By Tim Lambert | Editor-in-chief
“This is a massive public health crisis, the likes of which we have never seen. An entire generation of Americans rendered captive. We are playing with fire. The absolute bare minimum we can do is to get these things out of our schools. Let children have their hearts and minds back for at least six hours a day while they are in school.” — Rep. Mandy Steele (D-Allegheny), who pitched a cell phone ban in Pennsylvania schools as a way to free children from the “captive” nature of the devices.
A good Tuesday morning to you. We are now just two weeks away from Election Day and you have one week left to apply for a mail-in ballot. I’m already starting to think about stale Election Night pizza. In fact, I can almost smell it. If you work or have worked as journalist, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
On this day in 1972, the country’s 37th president visited Philadelphia to sign a revenue sharing program into law. President Richard M. Nixon did so in front of Independence Hall, just ahead of the election. He would go on to defeat Democrat George McGovern.
As always, have a great day. Thanks for starting it off with us and reading, sharing and supporting our work.. — Tim
The Pennsylvania Capitol on Oct. 7, 2026. (Photo by Peter Hall/Pennsylvania Capital-Star)
By Whitney Downard
Public and private schools across the commonwealth could soon be required to draft universal bell-to-bell cellphone bans for students. The state House passed a measure, with a handful of exceptions for learning and medical needs.
The proposal, Senate Bill 1014, mirrors a House version that has sat in a Senate committee since June.
The backing for a cellphone ban spans party differences and has the support of Gov. Josh Shapiro, but lawmakers haven’t finalized any proposal.
Following weeks of public outcry, the House also moved a bill that would limit how law enforcement can use Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs), which track and gather information for law enforcement agencies.
The state’s Whole Home Repairs program helped residents fix up older homes. (Photo by Katie Blackley/90.5 WESA)
Pennsylvania’s Whole Home Repairs program was a success — and a national model. What happened to it?
By Kate Giammarise and Tom Riese of WESA
The Whole Home Repairs program was funded with $125 million in federal Covid-relief funds as part of the state’s 2022-23 budget. It launched with great fanfare and enthusiastic support from Republicans and Democrats – a rare bipartisan consensus in Harrisburg.
And although not every county participated in the program, state statistics show it helped more than 4,000 Pennsylvania homeowners make major improvements to their residences.
In Allegheny County, more than 250 low-income homeowners fixed up their properties. (That number will grow slightly even without new funding, since a small number of projects are still in progress.) Thomas said the program addressed the needs not just of homeowners but of the surrounding community as well.
“We have a housing shortage in this county, in this country,” he said. “We have some of the oldest housing stock in Allegheny County and in Pittsburgh. And it’s far cheaper to repair a home than to build new. It’s far more reliable to fix what we have as opposed to trying to recreate it from scratch.”
Gov. Josh Shapiro has signaled openness to the Trump-backed education tax credit program. (Photo by Kriston Jae Bethel/Votebeat)
By Carly Sitrin of Chalkbeat
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has said he’s “very open” to opting his state into the Trump-backed federal scholarship tax credit program. But he may wait until after the midterm elections to make his official decision.
In an October gubernatorial debate appearance, Shapiro said while other governors have “shut the door on it,” he’s not one of them. He said his administration is “continuing to digest” the recently released rules governing the program.
Advocates in support of the program are optimistic his debate answer signals he’ll follow New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s lead. Governors have until January 1, 2027 to opt in to the program. Currently 31 states, most led by Republicans, have done so.
Among Shapiro’s fellow Democratic governors, only Hochul and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis have voluntarily signed on. Democratic governors who have not yet announced their decisions are under increasing pressure from both sides.
SCI Somerset on Wednesday, June 2, 2021. (Photo by Commonwealth Media Services)
COMMENTARY
By Jaquelyn Jahn of The Conversation
When outdoor temperatures spike to 103 degrees Fahrenheit (39 degrees Celsius), or drop to -9 F (-23 C), like they did across Pennsylvania last year, people locked up in jails and prisons cannot simply turn on the air conditioning or find a public warming center.
For several years, people in custody, advocates and media have sounded the alarm about the dangers posed by extreme temperatures in Pennsylvania’s state prisons.
Conditions inside Pennsylvania’s prisons have been described as a sauna during a summer heat wave and bitterly cold in the winter, especially when heating systems have malfunctioned.
My colleagues and I put numbers to these warnings in a recent study. We found that extreme hot and cold temperatures were associated with higher rates of deaths, infirmary admissions and transfers to external medical facilities among imprisoned people in Pennsylvania over the past 20 years.
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TODAY IN THE CAPITAL-STAR
Ukrainians, Sudanese with temporary legal status will keep protections: Immigrants living in the United States with humanitarian status from Ukraine and Sudan will retain their deportation protections and work authorizations for now, the Department of Homeland Security said.
Bear killings skyrocket as garbage, birdfeeders draw them into conflict: From California to Connecticut, desperate bears have raided garbage cans, broken into homes and cars and pulled down birdfeeders. Wildlife officers in many states have received a record number of calls, working overtime through the summer to deter bears, put out traps and euthanize animals who pose persistent problems.
ICYMI
Emails reveal police were more involved in Montour County ICE raid: While questions remain over how a Sept. 2 Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid in Montour County unfolded, emails between ICE and a participating police department shed more light on what happened. Along with further interviews with law enforcement, the emails obtained through public records requests also show police chiefs downplayed the scope of the raid and their role in it.
Skill games saga ends with outlawed machines removed … for now: Pennsylvania’s skill game industry grew for more than a decade in a legal gray area where courts said the commonwealth’s gambling laws couldn’t touch them. Now, those machines sit dark, awaiting transfer to storage and an uncertain fate, after state lawmakers were unable to reach a compromise to tax and regulate the industry.
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