January 27, 2012

Gov. Corbett shows Republicans he's in charge
Robert Vickers, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 26, 2012

What a difference a week made for Republicans running statewide in Pennsylvania. From Jan. 12 to 19, Gov. Tom Corbett signaled his support for candidates in four statewide races, effectively clearing the party primary field, and declaring his absolute political domain over the Pennsylvania GOP. Party faithful spent most of 2011 calling for the governor to assert himself politically, but Corbett preferred to govern and avoided sullying his hands with political concerns. Now, with a presidential election on tap, and a bevy of state offices up for grabs that could affect the remainder of his term, the second-year governor has waded into the fray. “The governor is clearly letting the state party know he’s in charge,” area Republican consultant Charlie Gerow said. Corbett endorsed Cumberland County District Attorney David Freed for attorney general, Allegheny County state Rep. John Maher for auditor general, Washington County Commissioner Diana Irey Vaughn for treasurer and Chester County entrepreneur Steve Welch for the U.S. Senate race. [more]

No way to find out now about Philly property tax bill
Troy Graham, Philadelphia Inquirer
Thursday, January 26, 2012

Would you like to know how much you're going to pay in property taxes before City Council passes a budget that depends largely on what it expects to collect from each property owner? Well, too bad. Not going to happen. Philadelphia is in the midst of its Actual Value Initiative (AVI), part of an endeavor to fix a historically inequitable tax system based on decades of bad and incomplete assessments. Assessors have fanned across the city in an attempt to tag each property with its market - actual - value. But the job won't be done until at least September, and the new City Council, which convenes its first regular meeting Thursday, must pass a budget and set a millage rate - the property tax rate - before the start of the fiscal year July 1. "We're going to be asked to do a tax prior to knowing . . . what the value of all the land is. That has some practical problems with it," said Councilman Bill Green. "That essentially means we are putting in place a new tax without having a true public debate on the issue. Not that we can do anything about it." [more]

Pennsylvania students will be 'relatively unharmed' by PHEAA's decision to give back some state money
Jan Murphy, Harrisburg Patriot News
Thursday, January 26, 2012

To help with the state's lower than anticipated revenue collection, the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency plans to give back $13.8 million of the nearly $423 million in state funding it received to support student aid programs. That action will not result in any reduction in the grants that students taking spring or summer semester classes who are counting on this money to help cover their tuition bill. That is less than the $21.1 million, or 5 percent of its appropriation, that Gov. Tom Corbett had requested the agency return, but PHEAA officials saw no way to give back that money without reducing the grant awards for students taking summer classes. Corbett had asked other agencies to freeze between 1 and 10 percent of their state appropriation. [more]

FirstEnergy to close six coal-fired power plants
Alex Nixon, Pittsburgh Tribune – Review
Friday, January 27, 2012

FirstEnergy Corp. on Thursday became the first major U.S. power company to close aging coal-fired power plants because of tougher new air pollution rules. It won't be the last."Increasingly with these older plants, it's more expensive to clean them up than shut them down," said M. Granger Morgan, head of the engineering and public policy department at Carnegie Mellon University. FirstEnergy announced it would close six plants -- including the 54-year-old Armstrong Power Station in Adrian in Armstrong County -- rather than comply with federal Environmental Protection Agency rules to reduce mercury and soot emissions. The company operates 17 coal power plants. "Everybody that has older coal plants is doing the calculation," Morgan said. Four power plants in Ohio and one in Maryland will be shut down by Sept. 1, said FirstEnergy, which is based in Akron, Ohio.More than 500 FirstEnergy employees will be affected, including 60 in Armstrong County. The company said some of the laid-off workers may be offered jobs at other plants. [more]

Doing campaign work on legislative time was 'common,' ex-aide to state Rep. Bill DeWeese testifies
Matt Miller, Harrisburg Patriot News
Thursday, January 26, 2012

An ex-aide who said she spent years running state Rep. Bill DeWeese's district election campaigns said today that it was "common" for his state-paid staff to do campaign work on the taxpayers' time. Sharon Rodavich was called by Senior Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Brown to testify during DeWeese's corruption trial in Dauphin County a week after she pleaded guilty to conspiracy and conflict of interest charges in the case. DeWeese, 61, a 35-year Democratic legislator from Greene County and a former House Speaker, is charged with theft, conspiracy and conflict-of-interest. Prosecutors claim he used state workers and resources to abet his election campaigns and pet projects from 2001 to 2006 when he was House minority leader. Rodavich, wno took the witness stand on the trial's fourth day, said DeWeese's staffers did many election tasks, including getting signatures for nominating petitions, on state time and even in his district legislative offices during state work hours. [more]

Pa. corrections system cuts considered
Debra Erdley, Pittsburgh Tribune – Review
Friday, January 27, 2012

Faced with soaring prison costs in a state where both violent and property crime rates are declining, Gov. Tom Corbett has tasked a panel of judicial, legislative and criminal justice officials to come up with recommendations on how to reduce spending on and improve the corrections system. Corbett, a former state and federal prosecutor, applied for a grant to study the issue shortly after he was elected. Last summer, in an effort that mirrored studies conducted in 15 states, analysts from The Council of State Governments Justice Center began collecting data from Pennsylvania's courts and corrections systems. On Thursday, they delivered their preliminary findings to the panel, dubbed the Justice Reinvestment Initiative. Researchers found that the number of people admitted to state prisons increased by 46 percent over the last decade, even as violent crime and property crime rates declined by 13 percent and 15 percent, respectively. Department of Corrections spending ballooned from $1.1 billion to $1.9 billion during the same period. Carnegie Mellon University professor Alfred Blumstein, a nationally recognized expert on crime, said Pennsylvania, like many other states facing budgetary constraints, is taking a hard look at corrections spending. [more]

Harrisburg City Council to submit incinerator federal investigation request early next week
Eric Veronikis, Harrisburg Patriot News
Thursday, January 26, 2012

Harrisburg City Council will hand in a formal request to U.S. Attorney Peter J. Smith by hand early next week asking for an investigation into the city incinerator debt fiasco, Councilman Brad Koplinski said this morning during an editorial board meeting with The Patriot-news. City Clerk Kirk Petroski has drafted a formal letter requesting the investigation that will accompany more than 1,000 signatures from residents requesting the investigation, Koplinski said. This morning, Smith said "We have been keeping an eye on the incinerator situation for quite some time,” but stopped short of saying the feds are investigating the situation. Smith heads the U.S. Attorney's Office for the U.S. Middle District Court of Pennsylvania. [more]

York man announces bid for 4th Congressional district seat
Elizabeth Gibson, Harrisburg Patriot News
Thursday, January 26, 2012

Eric Martin, 25, of York, is running for the 4th U.S. Congressional district representing the city of Harrisburg, eastern Cumberland County, and York and Adams counties. Martin is a Republican and York College graduate. He is campaigning on a platform of limited federal government

January 26, 2012

Ed Rendell asks Gov. Corbett to reconsider food stamp asset test
Charles Thompson, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell is asking his successor to reconsider a planned assets test on Pennsylvania’s 1.8 million food stamp recipients. Rendell hand-delivered a three-page letter to Republican Tom Corbett’s offices that warned an asset test would be expensive to administer and harmful to the economy, particularly in poor neighborhoods where food stamps are often a major source of business for small grocery stores. “They’re not all minority, they’re not all urban dwellers,” Rendell said at a Capitol news conference with about a dozen state House Democrats. “They’re our neighbors.” Food stamp eligibility in Pennsylvania is now determined by household income only. Corbett’s Department of Public Welfare has proposed to end eligibility this spring for people under age 60 holding more than $2,000 in cash or other countable assets or more than $3,250 for people 60 or over. Owner-occupied homes, a first car and other assets such as money in a tuition savings account would be exempted. Corbett spokesmen said the test will help ensure the integrity of the program. Corbett spokesman Kevin Harley said an asset test will be implemented by the Department of Public Welfare in the coming months, but the administration has not decided its dollar-value level. [more]

Local zoning laws new issue in Shale fees
Marc Levy, Philadelphia Inquirer
Thursday, January 26, 2012

HARRISBURG - Differences over local zoning have surfaced as a new potential obstacle to lawmakers' efforts to agree on an impact fee on Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale natural gas producers and modernize safety regulations on the drilling industry. Several Republican senators have changed their minds and on Wednesday signed a letter to Senate leaders saying they now oppose a provision in separate House and Senate bills to limit municipalities' authority to control drilling activity. Securing strict limits is a priority of the natural gas industry, as a way to prevent municipal officials from imposing ordinances that effectively prevent drilling. But the nearly identical limits that were approved late last year by the House and Senate in separate bills are not as strict as ones sought by Gov. Corbett, a Republican, or many in the industry, and now some past supporters of those limits say they go too far. "We have a way of dealing with the tanks and the compressor stations and the transfer stations in current law and this industry should not get special consideration," said Sen. Charles McIlhinney (R., Bucks), one of nine senators who signed the letter. Six of those senators, however, have voted twice for bills containing the provision limiting municipal control over drilling - in November and December - and their new position could force changes if a bill is to overcome strong opposition by Democrats to that and various other elements. [more]

Pippy announces he won't run for another full term
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

State Sen. John Pippy, R-Moon, announced Tuesday that he would not run this year for a third full term in the state Senate. Mr. Pippy, 41, served in the state House for eight years before being elected to the 37th District state Senate seat in 2003, an election he won while serving on active duty with the U.S. Army Reserves in Iraq. His decision prompted Senate Democrats to tweak their legal challenge regarding the new legislative maps, which is being considered by the state Supreme Court. The caucus is asking that Mr. Pippy's soon-to-be former district be moved east to account for population shifts over the past decade instead of relocating the seat of Sen. Jim Brewster, D-McKeesport.

Gambling bill would benefit organizations that use funds for programs, scholarships
Charles Thompson, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Volunteer fire companies, veterans clubs and other social organizations that depend on income from small games of chance should be getting a boost. Aimed at keeping the games relevant to players in the casino age, the state House on Wednesday gave final passage to a bill that would raise the legal ceilings on prize payouts for the first time since 1988. Payouts for daily games would increase from $500 to $1,000; weekly game limits would jump from $5,000 to $25,000; and monthly raffle limits would go from $5,000 to $10,000. Under special permits, some games could even go higher. In another provision that brightens the future for the community groups, for the first time officers may use up to 30 percent of game proceeds to cover some operating expenses and capital projects such as roofing or heating system replacements. Groups have used the games to finance causes such as youth sports programs, parades and scholarships. The bill goes to Gov. Tom Corbett’s desk, and he has signaled his support for it. [more]

Millersville University President Francine McNairy says she will step down in 2013
Jan Murphy, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Millersville University President Francine McNairy announced she will step down from her post Jan. 30, 2013. McNairy became the university’s president in 2003 and served as its provost nine years before that. During her presidency, the university launched an $85 million capital campaign that is expected to conclude this fall. It is one project away from finishing a 20-year plan to improve facilities. McNairy noted its admissions and enrollment outlook appears strong. “It has been an awesome journey,” McNairy said in a message to the university community. “The time is now right for new leadership, by someone who will make a long-term commitment to leading the university toward achievement of new goals.” BACKGROUND: A presidential search will begin to find McNairy’s successor just as the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education board completed its search for a president for Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Two other presidential searches are under way for Slippery Rock and Mansfield universities.

Sen. Toomey in York Friday to endorse Commissioner Reilly for Platts' seat
York Daily Record
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa. will pay a visit to York County on Friday morning to endorse County Commissioner Chris Reilly's campaign for Congress, according to Mark Harris, a campaign consultant from Pittsburgh. Reilly is running for the seat that U.S. Rep. Todd Platts, R-York County, is vacating at the end of the year. Harris said Toomey will be at Homewood Suites by Hilton, 200 Masonic Dr., Manchester Township at 10:30 a.m. on Friday.

Pa. Supreme Court's throws out redistricting plan for state House and Senate
Harrisburg Patriot-News
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

A divided Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Wednesday invalidated a plan to redraw state House and Senate district lines, calling the redistricting approach “contrary to law.” The ruling throws into disarray plans by candidates and parties for this year’s General Assembly races. The two-page order sending the plan back to the Legislative Reapportionment Commission said current district lines will remain until the commission comes up with a new plan that passes legal muster, which could mean that changes might not take effect for two years. “The fact that the court has ... allowed the 2001 plan to stay in effect leads me to believe they think it could take a little bit of time” to work up a new one, said Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, D-Allegheny County, the only member of the five-man commission to vote against it. Costa said a restarted process could take weeks or months depending on the details of the majority’s written opinion, which has not yet been released. “At least for the time being, I think that the 2001 districts may be on pretty solid ground as we go forward,” Costa told reporters in a conference call late Wednesday. [more]

January 25, 2012

Pennsylvania's House of Representatives would shrink under a legislative proposal
Amy Worden, Philadelphia Inquirer
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

HARRISBURG - It may have been one small step in the legislative process, but in the long, slow arc of efforts to streamline and modernize the Pennsylvania legislature, it amounted to a giant leap. A House committee on Monday approved a bill to shrink the size of the House by 50 members, from 203 to 153. The bill, sponsored by Speaker Sam Smith (R., Jefferson), cleared the State Government Committee in a bipartisan 16-8 vote and had the first of three considerations by the full House. The bill would trim a legislature that is the second-largest in the nation. But a long road lies ahead for the proposal despite strong support in polls among voters and self-styled reformers who, after the ill-fated 2005 legislative pay raise, have sought sweeping changes in the way Pennsylvania government operates, from more openness in government to shifting to a part-time legislature. The last time the legislature tried to reduce its own numbers was the mid-1970s, and that effort never got out of the House. [more]

Groups associated with extracurricular activities in Mechanicsburg Area School District might have to pay toward cost of operations
Roger Quigley, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Booster clubs or groups associated with sports teams and other extracurricular activities in the Mechanicsburg Area School District might have to pay up 10 percent of the costs of their operations starting in the 2012-13 school year. The school board Tuesday night heard that recommendation from a committee studying extracurricular activities as part of the preparation of the 2012-13 district budget. Only sports teams or activities that receive more than $1,000 of their money from district funds would have to come up with the 10 percent amount. The board is expected to endorse the recommendation at its Feb. 14 meeting. Before the rule could go into effect, the board would have to revise its policy on fundraising activities, which limits the number of events booster clubs or associations are permitted to hold. The board also is considering changes in its policies on sponsorships and naming rights to district properties as part of the review. [more]

Drilling resumes in Allegheny National Forest
Brian Bowling, Pittsburgh Tribune – Review
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

The oil and gas industry has resumed drilling in the 512,000-acre Allegheny National Forest while several court challenges against the practice work their way through the federal courts, an industry lawyer said on Tuesday. Matthew Wolford, an attorney representing the Pennsylvania Independent Oil and Gas Association and the Allegheny Forest Alliance, said an Erie federal judge's December 2009 order made it clear that companies don't need the U.S. Forest Service's permission to drill. "That's been the law in Pennsylvania for over 100 years," Wolford said. Joe Walsh, a national spokesman for the Forest Service, declined to comment. U.S. District Judge Sean McLaughlin's ruling cleared the way for drilling but didn't stop the agency stall tactics, Wolford said. When a company plans to drill in the forest, it must give the agency notice. The Forest Service is supposed to respond to those notices within 60 days but is taking seven to eight months, he said. "That gets a little bit old, as you can imagine," Wolford said. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in September upheld McLaughlin's ruling, which allowed other legal challenges to move forward. Industry and environmental groups have filed seven federal lawsuits since 2007 challenging how drilling is conducted in the national forest. [more]

Residents of flood-damaged Middletown neighborhood await word on government aid, buyouts
Diana Fishlock, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Tuesday, January 24, 2012

For eight years, Jessica and Kevin Welsh raised their children in a ranch house on Few Avenue in Middletown. They loved spending time out on the deck and in the backyard. They loved the quiet neighborhood. But since Tropical Storm Lee flooded their street in September, their lives have been on hold. Few Avenue houses’ foundations caved in. Water rose up the walls of the small ranch houses. The Welshes are among the neighbors waiting to hear whether they can receive Federal Emergency Management Agency grants to buy their homes. Other neighbors are rebuilding. The Welshes are living with relatives. Their neighbors also live with family or friends, or they’re renting apartments. They’ve heard conflicting timelines and advice from FEMA and the borough about fundamental things like whether rebuilding now will make them ineligible for FEMA home buyout grants or whether they can get the permits they need. With both the Middletown borough secretary and manager resigning since 2012 began, neighbors fear their problems will be forgotten. [more]

Corbett asked to aid poor schools
Tom Barnes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

HARRISBURG -- As 50 placard-holding students from the ailing Chester Upland schools looked on, Republican and Democratic senators urged Gov. Tom Corbett Tuesday to develop a workable plan to aid financially distressed school districts. "We need a plan, Mr. Secretary; we need a plan," Sen. Jeffrey Piccola, R-Dauphin, told state Education Secretary Ronald Tomalis. "It's time to end the finger-pointing and the blame game. Taxpayers are fed up with the increasing costs of public education. They see it every July when their school tax bill arrives." Sen. Andrew Dinniman, D-Chester, was even more blunt. "This administration is trying to destroy public education in the poorest districts," such as Chester Upland [outside Philadelphia], Duquesne schools and others, he contended. "This administration isn't serious about education of the poor in Pennsylvania." The Chester Upland students asked legislators for more funding for their schools. The district recently said it would have to shut down in the middle of the school year without additional state funds. It filed suit in federal court, and teachers agreed to work without pay. One of those teachers, Sara Ferguson, was invited to sit in the First Lady's box at Tuesday's State of the Union address. Ms. Ferguson teaches literacy and math, and she said at the time teachers announced they would work without pay, "We are adults; we will make a way. The students don't have any contingency plan. They need to be educated, so we intend to be on the job." [more]

JUST A SPEECH
John Baer, Philadelphia Inquirer
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

PRESIDENT OBAMA'S State of the Campaign speech - a free prime-time TV ad last night - put down some pretty clear markers for his re-election bid. No surprise: He's running on the theme that the haves need to help have-nots by paying higher taxes and that the middle class needs relief. He preached to the masses in his address to Congress. Think of it as "Occupy the Hall of the House" or, as Republicans call it, "class warfare." To the extent that there are more have-nots than haves, it might well be a smart political path. To the extent that voters are disappointed or fed up with Obama, he might be judged more on product than promise. It is, for example, one thing to pledge tax fairness for all at some distant point in time. It's quite another to convince America that prosperity is just around the corner. Ask one-term President Herbert Hoover. [more]

Whitaker Center in Harrisburg to start a $2 million energy-efficient project
David Dunkle, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts is going green, with a $2 million energy-efficiency project that features a new electronic sign, new entrance doors, more energy efficient lighting, upgraded mechanical systems and, oh yes, a new coat of paint. The first visible signal of the two-year transition is a new, $50,000 digital marquee scheduled to be installed this morning above Whitaker’s Market Street entrance in downtown Harrisburg. And in about two months, Whitaker’s familiar revolving doors will disappear, replaced by a double set of push-style doors that will be separated by an eight-foot gap designed to cut down the transfer of air from the outside. “People think revolving doors are energy efficient, but they aren’t,” Whitaker CEO and President Michael Hanes said Tuesday. Whitaker’s new marquee features sophisticated LED (light-emitting diode) technology that can carry messages and show video. LED bulbs last much longer and are cheaper to operate, Hanes said, which means the sign could pay for itself in five to seven years. [more]

State time was used to campaign, former aides testify at state Rep. Bill DeWeese's corruption trial
Jo Gubbins, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Kevin Sidella, a former aide to state Rep. Bill DeWeese, testified Tuesday that he decided to ask his boss a question as they rode in a car about a decade ago. Sidella, a prosecution witness called on the second day of DeWeese’s corruption trial, said he had become concerned about the legality of all the political fundraising he had been doing for DeWeese while on the state payroll. Thirty percent to 40 percent of his time was devoted to that task, he told a Dauphin County jury. “I asked [DeWeese] if everything I was doing was OK,” said Sidella, a Swatara Township commissioner who testified under a prosecution grant of immunity. “He said, ‘Our saving grace is that everybody does it.’ ” The taxpayers paid Sidella $307,641 when he worked for DeWeese from 2001 to 2006, according to a chart Senior Deputy Attorney General Kenneth Brown showed the jurors. His annual salary peaked at $73,502 in 2006. [more]

January 24, 2012

Pa.'s U.S. senators plan to sit together at State of Union to make a point Robert Vickers, Harrisburg Patriot-News Monday, January 23, 2012 Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr. and Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey have figured out a way to cross party lines and work together. All last year — but particularly since the summer’s failed congressional debt ceiling negotiations — Pennsylvania’s two senators have made a conscious effort to work in concert whenever possible. That bipartisanship continues Tuesday night's speech when the duo breaks tradition and sit together at President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address.  “Sitting next to each other is a small but worthwhile step toward setting a civil and cooperative tone for the challenging work ahead of us,” Toomey said in a statement. Though Democrats and Republicans usually self-segregate when Congress meets in joint session, members of both parties crossed party lines last January amid calls for more civility after the shooting of Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Casey and Toomey sat together last year as well. [more] York County Commissioner Chris Reilly will run for Congress Elizabeth Gibson, Harrisburg Patriot-News Monday, January 23, 2012 York County Commissioner Chris Reilly has announced that he will run for Congress representing the 4th Pennsylvania congressional district, formerly the 19th district. He is the second challenger from York to surface today. Earlier, attorney Sean Summers announced his bid for the seat now occupied by Todd Platts, R-Spring Garden Township. The district represents Harrisburg, parts of Cumberland County and all of York and Adams counties. Reilly, 49, is a resident of York Township, York County. He is married and has three children. He is currently serving his fourth term as commissioner. Platts is not seeking re-election. ‘Common thief’ or innocent man: DeWeese trial opens Angela Couloumbis, Philadelphia Inquirer  Monday, January 23, 2012 HARRISBURG - He is nothing more than "a common thief," prosecutors argued.  He is an innocent man framed by corrupt underlings, his defense attorney countered. Those were the two versions presented of Rep. Bill DeWeese, the onetime Democratic leader from southwestern Pennsylvania, at the start of his trial Monday morning in a Dauphin County courtroom just blocks from the state Capitol. DeWeese, 61, is charged with theft and other crimes in a political corruption case stemming from the state Attorney General's "Bonusgate" investigation. Prosecutors allege that as the Democratic House leader, DeWeese directed and condoned political activity by state employees who were on the taxpayer's dime and time. Not only did he expect his staff to work on his campaigns, prosecutors alleged, he demanded it. And he would become furious when legislative employees did not participate in political activity, even going so far as to threaten to fire them. When he was not expecting them to do political tasks, he never hesitated to ask them to run personal errands: pick up his dry-cleaning, do his grocery shopping, book tickets for his personal travel. [more] Congressional races in Western Pa. region revving up Timothy McNulty, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Tuesday, January 24, 2012 The United Steelworkers union announced its support Monday of U.S. Rep. Mark Critz, D-Johnstown, in the increasingly competitive race for the new 12th Congressional District. In congressional matters next door in the 18th District, Democrat Larry Maggi, the chairman of the Washington County commissioners, announced he would get into the race to challenge incumbent U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Upper St. Clair. Nominating petitions for statewide races go into circulation this week, so momentum is picking up speed in the run-up to the state's April 24 primary. Republican mapmakers combined the seats of Mr. Critz and fellow Democratic incumbent Jason Altmire of McCandless, forcing them to face off then, so both men have exactly three months to introduce themselves to new constituents. The endorsement by the Steelworkers union, and its 32,000 active and retired members, should go a long way to help Mr. Critz do that in Mr. Altmire's backyard in suburbs north of Pittsburgh. [more] Is there a solution for Chester Upland's problems? Dan Hardy, Philadelphia Inquirer  Monday, January 23, 2012 Sara Ferguson grew up in Chester, and, like her mother, aunt, and grandfather, chose to be a teacher there. For 21 years, she has taught at Columbus Elementary School, and often it seems each year is worse than the last. Program cuts, staff furloughs, and claims of mismanagement are routine for the Chester Upland School District. Nearly half its 6,625 students have flocked to charter schools, many during the time the state ran the district. No superintendent lasts more than a few years; no turnaround plan ever takes root. Ferguson, 48, sees teachers as the only vestige of stability. But even they cannot stem the tide, as class sizes swell to more than 40, and money dwindles for the most basic supplies. "Things never got better for the children," she said. Her words sounded like a eulogy, which might not be a stretch. After decades on the brink - and as a petri dish for state control, privatization, and charter schools - Chester Upland seems to be barreling toward a meltdown. Its fate could ripple statewide. Last week, a federal judge told the state to give the district a $3.2 million advance, enough to cover payroll and bills for a month. U.S. District Judge Michael M. Baylson's order delayed, but did not defuse, the school system's crisis. The shortfall, officials say, could hit $20 million by June. [more] Derry Township school board passes $53.9 million preliminary budget Nick Malawskey, Harrisburg Patriot-News Monday, January 23, 2012 Derry Township school board members voted Monday to pass a $53.9 million preliminary budget for next school year. Now the board and districts administrators have five months to figure out how to fund it — or cut it. The preliminary budget represents a roughly $3 million increase over this years $50.9 million budget, mostly due to rising pension obligations and healthcare costs. At the current tax rate revenues are expected to grow by about $1 million, leaving a roughly $2 million gap between revenue and expenses. To fill the gap the school districts board voted Monday to seek two exemptions from the state which would allow it to raise the tax assessment rate by roughly 3 percent. For the average homeowner in the township, the change would result in an increase of $83 annually. Officials were quick to point out that the numbers were extremely preliminary. "The administration will be looking over this with a fine tooth comb," said John Gräb a school board member. "Don't panic, it's only a preliminary proposed budget." [more] West York's budget woes causing controversy Teresa Ann Boeckel, York Daily Record Sunday, January 22, 2012 York, PA - Painted messages on the rear windows of some cars in the area read: "Support West York Fire -- Police -- Highway." On a Facebook page called "Save West York," people are commenting on the tension among borough officials and employees. The battle over the borough's budget woes has grown so contentious that a councilwoman was cited last week for allegedly poking the fire chief in the chest after an emotional meeting. Residents have packed meetings, and council had to move the last one to a larger space. Police have escorted two people out of recent meetings. Late last year, council proposed a 2012 budget that included a 1.5-mill tax increase. But with turnover on the board after the November election, the newly seated council has proposed a budget that would include a 6 percent pay cut for non-union employees to avoid a tax increase. Some people worry the decreases are too drastic, and they fear for the future of the fire and police departments. Mayor Samuel Firestone has said he'd like to see West York eventually have an all-volunteer fire department; it currently has three full-time and five part-time employees. [more] Central Dauphin School Board approves a $155.4 million preliminary budget for 2012-13 Marijon Shearer, Harrisburg Patriot-News Tuesday, January 24, 2012 The Central Dauphin School Board Monday night approved a $155.4 million preliminary budget for 2012-13 that could mean higher taxes, larger class sizes or furloughs of as many as 50 district employees. While the preliminary budget calls for a property tax hike of 3.3 percent, the budget isn’t due until June 30. The board passed its preliminary spending plan to meet the deadline to apply for a state exception on the size of the tax increase. The exception, if approved by the state Department of Education, allows a district to raise taxes more than that allowed to offset increases in the district’s contributions to employee retirements funds. Central Dauphin’s state-mandated contribution to 1,600 employees’ retirement plans will increase from 8.65 percent to 12.22 percent next year — an increase of about $2.5 million from $5.9 million to $8.5 million, district business manager Karen McConnell said. “That is set by law in the school code. We have to pay it,” she said. “We have to apply now, but we don’t have to use it,” board President Ford Thompson said. Once the state approves the increase, Thompson said, it “can never go up. It can only go down.”  [more]

January 23, 2012

Joe Paterno leaves a complicated legacy, from Ivy League philosopher to famed football coach
John Luciew, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Monday, January 23, 2012

In the winter dark outside Beaver Stadium, candles surrounding Joe Paterno’s statue cast myriad shadows on nearby walls. Each spectral silhouette is a facet of the complicated man: Ivy League philosopher. Library benefactor. Famed football coach. Imperious control freak. Living legend. Flawed human being. As Paterno passes into history, he will remain all of these things. In the coming days, eulogies will wax poetic. Paterno will be lauded as having been far more than a football coach. He’ll be lionized for altering the trajectories of so many young lives for the better. And a gnawing emptiness in so many hearts will yearn for all those golden Saturday afternoons in autumn when it was just a game. Yet, even during these black-armband days, debates will swirl. [more]

Pennsylvania lawmakers pass, consider multiple bills to restrict abortions
Jill King Greenwood, Pittsburgh Tribune – Review
Monday, January 23, 2012

Mary Lou Gartner has been involved in the anti-abortion movement since the Roe v. Wade court decision — almost 40 years ago — but she considers the past year a "breakthrough" in the battle in Pennsylvania over the availability of abortions. Gartner and about 6,000 abortion opponents from Western Pennsylvania are traveling to Washington to join an estimated 200,000 others Monday for the 39th March For Life rally, held annually to coincide with the Jan. 22, 1973, Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. The rally occurs this year in a climate in which state lawmakers have passed or are considering multiple bills to enact restrictions on abortions. "The climate in Pennsylvania is one of chipping away at women's reproductive rights, little by little, and the speed has picked up tremendously in the past year," said Rebecca Cavanaugh, spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania. "I highly doubt Roe v. Wade will ever be overturned entirely, so the strategy seems to be to make abortions harder to obtain and afford and strap the entire process with barriers." House Bill 574, passed last year, toughens requirements on abortion clinics in Pennsylvania. Senate Bill 3 would place abortion-related restrictions on insurance plans available for purchase in the state under the federal health care law coming in 2014. And House Bill 1077, just introduced, would require Pennsylvania women to view and sign for copies of their fetal ultrasound photos before obtaining abortions [more]

Surprise! Santorum wins Iowa GOP caucus in recount
Harrisburg Patriot-News
Saturday, January 21, 2012

DES MOINES, Iowa — Offering no explanation, the Iowa Republican Party has declared Rick Santorum as winner of the Iowa caucuses, days after saying incomplete vote results precluded it from doing just that. GOP State Chairman Matt Strawn and the party’s State Central Committee issued a statement late Friday naming the former Pennsylvania senator as the winner, “in order to clarify conflicting reports and to affirm the results” that were released Wednesday. The committee’s release Wednesday said Santorum was 34 votes ahead of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney in the final certified results from 1,766 precincts. But because eight precincts never turned in certified results, Strawn said in the statement Thursday that the party could not declare a winner. He congratulated both Santorum and Romney. Sixteen days earlier, Strawn had announced that Romney had won the caucuses by eight votes. Saturday’s statement offered no explanation of what had changed since Thursday, and Strawn did not return calls seeking comment. Two central committee members told The Associated Press that the group held a conference call Friday night to discuss the “confusion” about the results of the caucuses and directed Strawn to issue a statement making it clear that the party considered Santorum the winner. “There had been too much confusion and we needed to clear things up once and for all,” said Steve Scheffler of the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition, a committee member who was on the call. [more]

Corbett backs SE Pa. entrepreneur for US Senate
Marc Levy, Philadelphia Inquirer
Thursday, January 19, 2012

HARRISBURG, Pa. - Gov. Tom Corbett is telling top Pennsylvania Republicans that he supports a Chester County entrepreneur, Steve Welch, to be the party's candidate to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, as a GOP endorsement vote nears in the crowded field. Brian Nutt, a political adviser to Corbett who also works for a firm that is advising Welch's campaign, said Thursday that the governor made his selection after talking to some of the candidates. Corbett's decision comes less than two weeks before the Republican State Committee meets in Hershey to consider endorsing a candidate in the six-person field vying for the Republican nomination to challenge Casey's bid for a second six-year term. Chester County GOP Chairman Valentino DiGiorgio said he heard from the governor's staff on Wednesday about Corbett's decision. Party committee members from southeastern Pennsylvania heard the Senate candidates speak at a Valley Forge forum on Wednesday night, but have not settled on a candidate to back, DiGiorgio and others said. [more]

Federal, state agencies still sparring over shale
Zack Needles, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Monday, January 23, 2012

A recent letter from the head of the state Department of Environmental Protection to a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency official called the federal government's understanding of a local well water contamination issue "rudimentary," further straining relations between state and federal regulators regarding the Marcellus Shale. John R. Hanger -- special counsel in Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott's Harrisburg office and, up until January of last year, secretary of the DEP -- described the current interaction between state and federal environmental regulators as "a relationship showing stress, as opposed to a relationship showing mutual understanding and a commitment to working together." "I don't think we have outright war, nor do we have a smooth working relationship," Mr. Hanger said. "It would seem the relationship, at best, is not ideal." He also said that politics probably plays a role in the friction. "Secretary Krancer works for a conservative Republican governor and Shawn Garvin works for a Democratic president," Mr. Hanger said. "It's pretty obvious that some of their political differences are entering into some of the communication. I think that's too bad. I think the political tensions need to be buried. They shouldn't intrude into these discussions." [more]

Former state House speaker Bill DeWeese awaits the start of his Dauphin County trial on corruption charges
Matt Miller, Harrisburg Patriot-News i
Monday, January 23, 2012

In the more than two years since corruption charges were filed against him, state Rep. Bill DeWeese has never flagged in insisting he is innocent. He has claimed consistently that he is a victim of selective prosecution, even the target of a personal vendetta by ex-attorney general and now Gov. Tom Corbett. Rarely has DeWeese, a former House Speaker and Greene County Democrat, passed on an opportunity to espouse his cause. Starting today, he and his lawyer, well-known criminal defense attorney William C. Costopoulos, will be pitching that message to a Dauphin County jury. Prosecutors from the state attorney general’s office will simultaneously be trying to convince those jurors that DeWeese, a 35-year veteran of the Legislature, used state employees and resources illegally for years to abet his political campaigns. The prosecution team, led by Chief Deputy Attorney General Frank Fina, is well-versed in making political corruption cases by now. [more]

Tracking the $700,000 PHA paid to lobbyist
Mark Fazlollah, Philadelphia Inquirer
Sunday, January 22, 2012

The Philadelphia Housing Authority paid at least $700,000 to a Washington lobbyist, channeling much of the money through the law firm Ballard, Spahr L.L.C., while repeatedly telling federal officials it wasn't engaged in lobbying, records show. The payments - a $10,000-a-month retainer - went to American Continental Group, whose president is David J. Urban, a former chief of staff for then-Sen. Arlen Specter. In an interview, Urban described his job as primarily "telling the story" of PHA and its executive director Carl R. Greene to Congress. "I dealt with Carl on more than a daily basis," Urban said. As a federally funded agency, PHA is prohibited from using federal money to pay lobbyists. Lobbying isn't outright barred if the housing agency used nonfederal funds to pay for it and disclosed the lobbying arrangements to HUD. Documents obtained by The Inquirer show that, from 2005 until 2010, Greene signed annual "Disclosure of Lobbying Activities" forms that omitted any mention of Urban or American Continental. [more]

Harrisburg receiver plans meeting Monday with school's finance committee
Eric Veronikis, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Saturday, January 21, 2012

City receiver David Unkovic will meet with the Harrisburg School Board’s finance committee at 5:30 p.m. Monday to discuss the school district’s debt and to gather input on the fiscal recovery plan he is drafting. Unkovic is not addressing the school dis­trict’s debt in the fiscal recovery plan he must submit to the city by Feb. 6, but the district’s taxpayers are the same people who will be affected by the receiver’s plans, which creates parallels, said Steve Kratz, spokesman for the state Department of Community and Economic Development. “It’s just an informative session to find out if they have any concerns about what could be potentially included in the plan that could affect them,” Kratz said. The meeting will be held in the school board’s meeting space in Build­ing No. 2, 2101 N. Front St. [more]

January 20, 2012

Capital City Airport could be biggest loser if Pentagon moves helicopter training school to Arizona
Dan Miller, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

If the Pentagon moves the Lakota helicopter training school to Arizona, the biggest loser could be Capital City Airport. Sgt. Matt Jones, a Pennsylvania National Guard spokesman, said the school accounts for $1 million in annual economic activity to the airport and surrounding area. The airport is the only place the Army uses to train pilots on the Lakota, a new helicopter for search-and-rescue and other noncombat missions. The Guard does the training, but since March the school has been at the airport because Fort Indiantown Gap lacks hangar space. The Pentagon may move the school to an Army facility in Arizona. Jones said Guard officials here have been told the move would save money. He said if the Pentagon follows through the move would be completed well before the end of 2012. Jones said of about 30 people who work at the school many could be absorbed into other aircraft training jobs on the Gap. He couldn’t say how many people would lose their jobs by the school moving or if any Guard jobs would be lost at all. He said the $1 million is specific to the school being at Capital City Airport. The figure is derived from several hundred pilots each year coming to the school for training, and staying at hotels, eating at restaurants and enjoying other amenities in the area surrounding the airport.

Rep. Perry confirms he's running for Platts' congressional seat
Bill Landauer, York Daily Record
Thursday, January 19, 2012

York, PA - The day after U.S. Rep. Todd Platts, R-York County, said he wouldn't run for re-election, the field began to fill with hopefuls to take his place. By Wednesday, several local political figures said they were thinking about running for the seat Platts has held since 2001. Bob Wilson, the new chairman of the York County Republican Party, says he's already heard from a handful of potential candidates. He wouldn't give their names. "I've talked some off the ledge," Wilson said. "And others I talked into seriously considering it. At this point, that's where it is." With Platts out of the picture, would-be Republican candidates don't have much time to decide. The first day to circulate and file nomination petitions is Jan. 24. The Pennsylvania Department of State stops accepting petitions -- which must be notarized -- on Feb. 14. To get on the ballot, a major party candidate for U.S. Congress must pay an application fee of $150 and collect 1,000 signatures from party members of the district. After they're filed, the petitions could face challenges, said Ron Ruman, press secretary for the Department of State. [more]

How Harrisburg lost $300 million
Joseph DiStefano, Philadelphia Inquirer
Thursday, January 19, 2012

There's blame all around - from elected ials to bond professionals to engineering contractors -- in the Harrisburg Authority's 130-page Forensic Investigation Report, by Philadelphia accounting firm ParenteBeard LLC and law firm Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg, on how the city ended up $300 million in the hole and under state financial receivership over its failed trash incinerator renovation project. Next step is for receiver David Unkovic to report next month on what he intends to do so the city's bills get paid. [more]

Penn State trustees defend decisions to fire Joe Paterno and Graham Spanier, say they owe no apologies
Sara Ganim, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

Members of Penn State's board of trustees don’t think they did anything wrong. They don’t feel they owe anyone an apology, or an explanation directly to alumni. It’s not their fault they weren’t better informed, they say. Under the dire circumstances, they did the best they could have possibly done. And moving forward, they see no reason to make significant changes to the way they oversee the university. All of that was said by four members of the board during a 30-minute sit down with The Patriot-News one day after 13 members met with the New York Times and laid out the four days of discussions that eventually led to the firing of Joe Paterno and Graham Spanier. The four trustees said Thursday that they don’t plan to meet with angry alumni calling for a forum to ask them questions about the board's decisions. Instead, meeting with the press will have to suffice, they said. [more]

Carlisle mayor applicants go from seven to six
Elizabeth Gibson, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

Roger Spitz has withdrawn his application to be Carlisle's mayor. Instead, Spitz said he will run for the office in 2013. That leaves six people still interested in serving the two years left in former Mayor Kirk Wilson's term. Wilson resigned Jan. 3. Borough council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in borough hall to interview the applicants. They are: Councilman Tim Scott, former council members Sean Shultz, William "Doc" Kronenberg and Doug Heineman, as well as Nathan Harig and Griffin Hamilton. The person chosen by council would have to be elected to the mayor office in order to stay on past December, 2013.

Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education still mulling over Gov. Tom Corbett's request to give back 5 percent of its state funding
Jan Murphy, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

After absorbing a $90 million loss in state and federal stimulus funding to the state universities in this year’s budget, Gov. Tom Corbett’s request to the university system to give up $21 million more isn’t being met with enthusiasm. In fact, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education’s board has yet to study its implications that a faculty leader suggested may result in larger class sizes or the need for a mid-year tuition hike for the 120,000 students attending the 14 state universities, which include Shippensburg and Millersville. At its meeting, the system’s board had no discussion and took no action on the Jan. 4 request to give back 5 percent of the $413 million the system was to receive from the state. Corbett is asking all state agencies to give back as much as 10 percent of their appropriations to help the state cope with having its revenues come in $487 million below estimate. Board chairman Guido Pichini said, “We certainly will do everything we can to comply with the governor’s request understanding the financial constraints of students and their families and our responsibility to be good fidiciary watchdogs. We have to make sure of the full impact on the system and our universities,” Pichini said. [more]

As parties lose voters, Republicans chip away at Democrats' advantage
Scott Kraus, Allentown Morning Call
Thursday, January 19, 2012

As the presidential election looms, Republicans are ever so slowly chipping away at Democrats' sizable voter registration edge in Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley. The 1.2-million-plus statewide voter edge enjoyed by Democrats on Election Day 2008 has been whittled to about 1.1 million in the three years since President Barack Obama took office. The reason: Democrats are shedding voters faster than Republicans. it was enough for the Republican National Committee to tout the gains in an election-year strategy email distributed to the media this week. The memo makes the case that as the presidential campaign begins, the GOP has closed the registration gap in swing states like Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Iowa. There is momentum behind the Republicans mostly driven because of the national context that people are coalescing to oust what they see as failed leadership in the White House," said Valerie Caras, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Republican Party. Still, Republicans are nowhere close to reversing the overall gains Democrats have made in Pennsylvania over the last five years. In November 2006, Democrats held a roughly 600,000-voter edge with 3.9 million registered voters to the Republicans' 3.3 million. The number now stands at 4.1 million Democrats to 3 million Republicans. In Lehigh and Northampton counties, both parties are losing voters, but Democrats are losing them faster than Republicans. In Northampton, Democrats' margin shrank from 33,000 voters to 30,000 voters between Nov. 2008 and January 2012. In Lehigh, the margin shrank from 34,500 to 33,500. [more]

January 20, 2012

Capital City Airport could be biggest loser if Pentagon moves helicopter training school to Arizona
Dan Miller, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

If the Pentagon moves the Lakota helicopter training school to Arizona, the biggest loser could be Capital City Airport. Sgt. Matt Jones, a Pennsylvania National Guard spokesman, said the school accounts for $1 million in annual economic activity to the airport and surrounding area. The airport is the only place the Army uses to train pilots on the Lakota, a new helicopter for search-and-rescue and other noncombat missions. The Guard does the training, but since March the school has been at the airport because Fort Indiantown Gap lacks hangar space. The Pentagon may move the school to an Army facility in Arizona. Jones said Guard officials here have been told the move would save money. He said if the Pentagon follows through the move would be completed well before the end of 2012. Jones said of about 30 people who work at the school many could be absorbed into other aircraft training jobs on the Gap. He couldn’t say how many people would lose their jobs by the school moving or if any Guard jobs would be lost at all. He said the $1 million is specific to the school being at Capital City Airport. The figure is derived from several hundred pilots each year coming to the school for training, and staying at hotels, eating at restaurants and enjoying other amenities in the area surrounding the airport.

Rep. Perry confirms he's running for Platts' congressional seat
Bill Landauer, York Daily Record
Thursday, January 19, 2012

York, PA - The day after U.S. Rep. Todd Platts, R-York County, said he wouldn't run for re-election, the field began to fill with hopefuls to take his place. By Wednesday, several local political figures said they were thinking about running for the seat Platts has held since 2001. Bob Wilson, the new chairman of the York County Republican Party, says he's already heard from a handful of potential candidates. He wouldn't give their names. "I've talked some off the ledge," Wilson said. "And others I talked into seriously considering it. At this point, that's where it is." With Platts out of the picture, would-be Republican candidates don't have much time to decide. The first day to circulate and file nomination petitions is Jan. 24. The Pennsylvania Department of State stops accepting petitions -- which must be notarized -- on Feb. 14. To get on the ballot, a major party candidate for U.S. Congress must pay an application fee of $150 and collect 1,000 signatures from party members of the district. After they're filed, the petitions could face challenges, said Ron Ruman, press secretary for the Department of State. [more]

How Harrisburg lost $300 million
Joseph DiStefano, Philadelphia Inquirer
Thursday, January 19, 2012

There's blame all around - from elected officials to bond professionals to engineering contractors -- in the Harrisburg Authority's 130-page Forensic Investigation Report, by Philadelphia accounting firm ParenteBeard LLC and law firm Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg, on how the city ended up $300 million in the hole and under state financial receivership over its failed trash incinerator renovation project. Next step is for receiver David Unkovic to report next month on what he intends to do so the city's bills get paid. [more]

Penn State trustees defend decisions to fire Joe Paterno and Graham Spanier, say they owe no apologies
Sara Ganim, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

Members of Penn State's board of trustees don’t think they did anything wrong. They don’t feel they owe anyone an apology, or an explanation directly to alumni. It’s not their fault they weren’t better informed, they say. Under the dire circumstances, they did the best they could have possibly done. And moving forward, they see no reason to make significant changes to the way they oversee the university. All of that was said by four members of the board during a 30-minute sit down with The Patriot-News one day after 13 members met with the New York Times and laid out the four days of discussions that eventually led to the firing of Joe Paterno and Graham Spanier. The four trustees said Thursday that they don’t plan to meet with angry alumni calling for a forum to ask them questions about the board's decisions. Instead, meeting with the press will have to suffice, they said. [more]

Carlisle mayor applicants go from seven to six
Elizabeth Gibson, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

Roger Spitz has withdrawn his application to be Carlisle's mayor. Instead, Spitz said he will run for the office in 2013. That leaves six people still interested in serving the two years left in former Mayor Kirk Wilson's term. Wilson resigned Jan. 3. Borough council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in borough hall to interview the applicants. They are: Councilman Tim Scott, former council members Sean Shultz, William "Doc" Kronenberg and Doug Heineman, as well as Nathan Harig and Griffin Hamilton. The person chosen by council would have to be elected to the mayor office in order to stay on past December, 2013.

Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education still mulling over Gov. Tom Corbett's request to give back 5 percent of its state funding
Jan Murphy, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

After absorbing a $90 million loss in state and federal stimulus funding to the state universities in this year’s budget, Gov. Tom Corbett’s request to the university system to give up $21 million more isn’t being met with enthusiasm. In fact, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education’s board has yet to study its implications that a faculty leader suggested may result in larger class sizes or the need for a mid-year tuition hike for the 120,000 students attending the 14 state universities, which include Shippensburg and Millersville. At its meeting, the system’s board had no discussion and took no action on the Jan. 4 request to give back 5 percent of the $413 million the system was to receive from the state. Corbett is asking all state agencies to give back as much as 10 percent of their appropriations to help the state cope with having its revenues come in $487 million below estimate. Board chairman Guido Pichini said, “We certainly will do everything we can to comply with the governor’s request understanding the financial constraints of students and their families and our responsibility to be good fidiciary watchdogs. We have to make sure of the full impact on the system and our universities,” Pichini said. [more]

As parties lose voters, Republicans chip away at Democrats' advantage
Scott Kraus, Allentown Morning Call
Thursday, January 19, 2012

As the presidential election looms, Republicans are ever so slowly chipping away at Democrats' sizable voter registration edge in Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley. The 1.2-million-plus statewide voter edge enjoyed by Democrats on Election Day 2008 has been whittled to about 1.1 million in the three years since President Barack Obama took office. The reason: Democrats are shedding voters faster than Republicans. it was enough for the Republican National Committee to tout the gains in an election-year strategy email distributed to the media this week. The memo makes the case that as the presidential campaign begins, the GOP has closed the registration gap in swing states like Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Iowa. There is momentum behind the Republicans mostly driven because of the national context that people are coalescing to oust what they see as failed leadership in the White House," said Valerie Caras, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Republican Party. Still, Republicans are nowhere close to reversing the overall gains Democrats have made in Pennsylvania over the last five years. In November 2006, Democrats held a roughly 600,000-voter edge with 3.9 million registered voters to the Republicans' 3.3 million. The number now stands at 4.1 million Democrats to 3 million Republicans. In Lehigh and Northampton counties, both parties are losing voters, but Democrats are losing them faster than Republicans. In Northampton, Democrats' margin shrank from 33,000 voters to 30,000 voters between Nov. 2008 and January 2012. In Lehigh, the margin shrank from 34,500 to 33,500. [more]

January 19, 2012

Audit details how incinerator financing led Harrisburg into black hole of debt
Eric Veronikis, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

There’s no smoking gun, but a forensic audit the Harrisburg Authority released Wednesday points plenty of fingers that could help provide accountability for reckless incinerator spending that buried the city in more than $317 million of debt, officials said. The report might even lead to the prosecution of individuals who handled financial deals connected to the incinerator retrofit project if officials use audit facts, combine them with other details and find there was a disregard for the law, they said. “It goes over a lot of stuff that we think we knew. This has brought it into a level of fact now,” city Councilman Brad Koplinski said, adding that he hopes city receiver David Unkovic will take the report and move toward financial accountability. The Authority commissioned the audit last year to learn how bonds issued to retrofit the incinerator all but bankrupted Harrisburg. The report points to possible conflicts of interest surrounding financial deals related to the failed project and blasts city and county officials and their consultants for entering questionable transactions. [more]

It's official: Report says Philadelphia schools fall short on dealing with crime
Kristen Graham, Philadelphia Inquirer
Wednesday, January 18, 2012

The facts are sobering, if not surprising - the Philadelphia School District has failed to report crime consistently, offers too little help for students traumatized by violence, and fails to implement the most effective methods citywide. The promises are lofty - more focus on violence prevention, more transparency concerning violence data, improved reporting, more and better training. More than a year after the Blue Ribbon Commission on Safe Schools was convened by Mayor Nutter and then-Superintendent Arlene C. Ackerman, its work was made public at a School Reform Commission meeting Tuesday night with the release of a 41-page report. The report echoes the main findings of "Assault on Learning," an Inquirer series that found that Philadelphia School District violence was widespread and underreported, with reporting standards varying widely from school to school. Some cases in which students were seriously injured were downplayed and not counted in the district's serious-incident tally, which stands at 30,000 over five years. "No one will know our schools are getting safer unless they can trust the data we collect and report is valid and consistent, and that there is no 'down-coding' or under-reporting in an attempt to make a school look safer than it is," Nutter and acting Superintendent Leroy Nunery II wrote in the report's opening section. "We need to reverse the current incentives so that people are not punished for being honest, and if our data has no credibility, our actions will have no legitimacy." [more]

States ready their health exchanges
Bill Toland, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

The White House says more than half of U.S. states are on their way to setting up their own health insurance exchanges, the online marketplaces where people without insurance coverage will be able to buy it starting in January 2014. The exchanges are a key component of President Barack Obama's federal health care overhaul. The federal government, according to a report issued Wednesday morning, has already spent more than $729 million on grants meant to help the states study and set up exchanges. More spending is around the corner, as new grants are scheduled to be issued in mid-February. Twenty-eight states, as well as Washington, D.C., have taken meaningful steps toward creating (or have already created) the private health insurance marketplaces, according to the White House report. Those are the states that have likewise received the bulk of the grant money, by way of $438 million in "exchange establishment" funding. Pennsylvania was not among the 28, though the report noted that in November, Republican Gov. Tom Corbett announced his "commitment" to building a state-run insurance exchange. A report commissioned by the state Insurance Department predicts that at least 2 million people would participate in Pennsylvania's version of the exchange, if and when it is implemented. [more]

Gov. Corbett's focus on state rep., not Sandusky, bothers Dem
Brad Bumsted, Pittsburgh Tribune – Review
Thursday, January 19, 2012

HARRISBURG — On trial accused of fueling his campaigns with taxpayers' dollars, Rep. Bill DeWeese lashed out at Gov. Tom Corbett on Wednesday, saying he assigned 14 people to investigate DeWeese while attorney general and devoted only one investigator to claims that former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky sexually abused kids. "One: That is not true," Corbett's spokesman Kevin Harley said. "Two: Is (DeWeese) complaining or bragging?" It's unusual in Pennsylvania for a defendant to make his case to the "jury of public opinion," said Charlie Gerow, CEO of Quantum Communications and a Republican political consultant. As jury selection began, Sharon Rodavich, DeWeese's longtime legislative aide and co-defendant, pleaded guilty to two felonies. Rodavich, 55, of Waynesburg, who also worked on DeWeese's campaigns, told the court that she will cooperate with prosecutors and testify against him. Rodavich pleaded guilty to conflict of interest and conspiring to use public resources for campaigns. Each count is punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine, though she likely would face far less because of her plea bargain. The state will drop four theft charges. DeWeese, 61, a Waynesburg Democrat and former House speaker, said that Corbett, from March 2009 through October 2010, "had 14 prosecutors and agents tearing my life and Sharon Rodavich's life apart. He had one investigator on Jerry Sandusky." Prosecutors accuse DeWeese of using his district and Harrisburg offices to run his campaigns and conducting fundraising operations at the Capitol. DeWeese, who joined the House in 1976, is charged with four counts of theft and one each of conflict of interest and conspiracy.[more]

As top aide pleads guilty, jury selection continues in political corruption trial of former House Speaker Bill DeWeese
Matt Miller, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Thursday, January 19, 2012

State Rep. Bill DeWeese will be going it alone when his corruption trial begins Monday. His co-defendant, aide Sharon Rodavich, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and conflict of interest charges Wednesday just after jury selection began for what was scheduled as their joint trial. Under a plea deal with the attorney general’s office, Rodavich, 56, of Carmichaels, also must testify against the Greene County Democrat and former House Speaker. DeWeese, a 35-year veteran of the state Legislature, is accused of using state-paid staff, including Rodavich, and public resources for his political campaigns. Prosecutors contend that Rodavich was one of his chief lieutenants in the alleged conspiracy and supervised DeWeese’s campaign activities in his home district. DeWeese and his lawyer, William Costopoulos, wouldn’t discuss the possible impact of Rodavich’s turnabout on DeWeese’s case. The usually talkative DeWeese, who has adamantly maintained his innocence since being charged with theft, conspiracy and conflict of interest counts more than two years ago, referred questions on the subject to Costopoulos. [more]

Pa. officials will not release other aides' resumes
Angela Couloumbis, Philadelphia Inquirer
Thursday, January 19, 2012

HARRISBURG - In the wake of controversy over the professional background of one of its high-level welfare advisers, the Corbett administration refused Wednesday to release the resumés of other top aides in the Department of Public Welfare who help set social and health policies for the state. On Tuesday, Robert W. Patterson, a special assistant to Welfare Secretary Gary Alexander, resigned from his $104,470 position as The Inquirer was preparing to publish a story about his side job - writing for and editing a conservative, faith-based journal called the Family in America. Those writings included criticisms of key welfare programs administered by DPW, musings that a woman's ideal role in society is as a stay-at-home mother, and a belief that condom use robs women of mood-enhancing benefits of semen. Other than to say that they don't agree with the views expressed in the journal, administration officials have refused to say why Patterson was hired, or what they knew about his background. Patterson had been writing for the journal since 2004, and his writings are accessible on the Internet. "That information is irrelevant," DPW spokeswoman Carey Miller said Wednesday. Alexander declined to be interviewed. The secretary, according to state records, has three other special assistants, who together earn just shy of $300,000 a year. They are: Erik Randolph, who earns $102,221 a year; Brandon Danz, who makes $89,585; and Ronald Semerjian, who makes $99,991. Miller said the department would not release their resumés as it considers them "part of their personnel file, which is confidential." [more]

Public decries potential transit cutbacks
Diana Nelson Jones, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Thursday, January 19, 2012

Reaction Wednesday to the Port Authority's proposed bus service cuts ran from "unbelievable" to "impossible" among community leaders whose neighborhoods face service elimination if the state does not fund a gap of $64 million for 2012-13. The cut of 46 routes and reduction of service on nearly every surviving route would affect between 150 and 200 neighborhoods, boroughs, townships, housing developments, schools and retail and medical centers. Zone 1 and Zone 2 riders would pay an additional 25 and 50 cents, respectively. Between 500 and 600 Port Authority employees would be axed and riders would have half the service of a year ago, when the Port Authority made a 15 percent cut. The new cuts would take effect in September. Court Gould, executive director for Sustainable Pittsburgh, said the city's efforts to revitalize itself and the recognition it has gotten nationally "puts us on the cusp, at a point where cutting transit pulls the rug out from under Pittsburgh, and as goes Pittsburgh so goes the region. Public transit is a public service and dependent on state support. A win-win opportunity sits squarely on the governor's desk at this moment." [more]

Calls grow for Supreme Court Justice Melvin to resign
Charles Thompson, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Critics say Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin should step down from the bench in light of news reports that she is the target of a criminal investigation.The calls are growing as the state’s highest court faces a number of politically-charged cases looming on the docket, including a challenge of the realignment of Pennsylvania’s legislative districts. A hearing on redistricting is slated for Monday. However, Melvin has given no sign of stepping away from the bench before the court is to hear a batch of appeals against the new maps for state Senate and House districts. Several prominent state government reformers added their voice to the chorus this week. They argued that Melvin should at least take a temporary leave pending the outcome of a grand jury probe led by Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. [more]

January 18, 2012

Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perry, Sen. Mike Waugh among names being discussed for Todd Platts' seat in Congress
Jeff Frantz, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Tuesday, January 17, 2012

U.S. Rep. Todd Platts only announced he will be leaving office this afternoon, but people are already eying the York County Republican’s seat. The names of state Rep. Scott Perry, R- Dillsburg, and state Sen. Mike Waugh, R-York County, are already being tossed around in Harrisburg. “If you had asked at 8 o’clock this morning, I would have said we have other things to worry about,” Perry said. That was before he heard Platts announcement. Soon after, Perry called his wife and said they were going to need to talk about what would be best right now for their family. “This is something I’ve always aspired to,” Perry said. “We’ll discuss it tonight and we’ll make a decision in the next 24 hours.” Waugh said he will assess the new opportunity. But Waugh, the current Republican Whip in the state Senate, spent most of a brief conversation about Platts’ decision Tuesday stressing he is happy with his leadership post in Harrisburg, and the ability it gives him to have an influence on many compelling issues of the day. At the start of his own exploration, Waugh said, he is not crazy about the thought of trading in that seniority in to serve as a freshman member in a much-larger U.S. House. Waugh suggested some of York’s less-senior state House members might be more interested in making that kind of investment. [more]

Imagine, representatives truly representing
John Baer, Philadelphia Inquirer
Wednesday, January 18, 2012

YET ANOTHER PUSH to reform Pennsylvania politics and government might well get a boost from results of what's billed as a first-ever statewide public-integrity poll. I know, I know, you think any attempt to fix our inept, unchanging, often corrupt political system is very close to impossible. And I don't disagree. But there's clearly a need and any effort is worth noting, and this new effort is interesting. Last month, Tim Potts, a co-founder of the grass-roots reform group Democracy Rising PA, launched a unique political-action committee, the Majority Party PA. The committee's goal is simple: Use polling to determine what a majority of state voters want on a variety of issues, ask anyone in or running for office to pledge to make decisions and cast votes reflective of those wants, then stand back and let democracy rise. Imagine the results. Poll findings to be released tomorrow in Harrisburg and obtained by the Daily News show broad majority support for aggressive reforms and say that 68 percent of voters want a convention to amend the state Constitution to get those reforms. Among findings: 81 percent want to reduce the size of the Legislature and impose term limits; 87 percent say state pols should be required to resign from one office in order to run for another (as Philadelphia's Home Rule Charter requires); 72 percent think we should change the way legislative districts are drawn, and 88 percent support recall elections. [more]

Pa. ordered to bail out schools
Dan Hardy, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Wednesday, January 18, 2012

A federal court judge ordered Tuesday that the state keep the bankrupt Chester Upland School District in Delaware County afloat for a few more weeks by advancing it $3.2 million. That will be enough to pay teachers for now; the biweekly payroll for the district is about $1 million. The district has only about $100,000 in the bank and owes other creditors; it would not have been able to meet its payroll Wednesday without additional money from the state. The Corbett administration has refused requests to provide more funds for the district. The infusion is an advance on state allocations to the district that it had been scheduled to get later in the year. Eastern District Court Judge Michael M. Baylson also ordered the state Department of Education not to withhold further subsidies to the district without his approval. A hearing on the case is scheduled for Feb. 23. The state has been sending Chester Upland district subsidies to charter schools that were educating district students. State officials said that was required by law; the district disagreed. On Tuesday, Gov. Tom Corbett defended his position that Chester Upland should not get money from the state. [more]

Shale drilling affects rest of energy sector
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
Wednesday, January 18, 2012

A shale-driven glut of natural gas has cut electricity prices for the power industry by 50 percent and reduced investment in costlier sources of energy. With abundant new supplies of gas making it the cheapest option for new power generation, the largest wind-energy producer, NextEra Energy Inc., has shelved plans for new projects next year and Exelon Corp. called off plans to expand two nuclear plants. Michigan utility CMS Energy Corp. canceled a $2 billion coal plant after deciding it wasn't financially viable in a time of "low natural-gas prices linked to expand shale-gas supplies," according to a statement. Mirroring the gas market, wholesale electricity prices have dropped more than 50 percent on average since 2008, and about 10 percent during the fourth quarter of 2011, according to a Jan. 11 research report by Aneesh Prabhu, a New York analyst with Standard & Poor's. Prices in the west hub of PJM Interconnection LLC, the largest wholesale market in the United States, declined to about $39 per megawatt hour by December from $87 in the first quarter of 2008. Power producers' profits are deflated by cheap gas because electricity pricing historically has been linked to the gas market. As profit margins shrink from falling prices, more generators are expected to postpone or abandon coal, nuclear and wind projects, decisions that may slow the shift to cleaner forms of energy and shape the industry for decades to come, said Mark Pruitt, an industry consultant in Chicago. [more]

Cumberland Valley School District panel to discuss school overcrowding
Ed Komenda, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Tuesday, January 17, 2012

The Cumberland Valley School District is looking at redistricting for the 2012-13 school year in response to overcrowding predictions at three elementary schools. The district has formed a committee in response to a recent enrollment and demographic report that projected overcrowding at Middlesex, Monroe and Silver Spring elementary schools. The report by Brad Furey Consulting looked at trends within the district’s population, including enrollment projections, housing developments and census data. The three-member committee will meet 7 p.m. Friday at Eagle View Middle School cafeteria to discuss what they would recommend to the school board. Districts officials said no decisions have been made. If the board decides on an action, the administration will meet with parents to discuss how it will be carried out. [more]

Corbett aide who edited journal resigns
Angela Couloumbis, Philadelphia Inquirer
Wednesday, January 18, 2012

HARRISBURG - A high-level Corbett administration adviser resigned his $104,470 position Tuesday after questions were raised about his outside role as editor of a conservative faith-based journal. Along with disclosing welfare adviser Robert W. Patterson's departure, the administration swiftly distanced itself from the views expressed in the journal he edits. Patterson was hired in October by Welfare Secretary Gary Alexander as a special assistant to help set policy for services provided to millions of Pennsylvanians through the Department of Public Welfare (DPW). Last week, The Inquirer began asking about Patterson's side job as editor of The Family in America, published by an Illinois-based research center that advocates for the "natural human family . . . established by the Creator." In the journal, Patterson has weighed in on everything from what he called "misguided" programs that grew out of the 1960s War on Poverty - programs now administered by DPW - to what he described as a woman's ideal role in society: married and at home raising children. For instance, he wrote about research that he said showed that if women wanted to find "Mr. Right," they should shun birth control pills; and if they wanted to improve their mood, they should not insist that their men wear condoms lest they miss out on beneficial chemicals found in semen. [more]

Harrisburg City Council members call for renegotiating union contracts
Joe Elias, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Tuesday, January 17, 2012

While they heard and suggested ideas on how to cut money from the budget, many Harrisburg City Council members said the real savings will come from renegotiating the contracts with city unions. With Harrisburg operating with more than $300 million in debt tied to a trash incinerator renovation project, council members said Tuesday night during a finance committee meeting that things such as paid holidays, sick days and personal days will have to examined. One policy calls for employees called in to work on a holiday to be paid triple overtime. Ernie Hoch, director of public works, said that policy amounts to about $70 an hour for employees called to work on holidays. “That’s ridiculous,” Councilwoman Susan Brown-Wilson said. [more]

Pa. Sen. Jake Corman chokes up as he honors Joe Paterno on Senate floor
Jan Murphy, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Tuesday, January 17, 2012

High-ranking Centre County Republican state Sen. Jake Corman choked up with emotion as he hailed the contributions that former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno made to the university and the State College area. Corman, the appropriations committee chairman and Penn State alumnus, spoke for nearly a half-hour at the end of Tuesday’s Senate session, about the 85-year-old Paterno, whose storied coaching career ended abruptly on Nov. 9. Corman spoke of the university and community’s growth during Paterno’s tenure and how the coach remained true to the ideal that academics came before athletics. “I don’t know where the story will end but I know that when you measure someone in their life’s work. You got to measure the entire product. When you look at the life of Joe Paterno and what he’s meant, the biggest compliment I could say my community where I live, my alma mater where I went to school, the commonwealth which I raised my family is a better place,” he said, stopping briefly as he tried to compose himself. “It’s a better place because Joe Paterno chose to live here.” [more]

January 17, 2012

Natural gas surplus and weather drive prices down to 2-year low
Asjylyn Loder, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

A natural gas surplus and warmer-than-normal weather have pushed the price of the heating fuel to the lowest level in more than two years. Natural gas plunged 13 percent last week on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the biggest decline since August 2009, after forecasts showed above-average temperatures through January. Stockpiles in the week ended Jan. 6 stood at 3.377 trillion cubic feet, 17 percent above the five-year average, the U.S. Energy Department reported on Wednesday. Hedge funds and other large speculators switched from bets that futures will rise to a bearish, or "short," position in the week ended Jan. 10, according to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's Commitments of Traders report on Friday."The funds that got short are feeling good right now," Kyle Cooper, director of research for IAF Advisors in Houston, said. "As long as it stays this warm, prices have to go lower. With this type of weather, the storage surplus becomes catastrophic."Supplies may reach a seasonal record of 2.4 trillion cubic feet in March, which is when heating demand usually ends and producers begin piping more gas into storage, Mr. Cooper said. Unless production falls or cold weather bolsters demand, prices will drop to $2.40 per million Btu, and perhaps below $2, as gas overflows storage caverns and clogs pipelines, he said.[more]

York County businessman announces bid for state Sen. Jeffrey Piccola's Senate seat
Joe Elias, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Monday, January 16, 2012

YORK — Springettsbury Township businessman Steve Johnson announced his candidacy Monday for the Republican nomination for the 15th Senate District. Johnson, president of Homechek Inc., was a candidate for lieutenant governor in 2010. This month, York County Clerk of Courts Don O’Shell announced he was running for the GOP nomination. Last month, John J. McNally III of Lower Paxton Township, until recently the Dauphin County Republican Party chairman, announced he would enter the contest. The district, held by Sen. Jeffrey Piccola, R-Dauphin County, consists of most of the southern half of Dauphin County, a large swath of northern York County, and single townships in Adams and Lancaster counties, under the newly created state redistricting plan. The city of Harrisburg and much of central Dauphin County, including Susquehanna Township, will be moved into the Lebanon County-anchored 48th District.

Agreement on permit saves 700 miner jobs
Tracie Mauriello, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette a
Tuesday, January 17, 2012

WASHINGTON -- The jobs of 700 Greene County miners are safe -- for another five years, at least -- after state and federal officials sorted our their differences over the environmental impact of constructing a new air shaft. A five-year permit renewal for Cumberland Mine in Whiteley has been approved after months of negotiation between the state Department of Environmental Protection and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "I'm thrilled," said U.S. Rep. Mark Critz, D-Johnstown, who intervened to help end permitting delays. "The mine is critically important to the economy of Greene County, to 700 [United Mine Workers of America] employees and their families, and to our nation's continued pursuit of energy independence." At issue was a request by operator Alpha Natural Resources to add a new air shaft. According to Mr. Critz's office, the EPA was concerned about how construction of the shaft would affect water quality. Mr. Critz became involved when mine owners and employees told him jobs were in danger because the air shaft was crucial to continuing operations. After his intervention, the EPA signed off on the construction and re-issued the operating permit with a new stipulation that limits chloride emissions. [more]

Pennsylvania bets that $2 Powerball will pay off for aid to seniors
Charles Thompson, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Saturday, January 14, 2012

Get ready for the $2 Powerball ticket: a slightly better chance at an outlandish fortune for twice the cost! That’s not exactly how the Pennsylvania Lottery will pitch it. But the price for Powerball tickets rises to $2 beginning Sunday. Tickets for tonight’s drawing — which has a $66 million jackpot — will be the last sold for a buck. State officials are betting that slightly improved odds and the promise of bigger jackpots will pay off in more money for prescription drug programs and services aiding senior citizens. They might be right, according to players and vendors in Harrisburg on Friday. Cal Johnson, who sells tickets at Strawberry Square, said he doesn’t think $2 Powerball tickets will deter many players. “Nobody’s going to quit [playing altogether] because of it,” Johnson said. He said players might be attracted by the increase in the starting jackpot from $20 million to $40 million. He said some players might switch over to Mega Millions, for which tickets will remain $1. [more]

Will handout to fracking lobby top Pennsylvania's legislative agenda?
Beth Boyle, Philadelphia Inquirer
Monday, January 16, 2012

Pennsylvania's legislature reconvenes tomorrow — and activists are hoping that SB1100/HB1950 won't be at the top of their to-do list. The legislation, which would allow drilling up to within 500 feet of homes, schools and hospitals, and as little as 300 feet of waterways and wetlands, is likely to come up soon. Which is why Protecting Our Waters, Campaign for Clean Water and assorted other environmental groups will be gathering on the stairs of the Capitol building tomorrow, Jan. 17, at 11 a.m., to remind our well-rested legislature that they find the terms of to be unacceptable. The bills would dictate “impact fees,” which activists say aren't nearly enough. They would start at $50,000 for the first year, $40,000 for the second, $30,000 for the third, and then the impact fee will hold steady at $20,000 for the next six years, until the price drops again. For the 11th and 12th years of business, natural gas drillers will owe the state just $10,000. Iris Marie Bloom, executive director of Protecting Our Waters, says the most "insidious and awful" aspect of the bill is buried withing the text. “[SB1100/HB1950] takes away the ability of local government to limit, regulate, or ban gas drilling within the district. Already passed regulations, even those that don’t ban or limit drilling, will be made null and void, and drillers can impose their regulations. This is an attack on democracy, as well as our health and the environment.” Even the best-case scenarios of fracking pose risks for a community (ask the people of Dimock, but Bloom worries that this will take any choice out of the debate.

Camp Hill School District to seek exceptions to go over 1.7 percent tax increase allowed by state
Monica Van Dobeneck, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Monday, January 16, 2012

The Camp Hill School Board passed a preliminary 2012-13 budget Monday in case the board has to raise taxes above the index allowed by the state this year, but it is so early in the budgeting season that the figures are nebulous, according to school officials. “We don’t have a lot of information,” board president Dan Alleman said. The Camp Hill index this year is 1.7 percent. Districts wishing to raise taxes above the index must apply for special exceptions or get voter approval. Camp Hill’s $17.5 million preliminary budget shows a 1.9 percent increase, but also a $411,000 shortfall. This year’s tax rate is 12.96 mills. A 1.9 percent increase would increase taxes on a $100,000 home by $25. Still unknown are the amount of money the district will receive from the state and the increase in health costs. Most importantly, the district is in the midst of negotiating a new teachers’ contract so cannot accurately predict next year’s salaries. Alleman said he could not say much about negotiations, except that they will be “long and difficult.” Business manager Christine Hakes said pension costs are expected to increase by $319,000 this year, with the state picking up half. The board will start taking a closer look at the budget in March and April to prepare for final adoption in June, she said.

Stray dog policy remains in effect for Harrisburg
Donald Gilliland, Harrisburg Patriot-News
Monday, January 16, 2012

Harrisburg’s shoot-’em, adopt-’em or drop-’em policy for stray dogs has remained in effect, despite statements to the contrary from the mayor and other city officials. Sources close to the city say police officers on the midnight shift last Thursday reportedly left a pitbull puppy in a cardboard box under a pavilion in Sunshine Park, behind the Capital Area Transit bus facility at Cameron and Herr streets. “This is unbelievable,” said Tom Hickey, a member of the governor’s Dog Law Advisory Board. “I was assured by the mayor — with the police chief in the room — that they would not abandon a dog.” That message was never conveyed to rank and file officers, according to sources close to the city. Since The Patriot-News exposed the policy on Jan. 4, there has been no order of retraction. In fact, sources say officers were told Monday morning the memo is still in force. The puppy that police left in Sunshine Park was rescued the following day when someone called it in to the Central Pennsylvania Animal Alliance. [more]