Pennsylvania
‘Cautiously optimistic:’ Pa. lawmakers hope to pass state budget soon
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WPVI) — A lot of people and agencies — from school districts to food banks — are waiting with bated breath for the Pennsylvania state budget to pass. Lawmakers have been at an impasse for months.
Sources in Harrisburg tell Action News a lot of progress was made Tuesday night, and there is a deal in place.
Both chambers held caucus to discuss the proposed $50 billion spending plan. Two major pieces of the budget were voted out of the Pennsylvania State Senate Appropriations Committee around 9 p.m.
The Senate voted to reconvene on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. The Pennsylvania House is also scheduled to be in session on Wednesday morning at 9:30 a.m. to begin an all-day effort in voting on the budget bills.
Senator Sharif Street, who represents North Philadelphia, spoke with Action News, saying, “This proposed budget increases funding in public education and violence prevention programs. I am cautiously optimistic we will get this budget done.”
That budget is now four months overdue, threatening resources among counties, social services, and school districts.
In Bucks County, the Morrisville School District announced last week it would have to temporarily shut down if it didn’t receive state funding by mid-January.
And in Philadelphia, the Share Food Program has missed out on about $3.5 million it normally would’ve received from the state while lawmakers have tried to work out a budget deal. It’s money executive director George Matysik says he could really use as the nonprofit is seeing a massively increased need during the government shutdown.
“So over the course of the last year or so, the Share Food Program has seen a total cut of about $8.5 million to our organization, at a time when we’ve been seeing an increased need, but no need like what we’ve seen over the course of the last few weeks, where we have had a 12 fold increase in new registrants over the last two weeks,” Matysik said.
He says Governor Josh Shapiro recently released funding for food banks across the state, allocating about $750,000 for the Share Food Program.
“It certainly doesn’t pick up the amount of need that we’re seeing at the federal level, but it was a huge help for us,” Matysik said.
He’s hoping that lawmakers will get a budget passed on Wednesday.
“There is some relief in this moment, but I will tell you for organizations like ours and for the folks we serve, we have been going through collective whiplash over the course of the last few weeks while all of these programs have been started and stopped multiple times,” said Matysik. “So for many families that we serve that are on very tight budgets, this means a lot for them.”
Likely absent from that budget will be any funding for SEPTA. That was a point of contention among lawmakers over the summer, but eventually, Democratic lawmakers who were pushing for it accepted that it was not going to happen this year. Instead, Governor Shapiro’s administration approved the use of capital assistance funds to cover SEPTA’s operating expenses for the next two years.
A SEPTA spokesperson tells Action News the agency hasn’t received word that anything has changed on the funding front, with news of a potential deal on the table.
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Pennsylvania
MSU football locks in official visit with underrated CB prospect from Pennsylvania
Michigan State football has locked in an official visit with an intriguing defensive back prospect from Pennsylvania.
Trey Hopkins of Wyndmoor, Pa. announced on Saturday that he’s scheduled an official visit to Michigan State for late May. According to a social media post from Hopkins, he will visit Michigan State on May 29.
Hopkins is currently unranked and unrated on 247Sports. He is listed at 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, and plays for La Salle College. His position is listed as cornerback.
Michigan State extended Hopkins an offer in late February, and is one of nearly 20 schools to offer him, according to 247Sports. Other than his offer from the Spartans, Hopkins has received offers from Penn State, Maryland, UCLA, Virginia Tech, Maryland, Wake Forest, USF, Temple, James Madison, Liberty, Miami (OH) and some other group of five or FCS programs.
Michigan State will be the first of three currently scheduled official visits for Hopkins. According to 247Sports, he will also take official visits to Virginia Tech (June 5) and Penn State (June 11).
Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
Pennsylvania
Small plane makes emergency landing on interstate in Pennsylvania
A small airplane made an emergency landing on Interstate 78 in Allentown, Pennsylvania on Saturday morning, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The Rockwell Commander landed at around 9:20 a.m. after reporting engine issues, the FAA said.
The two people onboard were not injured, according to Pennsylvania State Police.
Dashcam video of the incident circulating on social media shows the plane flying low overhead before landing on the interstate and slowing down.
Emily Rivera, who posted the video, was traveling from Harrisburg to Lehigh Valley when she saw the plane make the landing.
“Honestly I was in disbelief because I never expected a plane to land in front of me!” Rivera said, adding that she was impressed with how the pilot landed.
Police said to expect delays in the area and that all traffic eastbound is being detoured onto exit 40. More information will be released later, police said.
The FAA is investigating the incident.
Pennsylvania
PENNSYLVANIA DEP TO HOLD PUBLIC HEARING ON HOMER CITY GAS LINE PROJECT
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has announced a public hearing on a proposed natural gas pipeline project connected with the Homer City Redevelopment site.
The hearing will focus on the proposed National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit that is part of the Homer City Pipeline project. The plan is to install close to six miles of 30-inch diameter natural gas pipeline from an interconnect facility in Burrell Township to the proposed Homer City Redevelopment site in Center township. The line will run through parts of Burrell, Blacklick and Center Townships.
The hearing will be held May 12th at 5:00 PM at the Indiana Theater.
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