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

Because In Politics Everything Is Connected To Everything Else--

-- Gov. Shapiro

-- AP: Democrat Gov. Shapiro Tests Political Muscle In Swing-State Pennsylvania’s Midterms

-- Inquirer: PA Republican Cong. Fitzpatrick Thinks Shapiro  Will Win Reelection, Should Run For President

-- The Center Square: Shapiro Calls Federal Medical Marijuana Reclassification An ‘Important Step’

-- Race For Governor

-- Inquirer: PA Republican Cong. Fitzpatrick Thinks Shapiro  Will Win Reelection, Should Run For President

-- Budget 2026

-- PA Capital-Star: PA County Governments Group Pushes For Continued Funding During PA Budget Impasses

-- DEP/Sen. Yaw Highlight Need To Fund Hazardous Sites Cleanup With Visit To Former Landfill Turned Into Sports Complex In Williamsport  [PaEN]

-- PennLive - John Beauge: DEP Uses New Athletic Complex In Williamsport To Pitch For Hazardous Waste Site Cleanup Funding

-- PA House/Senate

-- PA Capital-Star: PA Senate Republicans Again Push Forward Transgender Female Athlete Ban

-- The Center Square: PA Republican State Senator Believes ‘Draft-Style’ Legislative Redistricting Process Could Be Model For Nation

-- US Senate/House

-- Inquirer: PA Republican Cong. Fitzpatrick Thinks Shapiro  Will Win Reelection, Should Run For President

-- CNBC: A.I. Data Center Backlash Threatens PA Republican Incumbents In 2026 Election

-- Morning Call: Where Money Is Coming From For Lehigh Valley Congressional Race

-- The Center Square: Fetterman Wants Food Stamps To Cover Hot Rotisserie Chicken

-- TribLive Editorial: The Politics Of Rotisserie Chicken 

-- Statewide Offices

-- Spotlight PA: Republican State Treasurer, Candidate For Governor Stacy Garrity Blocks $1 Million Payment For Security Upgrades At Shapiro’s Private Home To Protect The Governor From Attacks

-- Elections

-- PA Capital-Star: PA Supreme Court Considering Challenge To State Elections Officials Over Voter Registration Laws When Driver’s License Or SSN Numbers Don’t Match

-- PA Capital-Star: Federal Court Dismisses Election ‘Integrity’ Group’s Lawsuit Over PA Voter Rolls 

-- The Center Square: PA Republican State Senator Believes ‘Draft-Style’ Legislative Redistricting Process Could Be Model For Nation

-- President’s War On Iran

-- TheDerrick.com: Oil City Native, Middle East Expert Says Gasoline Prices To Keep Rising 

-- April 26: PA Average AAA Gasoline Price Went Up 1 Cent From Yesterday, Now $1.05/Gallon Higher To $4.15 Since Feb. 27  [Elk County, PA highest at $4.36] 

-- April 26: Average AAA Gasoline Prices: National- $4.09 Ohio- $3.90  PA- $4.16

-- Feb. 27: Average AAA Gasoline Prices: National- $2.98  Ohio- $2.79  PA- $3.11

-- Baker Hughes: PA Natural Gas Drilling Rigs- 18 - Same Last 4 Weeks

-- Financial Times: US Farmers Reel From Spiraling Prices Due To Iran War

-- Bloomberg: Cost To Build A Natural Gas-Fired Power Plant Surges 66%

-- Reuters Commentary: Welcome To The Age Of [Fossil] Energy Shocks

-- Wall Street Journal: How The Iran War Energy Crisis Is Spreading Across The World: Those Dependent On Energy Imports Find Themselves At Forefront Of A Global Crisis

-- Financial Times: US Shale Oil/Gas Bosses Resist Boosting Output Over Iran War ‘Chaos’

-- Bloomberg: Oil, Natural Gas Prices Rise After US Seizure Of Iranian Ship Imperils Talks 

-- Bloomberg: Iran War Deepens China’s Dependence On The US For Ethane [Energy Transfer Exports PA Ethane From Natural Gas To Overseas Markets] 

-- Protesting The President

-- PennLive: New Poll Shows 60% Of PA Voters Disapprove Of President,  52% ‘Strongly’ Disapprove

-- PA Impacts Of President’s Tariffs

-- AP: Businesses Can Start Claiming Refunds TODAY For President’s $166 Billion In Illegal Tariffs 

-- Reuters: US President Says He Will ‘Remember’ Companies That Don’t Seek Refunds Of His Illegal Tariffs

-- Reversing Course

-- Utility Dive: Federal Court Curtails President’s Moves To Block Or Delay 57 Gigawatts Of Much Needed Wind, Solar Energy Development 

-- PA Impacts Of President’s Policies

-- Observer-Reporter Editorial: A Travesty Of Justice Is The Only Way To Describe The Continued Persecution Of Law-Abiding Immigrants At The Hands Of The President’s ICE Agents

-- Morning Call: Lehigh Valley’s ICE Hotline Now Serving A Critical Need For Food Delivery, Assistance For Immigrant Families

-- President Invokes Wartime Powers To Fund Coal, Natural Gas Pipelines, Storage, Processing, LNG, Petroleum, Power Grid Infrastructure Projects [PaEN] 

-- AP: National Guard Troops Costing $1 Million/Day Roam Washington, D.C. With No End In Sight To Their Deployment

-- New Federal Administration

-- Republican Herald Editorial: Americans Continue To Bear The Cost Of President’s Chaos 

-- BBC: Insider Trading Suspicions Looming Over US President’s Administration 

-- Miscellaneous State/Harrisburg Politics

-- AP: Commonwealth Court Overturns State Limits On Medicaid Coverage For Abortions 

-- A.I. /Data Centers

  -- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles - NewClips From Last Week - April 27 [PaEN] 

-- WHYY - Susan Phillips: PECO Announces New Leadership Following Controversial Rate Hike And Stalled Union Negotiations

-- Washington & Jefferson College: Energy Insecurity On The Rise In US - One-Third Of All US Households Are Struggling To Pay Basic Energy Bills

-- Bloomberg: Cost To Build A Natural Gas-Fired Power Plant Surges 66%

-- Reuters Commentary: Welcome To The Age Of [Fossil] Energy Shocks

-- Wall Street Journal: How The Iran War Energy Crisis Is Spreading Across The World: Those Dependent On Energy Imports Find Themselves At Forefront Of A Global Crisis

-- DEP Invites Comments On Air Permit For Amazon Data Services To Add 86 Diesel Generators To A.I. Data Center Project In Salem Twp., Luzerne County  [PaEN]  

-- DEP Invites Comments On Air Permit For Amazon Data Services To Add 280 Natural-Gas Fired Generators To A.I. Data Center Project In Falls Twp., Bucks County [PaEN] 

-- DEP Accepting Comments On Renewal Of An Air Quality Permit For 23 Diesel Generators At The Iron Mountain Underground  Data Center In Butler County  [PaEN] 

-- WIRED: New Natural Gas Powered A.I. Data Centers Could Emit More Greenhouse Gases Than Entire Nations - 129 Million Tons A Year  [2.5 times the emissions from all the natural gas power plants in PA] 

-- DEP Files Final Consent Decree Stipulating Changes At The Keystone And Conemaugh Coal-Fired Power Plants To Resolve Wastewater Violations And Allow For Continued Operation  [PaEN] 

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: NextEra Expects Government Agreements Within 3 Months For $17 Billion A.I. Data Center Power Plants In Texas, Pennsylvania [‘We Are Actively Developing Both Projects,’ A 9.5 GW Plant ‘Somewhere South Of Pittsburgh’]

-- Scranton Times: PPL Acknowledges Transmission Line, Substation Projects Based On Proposed A.I. Data Centers [Nondisclosure Agreements Prevented PPL From Discussing Operation Of The Data Centers]

-- Post-Gazette - Leura Legere: Utility Watchdogs Say Rate Request By Proposed 220-Mile NextEra/Exelon Kammer Juniata Power Lines In PA To Feed Data Centers Would Turn Existing Ratepayers Into ‘Piggy Bank’ 

-- Utility Dive: Independent PJM Market Monitor Opposes Granting Waivers To Constellation Energy To Connect Three Mile Island Nuclear Data Center Power Plant To Grid; Request Meets None Of The FERC Criteria

-- WNEP: Rally At PA Capitol Calls For A.I. Data Center Moratorium

-- KeystoneNewsroom.com: PA A.I. Data Center Surge Sparks Local Fears Over Pollution, Power Costs And Weak Oversight 

-- PA Capital-Star: Township Supervisors Across PA Urge Colleagues To Adopt Zoning For A.I. Data Centers: ‘You Want To Be Able To Set The Rules’

-- Wash Post: Developers Plan So Many A.I. Data Centers In Archbald, PA - A Town Of 7,000 - It’s Like Adding 51 Walmarts   [PDF of Article]

-- Scranton Times: Developer Of 18 A.I. Data Centers In Archbald Boro Claims His Proposal Was ‘Deemed Approved’ March 31  [PDF of Article]

-- Morning Call: Developer Proposing To Replace Massive Lehigh Valley Warehouse In Allen Twp. With A.I. Data Center Short On Details Lehigh Valley Planning Commission Says

-- PennLive: Constellation Energy Wants 66% More River Water For Restart Of Three Mile Island Nuclear Data Center Power Plant; Locals Say Big Tech Is Profiting While They Pay The Price

-- International/National Impacts On PA Natural Gas

-- April 26: PA Average AAA Gasoline Price Went Up 1 Cent From Yesterday, Now $1.05/Gallon Higher To $4.15 Since Feb. 27  [Elk County, PA highest at $4.36] 

-- April 26: Average AAA Gasoline Prices: National- $4.09 Ohio- $3.90  PA- $4.16

-- Feb. 27: Average AAA Gasoline Prices: National- $2.98  Ohio- $2.79  PA- $3.11

-- Baker Hughes: PA Natural Gas Drilling Rigs- 18 - Same Last 4 Weeks

-- TheDerrick.com: Oil City Native, Middle East Expert Says Gasoline Prices To Keep Rising 

-- CNBC: A.I. Data Center Backlash Threatens PA Republican Incumbents In 2026 Election

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: NextEra Expects Government Agreements Within 3 Months For $17 Billion A.I. Data Center Power Plants In Texas, Pennsylvania [‘We Are Actively Developing Both Projects,’ A 9.5 GW Plant ‘Somewhere South Of Pittsburgh’]

-- TribLive: Homer City Data Center Campus Power Plant: Citizens Group To Meet April 26 In Indiana Boro To Share Information On A May 12 DEP Hearing On Natural Gas Pipeline Permit

-- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles - NewClips From Last Week - April 27 [PaEN] 

-- PA Capital-Star Guest Essay: A.I. Data Centers Don’t Have To Be A Burden On Communities And Can Even Support Them [But They Have To Be Designed/Built Much Differently Than They Are Now] - By Gregor Henze and Sean Shaheen, The Conversation

-- PennLive Guest Essay: Pennsylvania’s Energy Future Hinges On Affordability And Reliability - By Eugene DePasquale, PA Democratic Policy Chair, Natural Allies For A Clean Energy Future [Natural Gas Industry Front Group]

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: EQT Shale Gas Driller Poised To Capture A.I. Data Center Power Plant Demand In PA, OH, WV 

-- PennEnvironment: A.I. Data Center Growth Threatens Air Quality, Progress Toward Cleaner Energy Grid 

-- WIRED: New Natural Gas Powered A.I. Data Centers Could Emit More Greenhouse Gases Than Entire Nations - 129 Million Tons A Year  [2.5 times the emissions from all the natural gas power plants in PA] 

-- The Center Square: High Costs, Long PJM Timelines For Grid Upgrades Delaying 26 Gigawatts Of New Power Plants

-- Bloomberg: Cost To Build A Natural Gas-Fired Power Plant Surges 66%

-- Reuters Commentary: Welcome To The Age Of [Fossil] Energy Shocks

-- Wall Street Journal: How The Iran War Energy Crisis Is Spreading Across The World: Those Dependent On Energy Imports Find Themselves At Forefront Of A Global Crisis

-- Financial Times: US Shale Oil/Gas Bosses Resist Boosting Output Over Iran War ‘Chaos’

-- President Invokes Wartime Powers To Fund Coal, Natural Gas Pipelines, Storage, Processing, LNG, Petroleum, Power Grid Infrastructure Projects [PaEN]  

-- Bloomberg: Oil, Natural Gas Prices Rise After US Seizure Of Iranian Ship Imperils Talks 

-- Reuters Commentary: China’s LNG Natural Gas Imports Plunge, Helping Asia Adjust To Iran War Losses

-- Bloomberg: Iran War Deepens China’s Dependence On The US For Ethane [Energy Transfer Exports PA Ethane From Natural Gas To Overseas Markets] 

-- Education

-- AP: PA High School History Instructor From Delaware County Named Nation’s Teacher Of The Year

-- Post-Gazette: Educators Ask State To Create Policy For A.I. Use In Schools

-- TribLive: State-Owned PennWest Undershot Enrollment By 4,800 Students, Tuition Revenue By $53 Million

-- Post-Gazette: Penn State University Weighs Cutting 49 Of 403 Academic Programs This Fall 

-- Health Care

-- The Center Square: Shapiro Calls Federal Medical Marijuana Reclassification An ‘Important Step’

-- Law Enforcement

-- Spotlight PA: PA Lawmakers, Shapiro Admin Push To End Practice Of Counties Taking Social Security Money Owed To Foster Kids

-- The Citizens’ Voice: Use Of Flock Cameras To Track Vehicles In Real Time Expands In Luzerne County

-- Observer-Reporter Editorial: A Travesty Of Justice Is The Only Way To Describe The Continued Persecution Of Law-Abiding Immigrants At The Hands Of The President’s ICE Agents

-- Other

-- WESA: New Owners Of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Plan To Recognize Newsroom Labor Union

[Posted: April 26, 2026]