News Digest :: July 23, 2021

Legislature

Brewster receives award from sportsmen’s group – The Mon Valley Independent

State lawmaker applauds grants assisting the homeless in Bucks County | News | buckslocalnews.com

Q & A: State Sen. John Kane on Balancing Blue Collar Values in White Collar District – DV Journal (delawarevalleyjournal.com)

Local health care workers detail hospitals’ myriad COVID-era struggles, urge political action | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pennsylvania announces new nursing home regulations | Pennsylvania | thecentersquare.com

Dems, Repubs still at odds over how PA pandemic funding being used | Connect FM | Local News Radio | Dubois, PA (connectradio.fm)

Pennsylvania Defends New, No-Bid Deal for COVID-19 Contact Tracing – NBC10 Philadelphia (nbcphiladelphia.com)

Health officials request $124 million in pandemic-related emergency contracts as GOP calls for oversight · Spotlight PA

Legislation aims to help Pennsylvanians attain job skills | Pennsylvania | thecentersquare.com

Watchdogs hopeful Pa. redistricting process will be more fair and transparent (abc27.com)

Congressional redistricting done differently: mapping a new course | City & State PA (cityandstatepa.com)

Pa. state representative charged for stealing from Commonwealth and hindering state prosecution (abc27.com)

Pennsylvania state representative resigns following theft charges | Pennsylvania | thecentersquare.com

Lawmaker proposes changes to Pa. fireworks law after tumultuous July 4 (goerie.com)

PA Environment Digest Blog: Sen. Comitta, Rep. Herrin To Discuss Rebuilding PA’s Energy Infrastructure, Helping Communities Transition To Clean Energy In July 28 Webinar (paenvironmentdaily.blogspot.com)

This week’s biggest Winners & Losers | City & State PA (cityandstatepa.com)

Fit to lead: PA politicos share best practices for prepping for summer | City & State PA (cityandstatepa.com)

More than $22M in LSA grants OK’d for area communities | Times Leader

 

Coronavirus – COVID-19

Delta Variant Will Drive A Steep Rise In U.S. COVID Deaths, Model Shows : Shots – Health News : NPR

Public health experts call on CDC to endorse masking indoors | WITF

GOP’s vaccine push comes amid ongoing party split on COVID-19 | Coronavirus | tribdem.com

Why Vaccinated People Are Getting ‘Breakthrough’ Infections – The New York Times (nytimes.com)

LVHN to participate in COVID-19 vaccine booster study (poconorecord.com)

 

Business/Jobs

Unemployment claims suddenly jumped to 419K last week, reflecting an unsettled labor market | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Viewpoint: Eliminating barriers to education Pennsylvania is essential to workforce development, economic prosperity – Philadelphia Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

Hire! Philly launches professional networking site to get people back to work – Philadelphia Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

Entitlement process, land constraints seen as key obstacles in nation’s booming industrial market – Philadelphia Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

Downtown North East sees ‘boom’ as new businesses open, old ones expand (goerie.com)

 

Crime/Punishment

County NAACP notes progress with police | The Bucks County Herald

Allentown considers ways social workers can collaborate with police | Lehigh Valley Regional News | wfmz.com

 

Education

Pa.-owned universities will spend $2.5 million on diversity, equity, inclusion initiatives | Local News | readingeagle.com

The fight over critical race theory is a solution in search of a problem | Lloyd E. Sheaffer | Pennsylvania Capital-Star (penncapital-star.com)

Pa. College of Health Sciences adds graduate-level nursing education program | Health | lancasteronline.com

Radnor approves $660,000 in change orders for high school project | Local-news | delcotimes.com

Hazleton Area to create separate high school for the arts | Education | standardspeaker.com

When Allentown students, teachers and staff return to school, they will have to wear masks if they’re not vaccinated – The Morning Call (mcall.com)

As Allentown continues to look for Superintendent Thomas Parker’s replacement, district’s interim superintendent resigns – The Morning Call (mcall.com)

Scranton School Board receives breakdown of new health insurance plan | Education | thetimes-tribune.com

Critical race theory and masking cause tension at Philadelphia-area school board meetings (inquirer.com)

 

Elections/Politics

Democrats’ Divide on Voting Rights Widens as Biden Faces Pressure – The New York Times (nytimes.com)

Former U.S. ambassador to Denmark running for PA Senate seat | WHP (local21news.com)

Majority of Americans are worried about the state of democracy, new survey finds | WITF

Sanguedolce lone applicant for GOP nod in DA race; Dems still seek candidate | News | standardspeaker.com

Senate candidate state Rep. Kenyatta lays out agenda at Arlington coffee shop | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

 

Environment

Empower local government to develop environmental solutions (buckscountycouriertimes.com)

 

Health

CDC now monitoring ‘over 200 individuals in 27 states’ for monkeypox (abc27.com)

Grand View Hospital in Bucks County secures Level II trauma center designation – Philadelphia Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

 

Transportation

Package delivery fee could provide reliable transportation funding source | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

 

State News

Secretary of Agriculture to Travel Pennsylvania, Tour Urban Gardens Building Resilient Communities – PennWatch

DOJ won’t investigate how Pennsylvania handled nursing homes | WITF

DOJ won’t investigate how Pennsylvania handled nursing homes (abc27.com)

Federal data shows states still lag in getting aid to struggling renters. How is Pa. doing? | Pennsylvania Capital-Star (penncapital-star.com)

Failure of transparency on state unemployment accounting error made problem worse [editorial] | Our Opinion | lancasteronline.com

Pa. could receive $1 billion from landmark opioid settlement (timesonline.com)

AG Shapiro seeks to ‘keep pressure’ on USPS for mail delays – WHYY

Pennsylvania’s backlog of jobless benefits claims is growing – The Morning Call (mcall.com)

Pa. Olympians to watch: These athletes have the best chance to bring home an Olympic medal – pennlive.com

 

National News

German railway: Floods caused $1.5 billion damage to network | News | tribdem.com

Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony kicks off Games like no other. Here’s how to watch. (nbcnews.com)

Rental Assistance Is Moving Slowly As Eviction Moratorium Looms : NPR

Unrest in the Caribbean and instability in South America | Smart Talk (witf.org)

Female soldiers are getting new body armor designed just for them | WITF

Billionaires slipped the surly bonds of Earth, but couldn’t escape its problems | Friday Coffee | Pennsylvania Capital-Star (penncapital-star.com)

FirstEnergy to pay $230 million penalty in Ohio bribery probe | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

 

Local News

Bucks County commissioners criticize Purdue deal, opioid settlements (buckscountycouriertimes.com)

Bucks declares emergency, Gov. Wolf visits sites of flooding damage | The Bucks County Herald

Bucks pushes $1.2 million in emergency funding for flood victims (buckscountycouriertimes.com)

Yardley Borough to use line of credit to provide cash flow for three major capital projects | Yardley Area | buckslocalnews.com

Lebanon County EMTs to be honored for bringing three patients back to life (abc27.com)

Effort to save rescue puppies heats up this summer | Local-news | dailylocal.com

Child welfare agency, Bucks County judge dispute roiling court (theintell.com)

Northampton warns of excessive deer as crashes add up in Bucks County (theintell.com)

Erie’s bayfront on tap for $8M worth of dock wall/boardwalk upgrades (goerie.com)

Erie customers of National Fuel could receive a bill credit and lower bills (goerie.com)

Schuylkill clerk of courts again criticizes commissioners CARES Act spending | News | standardspeaker.com

Town disbands volunteer fire company after 99 years, citing safety violations – pennlive.com

Wilkes-Barre official seeks passenger rail study | Times Leader

Lehigh County officals at odds about best way to spend American Rescue Plan funds | Lehigh Valley Regional News | wfmz.com

American Rescue Plan: Erie County Council defends $26 million spending plan (goerie.com)

 

Pitt

Cheswick coal-fired power station, last in Allegheny County, will stay open until April | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Self-driving project Waymo to open Pittsburgh office in Bakery Square | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pittsburgh Is Getting a New Ice Rink with Help from the Penguins | Pittsburgh Magazine

Pittsburgh public safety director discusses extra patrols in wake of South Side shooting (wtae.com)

Pittsburgh Philanthropist John G. Rangos Sr. Dies At 91 – CBS Pittsburgh (cbslocal.com)

 

Philly

One South Philly block’s quest to get rid of illegal dumpsters (thephiladelphiacitizen.org)

Philly kids could miss out on tax credit – WHYY

Philly leaders, activists give Kenney a deadline on gun violence – WHYY

Krasner undermining murder conviction at Pa. Supreme Court, critics say (broadandliberty.com)

Letter to the Editor: Killing the “right to life” in Philadelphia (broadandliberty.com)

‘A settlement that is a sellout’: Philadelphia files suit over national opioid deal, says it wouldn’t get enough of $26B pot – The Morning Call (mcall.com)

Larry Krasner, Carlos Vega keep fighting after Philadelphia district attorney election (inquirer.com)

 

Washington

Democrats Seek To Pare Back Section 230 Over Health Falsehoods : NPR

Democrats back Biden US lands pick assailed by Republicans | Business | dailylocal.com

Pelosi says she’s ‘deadly serious’ Jan. 6 probe to go without GOP | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Biden administration to impose sanctions on Cuban officials following attacks on protesters | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette