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

Because In Politics Everything Is Connected To Everything Else--

-- Gov. Shapiro

-- Governor’s Office Expected To Announce Further Steps To Regulate A.I. Data Centers ‘Shortly;’  100 Data Center Proposals Being Discussed in PA, 55 Have Some Interaction With DEP  [PaEN] 

-- Inquirer: How Josh Shapiro’s Early Embrace Of A.I. Data Centers Is Testing His High Popularity In Pennsylvania 

-- Race For Governor

-- Inquirer: How Josh Shapiro’s Early Embrace Of A.I. Data Centers Is Testing His High Popularity In Pennsylvania 

-- Spotlight PA: Stacy Garrity Is Ambitious, Endorsed By President, Experienced; Is That Enough To Beat Josh Shapiro?

-- WESA: PA Democrats Link Republican Candidate For Governor Garrity To President, Citing ‘Extreme’ Election Claims And Other Ties

-- WITF: PA Democrats Kick Off Statewide Tour Tying Garrity To President In Governor’s Race

-- PA House/Senate

-- Politics PA: PA State House To Convene In Philadelphia’s Congress Hall Sept. 9

-- The Center Square: Man Accused In Threat Against PA Rep. Gillen Misses Berks County Court Date; Arrest Warrant Issued

-- US House/Senate

-- PennLive - Charles Thompson: Republican Con. Scott Perry Tells Supporters It’s Either Him Or ‘Crazy’ Democrats In 2026

-- Statewide Offices

-- Attorney General Sunday Announces Lawsuit Against TikTok For Misrepresentations That Permit Age-13+ Rating In App Stores

-- Special Elections

-- TribLive: PA House Special Election  Tuesday In Butler County

-- Post-Gazette: How A PA House Special Election In Butler County Could Help Forecast Midterms In Pennsylvania 

-- 2026 Elections

-- WESA: PA’s Top Election Official Rejects Claims About State, Allegheny County Voting Procedures 

--2024 Election

-- TribLive: Registered Republican In Westmoreland County Charged With Voting In PA, Alaska Last Presidential Election 

-- Elections

-- University Of Pittsburgh, The Dick Thornburgh Forum For Law & Public Policy: Sept. 17 - The Iran War And The Most Dangerous Elections In Our Lifetime, 4:15 - 5:30 p.m.  

-- President’s War On Iran

-- August 16: PA Average AAA Gasoline No Change From Yesterday To $4.07/Gallon - $.96/Gallon Higher Than On Feb. 27 [Pike County Average Price Highest at $4.31] 

-- August 16: Average AAA Gasoline Prices: National- $4.06  Ohio- $4.23  PA- $4.07

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

-- Reuters: President Tells Americans To Accept High Gasoline Prices As A Result Of War With Iran

-- PA Impacts Of President’s Tariffs/Trade

-- The Center Square: PA Secretary Of Agriculture: President’s Tariffs Continue To Pose Trade Challenges For Pennsylvania Farmers

-- PA Impacts Of President’s Policies

-- PA Capital-Star: United Mine Workers Call For ‘Immediate’ Enforcement Of Federal Coal Mine Silica Rule As Black Lung Hits New High In PA, Appalachia; 143,000 Claims Filed In PA Alone

-- WESA: With Monumental Medicaid Changes Looming, PA Braces For Healthcare Coverage Losses

-- Post-Gazette: ‘We Will Follow The Facts:’ PA Keeps Childhood Vaccination Schedule Despite President’s Order 

-- Inquirer Editorial: President’s Executive Order On Vaccines Promises To Kill More Kids

-- Reading Eagle: Faith Community Calls On Berks County To End ICE Immigrant Detention Policy

-- Spotlight PA: Federal ICE Considering Buying Immigrant Detention Facilities, Other Options To Maintain Capacity In Pennsylvania 

-- PennLive: Thousands Of Haitians In PA Lose Federal Job Permits, Stability As Federal Protection Ends

-- PennLive Column: Our Bhutanese Neighbors Are Crying Out For Help 

-- Miscellaneous State/Harrisburg Politics

-- University Of Pittsburgh, The Dick Thornburgh Forum For Law & Public Policy: Sept. 17 - The Iran War And The Most Dangerous Elections In Our Lifetime, 4:15 - 5:30 p.m.  

-- A.I. /Data Centers

-- Governor’s Office Expected To Announce Further Steps To Regulate A.I. Data Centers ‘Shortly;’  100 Data Center Proposals Being Discussed in PA, 55 Have Some Interaction With DEP  [PaEN] 

-- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles - NewClips From Last Week - August 17  [PaEN] 

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: General Assembly Likely To Take Up A.I. Data Centers Again Soon

-- The Center Square: Noisy A.I. Data Center Debate Goes On While PA Lawmakers On Summer Break 

-- Lancaster State Sen. Malone Stands With Local Municipal Leaders To Demand The PA Senate Pass A.I. Data Center Moratorium Legislation  

--  WITF: Lancaster County Officials Call For A Pause, More Local Control To Regulate A.I. Data Centers

-- Inquirer Editorial: Pennsylvania’s Data Center Boom Needs A Pause

-- PA Capital-Star: A.I. Data Center Proposals Keep Coming To Pennsylvania - So Does The Outcry

-- WHYY - Susan Phillips: Opposition To A.I. Data Center Construction Is Rising Sharply, Penn Poll Says

-- PA Capital-Star: A.I. Data Center Developers Want To Build In 3 PA Communities - Each Has Its Own Experience   

-- Morning Call: Here’s How Lehigh Valley Communities Are Pushing Back Against A.I. Data Center Proposals

-- Republican Herald Letter: A.I. Data Center Developers - Our New Coal Barons - By Kevin Gallagher, Dunmore, Lackawanna County 

-- Republican Herald Editorial: Don’t Delay Studies Of Health, Environmental Impact Of A.I. Data Centers 

-- Kleinman Center For Energy Policy Blog: Pennsylvania Has Yet To Meaningfully Regulate Exploding A.I. Data Center Development - By John Quigley, Senior Fellow  [Part 1 of 2] 

-- Kleinman Center For Energy Policy Blog: PA Responsible Infrastructure Development (GRID) Proposal For A.I. Data Centers Falls Well Short Of Its Stated Goals - By John Quigley, Senior Fellow [Part 2 of 2] 

-- International/National Impacts On PA Natural Gas

-- Reuters: President Tells Americans To Accept High Gasoline Prices As A Result Of War With Iran

-- Baker Hughes: PA Shale Gas Drilling Rigs- 16- Same As Last Week

-- DEP Invites Comments On Proposed Use Of Emission Credits By Invitium Energy LLC [PPL-Blackstone Joint Venture] For Proposed Shermans Dale Natural Gas Power Plant In Carroll Twp., Perry County To Feed Data Centers  [PaEN]

-- DEP Invites Comments On Air Quality Permit For Installation Of 86 More Backup Diesel Generators, Fuel Storage Tanks For An Expansion Of The Existing Amazon Data Center In Salem Twp., Luzerne County  [PaEN] 

-- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles - NewClips From Last Week - August 17  [PaEN] 

-- WVIA: Group In Monroe County Calls On PA Legislature To Help Residents Struggling With Rising Energy Costs

-- Bloomberg: US Natural Gas Prices Rise On Hot Weather Shift, Higher LNG Gas Flows

-- Reuters: US Power Use To Hit Record Highs In 2026, 2027 As A.I. Use Surges, EIA Says

-- Inside Climate News: Utility Scale Solar Energy Facilities Leads US Power Plants Going Online This Year By A Mile, Followed By Batteries, Fossil Fuels Not So Much

-- Flooding

-- PEMA: Low-Interest SBA Loans Available For Small Businesses Impacted By July 4 Storms In  Carbon, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Northampton, Pike, Wayne Counties 

-- PEMA: Low-Interest SBA Loans, State Disaster Grants Available For Individuals, Families Impacted By July 11 Storms In Philadelphia, Bucks, Delaware, Montgomery Counties

-- PennLive: Water Rescues Reported In Somerset County, Parts Of PA As Heavy Rain Causes Flash Floods

-- Tribune Democrat: Campers Rescued, Roads Flooded Near Yough River As Storms Keep Responders Busy In Somerset County

-- Inquirer: ‘We Get A 100-Year Storm Every Year:’ Intensifying Summer Storms Are Putting Philly Suburbs’ Aging Infrastructure To The Test

-- WTAE: Westmoreland County Residents Seek Action After Repeated Floods Damage Properties, Businesses

-- TribLive: What Is Permeable Pavement And How Are Municipalities Using It In Westmoreland County?

-- Train Derailments

-- Altoona Mirror: Norfolk Southern Crews Still Working To Cleanup Derailment At Horseshoe Curve 

-- WPSU: 3rd Train Derailment This Year Near Horseshoe Curve In Blair County, Investigators Looking Into Cause

-- Clairton Coke [Coal] Works Explosion

-- TribLive: Preventable Safety Management Failures Caused US Steel Clairton Coke [Coal] Works Explosions, Says Federal Chemical Safety Board 

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: US Steel Could Have Prevented Clairton Coke [Coal] Works Explosion, Federal Investigators Say 

-- The Allegheny Front: US Steel’s ‘Ineffective’ Safety Procedures Led To Explosion That Killed 2 At Clairton Coke [Coal] Works, Federal Chemical Safety Board Concludes

-- TribLive Editorial: Safety Requires Rules To Follow [US Steel Clairton Coke [Coal] Works Explosion That Killed 2 Workers, Injured 11 Others]

-- Education

-- WITF: How A.I., School Surveillance Systems Help Schools Respond Faster To Threats

-- Inquirer: Montgomery County Joins Thousands Of Others In Suing Social Media Giants Over Harms To Teen Mental Health

-- Health Care

-- WESA: With Monumental Medicaid Changes Looming, PA Braces For Healthcare Coverage Losses

-- Erie Times/USA Today: One In Four Rural PA Hospitals Lost Money Last Year

-- Reading Eagle: 28 Area Schools Had Inadequate Measles Immunization Rates

-- Post-Gazette: ‘We Will Follow The Facts:’ PA Keeps Childhood Vaccination Schedule Despite President’s Order 

-- Inquirer Editorial: President’s Executive Order On Vaccines Promises To Kill More Kids

-- WESA: Healthcare Industry Is Deploying A.I. Faster Than It Can Govern It, UPMC Report Finds

-- Law Enforcement

-- PA Capital-Star: As PA Crime Rates Fall To Record Lows, Law Enforcement Flags Ongoing Challenges

-- City & State PA: PA Lawmakers Look To Regulate License Plate-Reading Flock Cameras

-- Inquirer: Police In Wallace Twp., Chester County Investigating Drone Peeking Into Windows At Night

-- Reading Eagle: Faith Community Calls On Berks County To End ICE Immigrant Detention Policy

-- Spotlight PA: Federal ICE Considering Buying Immigrant Detention Facilities, Other Options To Maintain Capacity In Pennsylvania 

-- PennLive: Thousands Of Haitians In PA Lose Federal Job Permits, Stability As Federal Protection Ends

-- PennLive Column: Our Bhutanese Neighbors Are Crying Out For Help 

-- The Economy

-- Spotlight PA: New Owners Of Bethlehem Steel Hire Lobbyists To Help Resurrect Brand

[Posted: August 16, 2026]