Over Estimates

-- AP: Audit Says Senate, House Expense Account Surplus Jumped To Record $261 Million In FY 2022 After Record Spending  [PaEN] 

-- Spotlight PA: Legislature Seems To Have Met A Tax Break It Doesn’t Like - One For Teachers, Nurses, Cops

-- Independent Fiscal Office Research Brief: PA Taxpayers Continue To Migrate South

-- COVID Pandemic/Health

-- Centre Daily Times: PA Health Dept. Reports 54 New COVID Deaths As Emergency Declaration Set To Expire

-- School Districts/Higher Education

-- Courier Times: Inside This Year’s Fight Over PA School Board Seats And What Happens In The Classroom

-- Spotlight PA: Party Affiliation Can Be Misleading In Local PA Elections, Here’s Why

-- WITF: Lehigh Valley School District After School Satan Club Can Meet After Court Ruling

-- WHYY: Central Bucks School District Lawyer Finds No Discrimination Against LGBTQ Students

-- PennLive Guest Essay: Racial Discrimination And Hate Are Hurting Students Of Color At Lower Dauphin School - By Mother Of Student

-- PennLive: Swastikas Found Drawn In Susquehanna University Classroom Condemned By University President

-- Law Enforcement

-- PennLive: More Convictions Could Be Sealed After ‘Clean Slate’ Expansion Passes PA House Committee

-- PA Capital-Star: PA House Lawmakers Show Bipartisan Support For Republican Gun Safety Bill Amendments

-- PittsburghUnionProgress.com: Uptick In Online Hate Rhetoric As Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting Trial Begins 2nd Week

-- The Economy

-- Scranton Times: States With The Most Quitters, PA Workers Are As Loyal As They Get

-- Independent Fiscal Office Research Brief: PA Taxpayers Continue To Migrate South

-- AP: Democrats Move Pro-Union Constitutional Amendment Out Of Divided PA House

-- Spotlight PA: Why State College’s Anti-Gambling Movement Failed To Stop The Nittany Mall Casino

-- TribLive: Bud Light Sales Fizzle In Western PA Amid Transgender Boycott

[Posted: May 7, 2023]