State of the State

March 3 – March 16 The word “coronavirus” enters the lexicon: Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine holds her first press conference warning about the potential arrival of COVID-19. As the first cases are confirmed, Governor Tom Wolf’s administration moves to contain community spread — including ordering all non-essential business closed across the commonwealth.  

March 18 – April 3 The state confirms the first death from COVID-19 in Pennsylvania. The rapid spread of the coronavirus leads to a rapid pace of events — bringing the state to a standstill as Governor Tom Wolf orders all Pennsylvanians to stay-at-home.

April 8 – May 12 The economic toll from the pandemic hits the state hard. At least 12 percent of Pennsylvanians file for unemployment, as Governor Tom Wolf faces a rebellion from some counties to re-open.

As the year draws to a close, the reporters at WITF and PA Post been looking back at some of the state politics stories that have shaped it. From legislative fights over guns and the minimum wage, to the closure of Three Mile Island, to election angst, to the return of hemp farming, we have … Continue reading "Episode 54: The headlines of 2019"

Lawmakers spent a packed four days in Harrisburg before leaving town for the holidays. Here’s what they did.   Last week was a big one in Harrisburg. The House and Senate both convened for an unusual four-day session and passed a lot of bills—so many that we weren’t able to file stories on all of … Continue reading "Episode 53: Legislative avalanche"

This week, we’re re-airing five stories you should hear. In one, Governor Tom Wolf learns the FBI is looking into his administration’s environmental permitting practices.  Plus, reporters in Philadelphia look into badly contaminated drinking water in a charter school, PA Post reports on a proposed community college in Erie, WITF follows up on problems with … Continue reading "Episode 52: Pipeline problems"

The last week was exceptionally busy both in and outside the Capitol—from major election reforms passing the legislature to big, controversial court decisions on constitutional amendments. This week, we have all the big stories you should get caught up on. First, Marsy’s Law—the proposed amendment meant to enshrine victims’ rights in the state constitution. A … Continue reading "Episode 50: The Marsy’s Law twists continue"

The House and Senate were both in session last week, resulting in a number of notable developments on issues our newsroom follows closely—from long-awaited election reforms to controversial abortion proposals. We’ll also bring you the latest on a proposed constitutional amendment being challenged in court, the one-year anniversary of a major shooting in Pittsburgh, and … Continue reading "Episode 49: Elections, abortions, booze and more"

This week we’re focusing on a topic that has come up a lot lately, and with good reason: Marsy’s Law. If you’re not familiar, Marsy’s law is a proposed amendment to Pennsylvania’s constitution that will be on the ballot for a statewide referendum on November 5th. Versions of the proposed law have been adopted in … Continue reading "Episode 48: More on Marsy’s Law"

In recent weeks, there’s been a lot of talk in Harrisburg about what the legislature might do to reform statute of limitations laws. It’s a discussion that’s been especially active in the last year, in the wake of a massive report on abuse and cover-ups in the commonwealth’s Roman Catholic dioceses. We bring you two … Continue reading "Episode 47: Abuse in the church, and other stories"

We take a look at some of our most important stories of the last week. This week, for your convenience, we have a roundup of the top stories we’ve been following lately. First, we hear from PA Post reporter Ed Mahon, who traveled to Erie last month to talk to the people who live there … Continue reading "Episode 46: Air quality, child abuse, and the Sacklers’ Pa. resort"

Last week saw the beginning—and end—of a brief whirlwind of activity in the state House and Senate. On this week’s podcast, we’ll recap two of the major developments: Republicans staking out a plan of action on guns, and the governor saying he wants to legalize marijuana. The gun conversations stretched over several days in both … Continue reading "Episode 45: Guns and weed and government regulation"

Former state senator Mike Folmer vacated his seat last week after an arrest for alleged child pornography possession. We discuss what happens now. Late last Tuesday, the state attorney general released a statement saying the office had arrested state Senator Mike Folmer and charged him with possession of child pornography. By the next afternoon, the … Continue reading "Episode 44: The senator has resigned"

If a person is given a life sentence in Pennsylvania, they can be fairly confident that—barring a commutation—they’ll be behind bars until they die. In the commonwealth, life in prison always means life without parole. And if a person is found guilty of non-capital first-degree or second-degree murder, life without parole is the only sentence … Continue reading "Episode 43: Without parole"

a   The commonwealth’s lawmakers are still on their summer recess for another month. But a few are already laying out plans for their return—some more ambitious than others. One of those ambitious legislators? Frank Ryan. He’s a second-term Republican who represents part of Lebanon County and wants to get rid of property taxes once … Continue reading "Episode 42: The never-ending quest to kill property taxes"

Much of this week’s political conversation has been dominated by questions about guns. Questions like, who should be able to use them? What characteristics should we should allow them to have? And is it ever OK for the government to be able to take them away? The weekend of August 3rd saw two major shootings. One … Continue reading "Episode 41: Pennsylvania’s big gun debate"

The 2020 election is still more than a year away, but Pennsylvania’s eighteen congress women and men are already well into the fundraising that they hope is going to get them another two-year term. This week, we took a look at the quarterly reports the commonwealth’s incumbents and challengers have been filing to see how … Continue reading "Episode 40: Congressional cash"

By just about every measurement you can make, Pennsylvania is particularly susceptible to gerrymandering. At least, that was PA Post reporter Emily Previti’s conclusion after taking an extremely detailed look at the factors that lead to gerrymandering in various states. Pennsylvania is one of the only states that doesn’t have standards like compactness or contiguity … Continue reading "Episode 39: There’s a reason PA’s congressional maps are weird"

Pennsylvania is officially on track to take over the online marketplace that sells health insurance as part of the Affordable Care Act. It’s a move that will give the commonwealth more control of the exchange, and the state is predicting lower premiums, too. WITF health reporter Brett Sholtis joins us this episode to explain how … Continue reading "Episode 38: What a state-run insurance marketplace means for you"

Pennsylvania officially has a budget for the new fiscal year, and it was—mostly—signed into law two days ahead of deadline. As far as budgets go in Harrisburg, it was a breeze—after all just four years ago, an impasse over funding dragged on for nine months. But still, there were some hiccups this year. An argument … Continue reading "Episode 37: The (sometimes tumultuous) path to passing PA’s budget"

It’s been a busy time in Harrisburg. State lawmakers are hoping negotiations on next year’s budget are wrapped up before the end of this week—and that means in the meantime, there are a lot of balls in the air. On Thursday, Governor Wolf stopped by WITF for a live show produced by Keystone Crossroads, in … Continue reading "Episode 36: We ask the governor your questions"

Lawmakers are busy negotiating the budget for next fiscal year, which starts July 1. By all accounts, things are going relatively well. But a few major proposals are still up in the air. One of those is the minimum wage. Pennsylvania’s wage is at the $7.25 federal minimum—lower than any neighboring state. It’s been a … Continue reading "Episode 35: Staying mum on the minimum wage"

This week, we’re marking the anniversary of D-Day by investigating a famous photo with a Pennsylvania connection. For months, WITF News Director Tim Lambert has been unraveling the story behind a scene that happened on Omaha Beach in Normandy 75 years ago. It was immortalized in a picture taken on D-Day +1 — June 7th, … Continue reading "Episode 34: Telling the story of a Pennsylvania soldier rescued on D-Day +1"

For months now, Democratic Governor Tom Wolf has been battling Republican lawmakers over how Pennsylvania should fund infrastructure improvements. Wolf wants to implement a $4.5 billion plan funded by a tax on natural gas drillers. Republicans have adamantly opposed such a tax for years, and are casting Wolf’s plan as a nonstarter. Now, two GOP … Continue reading "Episode 33: State forest drilling and the gas cash impasse"

This week on State of the State, we’re celebrating Memorial Day and the return of nice weather with a story about the impact—good and bad—people can have on the natural world. First, a re-airing of a feature on a group of peregrine falcons living on the Rachel Carson State Office Building. Their nest-placement seems fated. … Continue reading "Episode 32: Rachel Carson and the fall and rise of the peregrine falcon"

Efforts to seriously curtail abortion in Alabama, Missouri, Georgia, Ohio and other states may have dominated the news the last few days, but here in Pennsylvania, state lawmakers have been busy moving their own proposed restriction on the procedure. The bill in question passed the House on about a week ago. It would ban abortions … Continue reading "Episode 31: The abortion debate"

This week, the state Capitol hosted hundreds of gun rights supporters for an annual event they call the Rally to Protect Your Right to Keep and Bear Arms. Over the years, there have been lots of efforts to tighten Pennsylvania’s gun laws—like creating universal background checks, starting a gun registry, or banning bump stocks—accessories that … Continue reading "Episode 30: More thoughts on guns"

Last legislative session, Pennsylvania’s General Assembly came to a rare, bipartisan consensus on criminal justice and passed the Clean Slate Act–a measure that helps former inmates get their records expunged. Now, the House and Senate are trying to move the needle on other criminal justice bills. This morning on Smart Talk, we’re spending the hour … Continue reading "Episode 29: Moving the needle on criminal justice"

Last week, House lawmakers got together in the Capitol rotunda to celebrate passing a slate of bills intended to protect crime victims. A couple of them look to reform the statute of limitations in child sex abuse cases. Others would allow certain victims to submit out-of-court statements instead of testifying in person. One is actually … Continue reading "Episode 28: Is Marsy’s Law an obvious fix, or a well-intentioned mistake?"

This week, we’re taking a look at one of the most fundamental processes that happens in the state capitol: bills. More specifically, how they get drafted and circulated among state lawmakers, and where they come from.

If you’re a person who is already invested in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election, you may have noticed a sort of left-field issue getting a bit of press: abolishing the electoral college. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren called to dissolve the college in a recent town hall in Mississippi, saying it gives outsize electoral … Continue reading "Episode 26: To kill or not to kill the electoral college"

Stepping back from the precipice: When April Fool’s day rolls around, people across central Pennsylvania aren’t in much of a joking mood. The crisis at TMI threatens to turn into a full-scale disaster. But, a visit from President Jimmy Carter and some good fortune appear to turn the tide.

By mid-afternoon on March 28, 1979, people who live near the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant aren’t getting much information as they wonder if they’ve been exposed to too much radiation. Many find themselves facing a difficult decision: Wait out the crisis or evacuate.

At 7:24 a.m., on Wednesday, March 28, 1979, something goes terribly wrong at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Middletown, Dauphin County. What unfolds over the next few hours is chaos and confusion as people are confronted with a partial meltdown in TMI’s Unit 2 reactor.

This week, state lawmakers waded into a fraught, long-anticipated debate over whether to prop up two of the commonwealth’s five nuclear power plants. One is the Beaver Valley plant near Pittsburgh. The other is Dauphin County’s Three Mile Island, which—you may have heard—partially melted down in 1979 and helped instill a lasting wariness toward nuclear … Continue reading "Episode 25: To nuke, or not to nuke"

Harrisburg has been the seat of Pennsylvania’s government since 1812, and the current Capitol building has been in use since 1906. In the first couple decades of the 20th century, the complex and its grounds were being expanded into what we know today. And as that was happening, there was a casualty. An entire city … Continue reading "Episode 24: The neighborhood beneath the Capitol"

State lawmakers are in the middle of a long series of hearings on the budgets for Pennsylvania’s many agencies. It’s a time for them to grill secretaries on what’s working, what’s not, and how money is being spent. And it gives agency heads a chance to lobby for more funding. So this week, we’re recapping … Continue reading "Episode 23: The greatest hits of Budget Hearings 2K19"

The commonwealth’s prison system just settled a federal lawsuit over mail policies in its prisons. It’s a big win for public defenders and nonprofit groups that represent inmates, and it’s a milestone after months of controversy and speculation about a raft of new security measures the Department of Corrections put in place last fall. To … Continue reading "Episode 22: Why PA’s prison system is changing mail policies. Again."

This week, we go deep on the start of Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman’s marijuana legalization listening tour. Fetterman is a week into his trip, and plans to eventually visit all 67 counties to hear how they feel about recreational pot. His first stop was Harrisburg. The crowd of a few hundred was more amenable to … Continue reading "Episode 21: Mary Jane’s first chance"

Governor Tom Wolf gave his annual budget address Tuesday, officially kicking off the next several months of negotiations between himself and the Republican-controlled legislature. This is the governor’s fifth year in office, and his fifth budget. In the past, his initial proposals have gotten reactions ranging from derision to outrage from the House and Senate. … Continue reading "Episode 20: Budget season is back, baby"

The legislative session is finally kicking off in earnest, and lawmakers seem to be taking that as a cue to launch as many initiatives as they can, as fast as they can. This week, we’ll explain three divisive (and perennial) causes Governor Tom Wolf is throwing his weight behind: gun control, a minimum wage hike, … Continue reading "Episode 19: New-session pandemonium"

This has been a quiet week in the state Capitol. Lawmakers are lying low, introducing legislation, and prepping for their first real session days in the coming week. But life goes on outside Harrisburg. This week, we’re bringing you two stories. One is about a festering conflict between a neighborhood and a massive gas company. … Continue reading "Episode 18: A hole in a yard and a death overseas"

Tom Wolf has been sworn in for his second—and final—term as Pennsylvania’s governor. Wolf gave a low-key inaugural address, touting the bipartisan successes of his first four years in office and urging his fellow lawmakers to find common ground despite their often-intractable differences. There weren’t a lot of policy specifics—Wolf seems to be saving those … Continue reading "Episode 17: An inauguration, an interminable shutdown, and teachers with(out) guns"

Picture a farmer. If you’re like a lot of people, the first thing that popped into your brain might have been a man in overalls and a big hat, maybe standing in a field, possibly on the older side. Of course, you know that’s a caricature. Anyone can be a farmer. Still, the image of … Continue reading "Episode 16: So, you want to be a farmer?"

A new legislative session is dawning in Harrisburg, and with that comes a lot of change. This week, the state Capitol was flooded with family and friends and supporters of dozens of new lawmakers, as they were sworn in for the next two years. The House and Senate also approved a whole bunch of changes … Continue reading "Episode 15: Session begins anew"

Joining us this week to recap all the greatest state politics hits of 2018, and to give some previews of what’s ahead, are Marc Levy of the AP and Liz Navratil of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Did you know Pennsylvania is the fourth-biggest producer of Christmas trees in the country? About a million are cut and sold here every year. So, we figured, now is a good time to learn a little more about one of the commonwealth’s most festive industries. To do that, we headed out to Annville, about 20 … Continue reading "Episode 13: The business of Christmas"

Pennsylvania’s voting machines are old, as far as election equipment goes. Most of them came online around 2006 when the state got an influx of federal cash to replace even older ones. Counties are in charge of buying and maintaining the very expensive machines, so there is a wide range of models across the state. … Continue reading "Episode 12: The price of election security"

If you’ve driven on the Pennsylvania Turnpike recently, you may have noticed, the tolls are high. This year, it cost the average turnpike driver $1.30 to go through a toll if they were using an EZ Pass, and $2.10 if they paid cash. Next year, that’ll go up eight cents for EZ Pass users, and … Continue reading "Episode 11: Taxing the open road"

Pennsylvania has the tightest absentee ballot law in the country. Where most states allow them to be postmarked by Election Day, the commonwealth denies any ballot that doesn’t arrive at its county election office by the Friday before the election. It allows ballots to be sent out to voters just a few days before that—which … Continue reading "Episode 10: It ain’t easy voting absentee"

WITF, Transforming Health, and PA Post are launching a series on mental health called Through the Cracks. Over a number of months, we’ll be covering the realities of people who live with mental illness, the stigmas involved, and how public policy can help—or, often, hurt—vulnerable people. The first installment was reported by Brett Sholtis, who … Continue reading "Episode 9: PA’s mental healthcare approach has problems (a series)"