GOP Governor candidates lay out ground rules for debates. How do Matt Cartwright and Brian Fitzpatrick figure in the battle for the U.S House?  Dominion Voting Systems wins appeal in election inquiry case. A four-day work week for state employees? Here is the Playbook.

PA Weather
Pittsburgh | Slight chance sprinkles, 61
Altoona | Mostly cloudy, 58
Scranton | Mostly sunny, 55
Philadelphia | Partly sunny, 63

PA Sports
76ers | d. Miami, 113-106; WED vs. LA Lakers
Flyers | today at Detroit
Penguins | today vs. Columbus
Villanova WBB | lost to Michigan, 64-49

News

GOP Candidates for Governor Agree on Set of Debate Criteria: The campaigns of Lou Barletta, Jake Corman, Bill McSwain and Dave White have agreed to a set of criteria that must be met for all four campaigns to attend any debate.

How Cartwright, Fitzpatrick Figure in the Battle for the House: Some might refer to them as unicorns. Matt Cartwright. Democrat. Lackawanna and Luzerne Counties. Brian Fitzpatrick, Republican, Bucks County. So how’d they do it? And perhaps, more importantly for 2022, can they do it again?

Reader Poll: Republicans Should Nominate Barnette for Senate: Conservative political commentator Kathy Barnette won the PoliticsPA readers poll for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate.

Democratic Senate Candidates Meet in Forum: For the first time this campaign season, four of the Democratic candidates for the nomination of their party for U.S. Senate met on the debate stage on Sunday.

PA Senate Race: ‘Super PAC signals Pennsylvania primary could get rough’: POLITICO reports that “a super PAC backing Pennsylvania Senate candidate Conor Lamb is warning prospective donors that he is trailing frontrunner John Fetterman by 30 percentage points in the Democratic primary — and that the public’s perception of his opponent’s ideology must change for Lamb to have a shot.”

• Post-Gazette: For GOP Senate candidate Jeff Bartos, front-runners for the job aren’t true Pennsylvanians
• PennLive: ‘Trump caucus’ to be held in Pa. before GOP primary — if the ex-president picks a favorite
• Post-Gazette: Conor Lamb pushes White House to extend pause in student loan repayments
• Post-Gazette: WPXI-TV to co-host live telecast of Democratic Senate primary debate

PA Governor Race: ‘Fact-checking Bill McSwain’s campaign ads and statements as he runs for Pennsylvania governor’: The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that “several claims McSwain has made in TV ads and speeches about his tenure as U.S. attorney warrant further explanation.”

‘Irwin campaign turns over candidacy petitions following forgery allegations; opponent Dickinson says he should withdraw’: The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that “Democratic congressional candidate Steve Irwin’s campaign turned over some of his petitions to the Allegheny County District Attorney’s office on Monday, following one of the circulators allegedly forging some signatures.”

‘Commission approves base pay increases for tipped workers in Pennsylvania’: PennLive reports that “a state regulatory commission Monday gave a green light to change how tipped workers in Pennsylvania are paid, handing Gov. Tom Wolf leverage in his efforts to raise the state’s minimum wage.”

‘Pennsylvania approves stronger charter school regulations’: The Associated Press reports that “a Pennsylvania regulatory board on Monday approved Gov. Tom Wolf’s proposal to subject charter schools to stronger ethics and accounting standards and to try to root out discriminatory admissions decisions, perhaps the biggest update to a quarter-century-old law stuck in the past because of political deadlock.”

‘Voting machine maker wins appeal in GOP election inquiry’: The Associated Press reports that “Dominion Voting Systems won an appeal in Pennsylvania’s highest court on Monday in a bid to ensure that any inspection of its voting machines as part of Republican lawmakers’ inquiry into Pennsylvania’s 2020 election be done by a laboratory that has specific credentials.”

‘Pa. Democrat proposes study of four day work week for state employees’: The Pennsylvania Capital-Star reports that “a progressive Philadelphia Democrat wants Pennsylvania to study the impacts of moving 77,000 state employees to a four-day work week.”

‘GOP legislators are backing Philly Dems’ housing bill. Why? Blight is a statewide issue’: WHYY reports that “a coalition of progressive Pennsylvania Democrats has begun pushing a bill that would use a chunk of the state’s budget surplus to help people pay for home repairs. But unlike many Democratic funding initiatives in Harrisburg, this one isn’t automatically doomed.”

‘Pa. legislative committee evaluates changing cap that shortchanges victims of costly water main breaks’: WHYY reports that “a state committee is currently looking into the implications of raising the liability limit.”

‘East Coast natural gas plant on hold after legal challenge’: The Associated Press reports that “the future of a major liquified natural gas facility proposed for northeastern Pennsylvania was thrown into question Monday after its developer settled a legal challenge brought by environmental activists.”

‘Staffing shortage, COVID-19, politics take toll on Pennsylvania teachers’: The Pennsylvania Capital-Star reports that “although buildings are currently open, a national staffing crisis has presented new challenges.”

‘Appeals court halts certification of votes in narrow Lehigh County judicial race during appeal over mail-in ballots’: The Allentown Morning Call reports that “a federal appeals court has halted the final count and certification of votes in a narrow race for Lehigh County judge while voters ask the court to reverse a decision throwing out their lawsuit to have their undated ballots counted.”

‘List of potential witnesses in Johnson corruption trial includes some surprises’: KYW Newsradio reports that “three elected officials are among the dozens named by prosecutors.”

‘Food aid could slip as demand rises; Owlett suggests jail reviews’: The Williamsport Sun-Gazette reports that “state officials are reporting a steady rise in need for food aid, while lawmakers and activists sound alarms on a soon-to-expire food program for children.”

‘2022 Above & Beyond’: City & State PA reports that “in recognition of their accomplishments, City & State is honoring 40 remarkable women serving in government, business, nonprofit organizations, medicine and more.”

Legislative Election Updates

‘Eight-term incumbent Sue Helm announces she will not seek re-election to her House seat’: PennLive reports that “state Rep. Sue Helm announced on Monday she will retire from the House of Representatives at the end of her current term.”

Regional Spotlight: Central
PennLive: Harrisburg mayor to be honored as one of Pennsylvania’s most distinguished women 
Carlisle Sentinel: Cumberland County: Local traffic key factor in opposing tolling plan for I-83 South bridge 
York Dispatch: What would York City Police do with a drone? The City Council wants to know
York Dispatch: York City Council cancels this week’s committee meeting
LNP | LancasterOnline: Commissioners reveal projected opening of new county jail
LNP | LancasterOnline: Lancaster city council votes to upgrade the city’s Office of Neighborhood Engagement
LNP | LancasterOnline: Lancaster County Prison snapshot does little to ease concerns of bail reform advocates
LNP | LancasterOnline: County planners seek public input for ‘regional plans’ in northwest, south and Cocalico areas

Opinion  
John Eckenrode: The staffing crisis at Pa state prisons is creating dangerous conditions for our communities
Andrew Cuff: Watchdogs Focus on Pennsylvania Local Government
Salena Zito: The fish fry, an institution of rooted America
Gina Diorio: Josh Shapiro fights for headlines — not Pennsylvania’s kids
Jo Piazza: Philly, it’s time for a woman mayor 
Katie Krzaczek: Tracing the history of women in Philly politics
John L. Micek: Americans support LGBTQ nondiscrimination laws. What’s Pa.’s excuse? | Monday Morning Coffee
Abdul-Aliy A Muhammad: Lionell Dotson’s sisters were killed in MOVE bombing. Now, the city has denied his simple request to retrieve their remains |
Inquirer Editorial Board: Philadelphia needs a better parking authority. That starts with hiring a qualified executive director. 
Inquirer Editorial Board: New superintendent needs to focus on transparency, infrastructure, and rebuilding trust to succeed
Harold Jackson: When it comes to race, The Inquirer may be trying to improve. But it needs to try harder. 
Maryam Z. Deloffre: Six months after a tornado, Upper Dublin shouldn’t look this bad 
Sylvie Gallier Howard: Philly’s new superintendent won’t have local roots. So what?
Charles D. Ellison and Mark Gleason: Honor This, City Council 
Dick Polman: As usual, Republicans are wrong about gas prices 
Jenice Armstrong: Four years after losing her daughter, a mom’s fight for justice is just beginning 
Alan Jennings: The rest of the world should call Putin’s bluff
Nancy E. Bohr: It’s been two years since COVID created some major learning curves for all
Will Bunch: America has a New York Times-doesn’t-get-the-First Amendment problem 
John Fry: Philadelphia’s history needs a new steward. Drexel is ready.