☕  How ya doin’, Wednesday.

🗞️  The PoliticsPA Playbook is compiled by Steve Ulrich. To read in your browser, click here. Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe for free.

PA Weather
☔ Zelienople | PM Rain, 49
🌂 Renovo | Mostly Cloudy, PM Rain, 44
☁️ Womelsdorf | Increasing Clouds, 52

PA Sports
🏒 Flyers (26-26-7) | Pittsburgh 6-1 | Thu vs. Pittsburgh
🏒 Penguins (23-28-9) | Philadelphia 1-6 | Thu vs. Philadelphia
🏀 Sixers (20-37) | Wed vs. New York
⚽ Union (1-0) | Sat vs. Cincinnati

🗓️ What’s Happening Today. The House Appropriations Committee holds hearings with the Office of the Attorney General and the Department of Agriculture. The Senate Appropriations Committee will hear from the Department of Education.

🎂 Happy Birthday. Cake and candles for Sen. Gene Yaw.

📱 Social Media. Join us on Twitter and Bluesky at @PoliticsPA. You can also find us on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Top Story

1. Released Federal Funds For Pennsylvania Doesn’t Include Transportation Projects

“The release of $2.1 billion in frozen federal funds that Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro engineered from the White House does not include money for three major transportation projects.

Shapiro’s office clarified Tuesday the release does not include more than $700 million the state had been awarded under former President Joe Biden to expand passenger rail service, build electric charging stations and replace the Interstate 83 bridge near Harrisburg.” (Pittsburgh Union Progress)

Elsewhere

Nippon Steel to Use U.S. Steel Merger Agreement As Base For US Gov’t Talks, President Says. “Nippon Steel plans to use its current merger agreement to acquire U.S. Steel as a starting point for talks with the U.S. government, President Tadashi Imai said on Tuesday, as it aims to revive the deal.” (Reuters)

Trump Says The Eagles Will Be Invited to the White House. “I thought it was a great performance by them — they’ll be extended that invitation,” Trump told reporters from the Oval Office Tuesday.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Mastriano Is Considering Another Run For Pennsylvania Governor in 2026. “State Sen. Doug Mastriano is considering another run for Pennsylvania governor in 2026, setting up a potential rematch with Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, who beat Mastriano by nearly 15 percentage points in the last election.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

New Poll Including 7th District Raises Midterm Concerns For GOP. “According to the survey by Fabrizio Ward, which was commissioned by Elon Musk’s Building America’s Future, 45% of those surveyed said they would be more likely to vote for a Democrat for Congress versus 41% for a Republican. When it comes to President Donald Trump, 47% approved of the job he is doing versus 49% who disapproved.” (Armchair Lehigh Valley)

State

2. With 2024 Election in the History Books, PA Lawmakers Look For Ways to Improve Voting

“The 2024 presidential election passed into history less than four months ago without any major issues, but Pennsylvania lawmakers are asking what the state’s top election officials are doing to make sure the next one goes off smoothly.

Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt and his deputies worked to tout the Department of State’s work in other areas, including making progress in speeding up services and other achievements during a House budget hearing Tuesday.” (Penn Capital-Star)

Elsewhere

Lawmakers Question PA Education Head on Impact of Potential Federal Funding Cuts. “The loss of federal funding for Pennsylvania’s public schools would be “nothing short of catastrophic,” acting Education Secretary Carrie Rowe told state House lawmakers Monday.” (Penn Capital-Star)

PA Lawmaker Pitches Bill to Fix ‘Broken’ Cyberschool Funding System. “Chester County Democratic Rep. Paul Friel said in a co-sponsorship memo Friday that DeFoor’s four-year audit showed that just five cyber charter schools accumulated more than $618 million in fund balances.” (PennLive)

DLCC Adds PA State Supreme Court Race to Target Map. “The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) has added the Pennsylvania Supreme Court retention contests to its 2025-26 target map.” (PoliticsPA)

Clergy Abuse Survivor Battles Time and Deadlocked PA Lawmakers as He Seeks Justice. “Stephen Adams says a Catholic priest sexually assaulted him more than 60 years ago, and he has thought about it every day since.” (Spotlight PA)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Penn State To Consider Closing Some Commonwealth Campuses

“Penn State president Neeli Bendapudi announced today that she has created a working group to bring her a final recommendation on the future composition of the Commonwealth Campus ecosystem.

“We must acknowledge the realities before us. We cannot continue with business as usual. The challenges we face — declining enrollments, demographic shifts and financial pressures — are not unique to Penn State, but they require us to make difficult choices. Across higher education, institutions are grappling with similar headwinds, and we have reached a moment where doing nothing is no longer an option.”” (PoliticsPA)

• Possible Closures Cause Fear, Worry at NEPA Penn State Campuses. (WVIA)
• Penn State To Close Some Branch Campuses; New Kensington, Fayette, Greater Allegheny, Beaver At Risk. (Greensburg Tribune-Review)

Elsewhere

Philly Schools Will Continue to Allow Transgender Athletes to Participate in Sports That Match Their Gender Identity. “The move comes after the state’s interscholastic athletics governing body changed a key policy regarding transgender athletes.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Challenges Filed to Ballot Referendum Efforts to Get Pittsburgh to Divest From Israel. “For the second time in less than a year, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and City Controller Rachael Heisler have challenged efforts to get a question on the ballot in Pittsburgh seeking to change the city’s Home Rule Charter to align the city’s finances with its “moral standards” which would include divesting from Israel.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Campaign Finance Filings Raise New Questions About Link Between D.A. Krasner and Disgraced Democratic Ward Leader. “Campaign finance filings show Larry Krasner’s campaign made a $3,500 donation in 2021 to the Democratic Party’s 52nd Ward in Philadelphia, whose long-serving leader recently stepped down after revelations about his recent convictions of sexual abuse against a minor became a flashpoint in this year’s race for district attorney.” (Broad + Liberty)

Superintendent’s Report Endorses Closures and Consolidations for PPS Schools. “Controversial plans to close 14 Pittsburgh Public schools amid a districtwide overhaul were put on hold last fall while leadership assessed the feasibility. The resulting report largely stands by the proposals of the consultant hired to help the district realign its resources.” (Public Source)

Editorial

4. What’s On Your Mind

• Penn State Must Fulfill Its Land Grant Mission. (Greensburg Tribune-Review)
• Pennsylvania Public Schools Are Failing — And More Money Won’t Help. (David Hardy)
• A Bipartisan Chorus Emerges: Reform PA Cyber Charter Funding. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• If You Care About National Parks and Forests, Tell Congress to Stop Trump Now. (Douglas Austen)
• The Department of Education Threatens to Pull the Plug on Colleges. (Sonja B. Starr)
• Iceberg Ahead: Pennsylvania’s Looming Power Crisis. (Sen. Gene Yaw)

1 Thing

5. Store War! Sheetz Makes First Move on Philly Region

“If you wanted, for some ungodly reason, to grab a sandwich and a cup of coffee at Sheetz today, you’d need to make the trek all the way out to Morgantown. That’s where the Altoona-based convenience store chain has its closest location to Philadelphia.

But if Sheetz has its way, the store may soon open a location in Limerick, Montgomery County. And Sheetz isn’t just encroaching on Wawa’s territory — it wants to build a Sheetz right across the street from one of those mega Wawa locations. ” (Philly Magazine)

Thank you for starting your day with us.
And reading the PoliticsPA Playbook