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We have an urgent call to action. We have just 4 days left in our Spring Member Drive, and we're still $14,000 short of our $40,000 goal. Please step up and make a generous gift today in support of this vital work.
You still have time to get your gift DOUBLED, but this special match offer expires at midnight Saturday. Don't wait: Make a gift now.
You can also give via Paypal or Venmo, or send a check to Spotlight PA, 228 Walnut St., #11728, Harrisburg, PA 17108-1728.
We're down to the wire and need your help. Thank you!
Christopher Baxter
Editor in Chief, Spotlight PA |
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| Calendar block, J6 sentencing, dealbreakers, record attrition, tough-on-crime, prison studies, and Philadelphia's animal house. Thanks for checking in. |
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Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro won't share his calendar and with it the details about who he meets behind the scenes and what they discuss. Experts say that while that level of secrecy is allowed, it isn't necessary.
The decision marks a break from his predecessor, Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, and is the latest transparency measure rollback by the new administration.
Read Spotlight PA's full report: Shapiro won't share daily calendar, a departure from previous Pa. governor's transparency.
THE CONTEXT: Pennsylvania's Office of Open Records, an independent state agency that settles Right-to-Know Law disputes, recently ruled in Shapiro's favor and found he does not need to share details about his schedule.
But there's also nothing precluding Shapiro from sharing the information voluntarily, something Wolf did in detail over his eight years in office.
Full calendars offer a window into officials' work, priorities, and allies. They typically show which staffers, lawmakers, and nongovernment figures meet with the governor, when, and — to varying degrees — why.
Read more: Gov. Shapiro loosens gift ban for top Pa. officials. |
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THIS IS IT! We've got just **4 more days** and we still need to raise $14,000. It's a tall order, but we've seen the generosity of our readers in ensuring this vital work can continue. Now we need you. Don't miss this chance for your support to go twice as far by getting your gift DOUBLED.
Thank you to the 402 people who have given so far, including Robert L., who said, "A free and unbiased press is essential to a functioning democracy." Join Robert & make a tax-deductible gift now » |
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NOTABLE / QUOTABLE
"I expected to die, and initially I was trying to decide — do I hang up the phone and call my wife? Do I make a video?"
—Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, survivor of the massacre at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue, testifying during day one of the gunman's trial on Tuesday
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» ELDER LAW: Join us Thursday, June 1 at 6 p.m. ET via Zoom for a free Q&A on Pennsylvania's elder protection laws and how they could be improved. Register here and submit questions to events@spotlightpa.org.
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Can you spot the fawn in this photo from Doug W. in Monroeville? Send us your photos by email, use #PAGems on IG, or tag @spotlightpennsylvania. |
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 27 MONTHS: A restaurant owner in Kane, McKean County, was sentenced Tuesday to 27 months in prison for Jan. 6 rioting. The judge who sentenced Pauline Bauer (seen here on body cam footage) said letters of support from Bauer's community included this one from the Hamilton Township Board of Supervisors. Bauer threatened former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) with hanging.
 DEBT DEAL: U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (R., Pa.) was out in front as GOP hardliners in D.C. spent Tuesday drumming up opposition to a debt ceiling deal between President Biden and GOP leaders that experts say would avert economic disaster. The compromise bill needs to pass both chambers by Monday. Perry and his Freedom Caucus may not have the votes to stop it. Progressives have sticking points of their own.
 TEACHER TURNOVER: A Penn State study says teachers are leaving Pennsylvania classrooms at a record rate, with 7.7% of the workforce, or 9,587 teachers, having left between 2021-22 and 2022-23, The Inquirer (paywall) reports. Many were teachers of color or charter school instructors. Gov. Shapiro wants to implement a tax credit to grow the ranks, but it's drawn a rare lukewarm response in the Capitol.
 STOP AND FRISK: The likely next mayor of Philadelphia supports stop and frisk, a controversial police tactic that drew a class-action lawsuit against the city. Cherelle Parker, winner of the pivotal May primary, has been credited with providing a blueprint for tough-on-crime Democrats. Parker says she supports the "constitutional" use of stop and frisk, while her GOP opponent says there's no such thing, per WHYY.
 STUDENT AID: For decades, the U.S. government barred incarcerated people from accessing federal Pell Grants to attend college. That changes in July, and some of the roughly 40,000 people in Pennsylvania state prisons will be newly eligible. But PublicSource reports their options could be limited, while a trial run revealed technological hurdles. Others may not know the option even exists. |
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DEBT PAYMENTS: Pennsylvania's capital city has paid off a series of debts that go back more than a decade. According to WITF, Harrisburg has a wishlist of projects it hopes to pursue with the money that will be freed up, including infrastructure initiatives and police hires.
SOUSA SIGHTING: Fresh off an ignominious Pittsburgh departure, chef Kevin Sousa has reemerged in New Mexico. Taos News reports Sousa is joining the team at The Stakeout and hosting a BBQ on June 4.
DIFFICULT MOVE: How do you move 70 taxidermied animals out of a South Philly home? The Inquirer (paywall) reports with a crane and lots of patience. Here's video of a big brown bear flying high over the neighborhood.
GPA TWINS: Jose and Antonio Centenera are fraternal twins and Trinity High (Camp Hill, Cumberland County) grads who were separated by two minutes at birth and now only hundredths of a GPA point, WHTM reports.
BUG OUT: The Philadelphia Insectarium and Butterfly Pavilion — subject of a documentary on the $50,000 heist there in 2018 — has closed and been evicted by the sheriff. Many of its bugs are headed to Bucks County. |
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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 6 p.m. on issue date will be counted. G T I E E N X
Yesterday's answer: Synergistic
Congrats to our daily winners: Becky C., Stacy S., Barbara F., Eric F., Vicki U., Chuck M., Susan D., Kimberly D., Elaine C., Don H., Craig W., Bob C., Jon W., Kim C., Susan N.-Z., Dennis M., James and Anne B., John P., Tom M., William Z., Dan A., Irene R., and Lynne E. |
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