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A daily newsletter by  |
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| Today: In progress, follow-up questions, misinformation, presidential polling, financial edge, and Pennsylvania snow on a 90-degree day? |
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A $3 million grant program to bring free menstrual products to Pennsylvania students was approved with this year's budget, but details including which districts are eligible and how schools can apply are still to come. Casey Smith, a spokesperson for the state Department of Education, said guidelines will be established in the coming weeks.
Advocates say the allocation is not enough to provide all menstruating students with the supplies they need, but it’s a start.
“We all know that menstrual products are extremely expensive,” said Lynette Medley, co-chief executive officer and founder of The SPOT Period, a “menstrual hub” in Philadelphia. “It’s going to be stretched to the limit.”
Read Spotlight PA's full report: Free period products coming to some Pa. schools thanks to $3M budget commitment. |
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| NOTABLE / QUOTABLE
“We’re fully committed to collaborating with the [Federal Transit Administration] to continue addressing these issues."
—Septa CEO Leslie Richards on a new federal report ordering the Philly transit system to address a "deteriorating safety record" |
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Berks County residents are extremely frustrated with the diminished capacity of the local newspaper and they are concerned about a lack of access to trustworthy information in their community, according to a groundbreaking study by Spotlight PA.
In response to the findings, Spotlight PA is planning to launch a new regional reporting bureau in Berks County to be supported primarily by people living and working in the region. Read the full story, and then support the effort »
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ROCKY WATERS: Join us Thursday, July 18 from 6-7 p.m. ET on Zoom for a live panel on Pennsylvania’s private water industry, how it is regulated, and how communities are affected when service is subpar. Register for the event here and submit your questions to events@spotlightpa.org. |
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| Kennerdell, Venango County, and the Allegheny River, as seen from the Dennison Point Overlook by @john_mccullough_photography. Send us your photos by email, use #PAGems on IG, or tag us @spotlightpennsylvania. |
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 OPEN INQUIRY: The investigation into Saturday's Trump rally shooting in Butler County continues, with the AP reporting the shooter, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, first came to law enforcement’s attention when rally-goers noticed him acting suspiciously and pacing near security devices used to locate metallic objects at the event. A search began but failed to locate him before shots were fired. • Plum man in coma after being shot at rally, via TribLIVE. • Praise and threats in sleepy Butler, via The Inquirer (paywall).  'FORMER STAFFER': An aide to state Rep. Heather Boyd (D., Delaware) was fired after writing " A for effort" on Facebook following Saturday's attempted assassination of former President Trump. The now-fired aide, Jess Branas, told Daily Times (paywall) the post was actually a reference to her bad home-cooking. Elsewhere in the county, a local fire chief resigned after posting: “A little to the right next time please.” • Dem councilor's tweets criticized by GOP colleague, via WTAE.  SIGNAL BOOSTERS: The AP examined the "cloudburst of speculation and conjecture" that followed Saturday's shooting in an effort to separate fact from fiction. The wire service says claims of an inside job or false flag are unsubstantiated and were heavily boosted by bots: a full 45% of the accounts using hashtags like #fakeassassination and #stagedshooting were inauthentic, a tech firm's analysis found.  NEW POLLING: Polling conducted before Saturday's shooting but after last month's debate had President Joe Biden trailing Trump 48 to 45 percent among likely voters in Pennsylvania, a state it would be nearly impossible for Biden to win re-election without, the New York Times (paywall) notes. Vice President Kamala Harris, eyed as a possible successor should Biden leave the race, trails Trump by a single point here.  PA-10 MONEY: Democrat Janelle Stelson raised $1.33 million for her campaign between April and June, more than twice the amount raised by the GOP incumbent she's working to unseat: U.S. Rep. Scott Perry. Capital-Star reports: Stelson, a former WGAL-TV anchor, " now holds a cash on hand advantage over Perry, a change from the previous campaign finance report in April" as Democrats look to flip the seat. |
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CAPITOL ACCESS: How accessible is the state Capitol? The answer is not very. LNP (paywall) explains, via sister site WITF, "how visitors with disabilities are left to navigate a building largely frozen in 1906." Christine Tartaglione, the only state legislator to use a wheelchair, said she struggles too.
CAPITOL OVERHAUL: PennLive's Jan Murphy reports accessibility-minded renovations in the state Capitol's East Wing are set to begin with a spiral staircase being replaced by a group elevator.
SUMMER SNOW: It was hot enough to snow in Philly on Sunday. The National Weather Service explains, via Patch, that it counted small hail from thunderstorms as a trace of snow in official reports.
TURNPIKE SCAM: If you got a text (like this) saying you owe for unpaid turnpike tolls, the Turnpike Commission says it's a scam, the goal being to trick you into to sharing personal financial information to fix it.
IN THE WATER: James “Jim” Zueger of Westmoreland County has spent 10 years pulling trash out of bodies of water in Pennsylvania, everything from beverage cans and bottles to toilets, USA Today Network reports. |
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Unscramble and send your answer to scrambler@spotlightpa.org. We'll shout out winners here, and one each week will get some Spotlight PA swag. Answers submitted by 5:30 p.m. on issue date will be counted. Please include your first name and last initial.
N N M O A T L R E A
Yesterday's answer: Canoodle
Congrats to our daily winners: Ted W., Jane R., Stacy S., Vicki U., Karen W., Craig E., Jon W., Bob C., Barbara F., Kimberly D., Brandie K., Daniel M., Jody A., Don H., Richard A., Eric F., Connie A. O., Timothy A., Beth H., Elaine C., Perry H., Sherri A., Susan N.-Z., Kim C., Ellen G., Beth T., Annette I., William Z., Rick L., Stanley J., William S., Tom M., Jan C., and Jeffrey F.
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