A politics and policy blog
By: Jan Murphy
Legislation to provide more flexibility when it comes to finding substitute teachers to staff classrooms won unanimous approval on Monday from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Barb Gleim, R-Cumberland County, now goes to the Senate for consideration.
By: The Patriot-News
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives spent nearly $500,000 to allow it to do more of what government does a lot: hold meetings.
That money was used to renovate two old courtrooms that had been sitting vacant for over a decade and transform them into large meeting rooms to accommodate more than two dozen House committees.
While spending that money at a time when Pennsylvanians are hurting from the pandemic may raise some eyebrows, even fiscal conservatives such as House Speaker Bryan Cutler, R-Lancaster County, finds it to be money well spent.
By: Jan Murphy
The 2020 election cycle might be complete but the debate and battles over Pennsylvania’s election laws have only just begun.
The House State Government Committee held a lengthy hearing Thursday to discuss possible changes to election laws. Republican lawmakers grilled the state’s top election officials – Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar and Deputy Secretary for Elections and Commissions Jonathan Marks.
By: Jan Murphy
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives wants to guarantee school boards that they hold the power to decide whether to allow sports and extracurricular activities to occur this school year and whether spectators can attend.
The House on Wednesday passed House Bill 2787 , sponsored by Rep. Mike Reese, R-Westmoreland County, by a bipartisan 155-47 vote that would school boards with the assurance that they have that authority, not the governor.
By: Jan Murphy
Bills that would allow school districts to decide whether to hold sports and give parents the option of deciding whether their child should repeat a grade this year are advancing in the state House of Representatives.
Prior to the start of a rally that drew a couple hundred high school athletes to the front steps of the Capitol calling for action to let them play sports this fall, the House Education Committee on Thursday approved a package of bills that address COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on students’ education and ability to participate in extra-curricular activities.