Danielle Smith – Keystone State News Service

A new report analyzes Pennsylvania’s existing voucher programs, that divert public funds to private schools.

This comes on the heels of Gov. Josh Shapiro’s plan to create a new voucher program for K-12 students.

Diana Polson – senior policy analyst with the Keystone Research Center – said last year’s Commonwealth Court decision ruled that Pennsylvania’s system of funding public education is unconstitutional, therefore the state doesn’t have a dollar to waste on expanding existing private-school voucher programs or creating a new one.

“The basic-education funding commission estimated the state must pay $5.1 billion over the next seven years to make sure our public schools are funded equitably and adequately,” said Polson. “Meanwhile, our report finds that existing private-school voucher programs are siphoning millions from taxpayers with little to show for it.”

Supporters argue that vouchers let children leave under-performing public schools and get a better education at private schools.

Polson said Pennsylvania’s voucher programs have no “meaningful educational or financial accountability,” so they really have no way of knowing if these programs operate as intended or are beneficial to low-income or moderate-income students.

Polson said the report reveals that the programs have grown, and just this year they will cost the state nearly $500 million.

However, these voucher programs exclude students in rural areas, because there are few if any participating private schools in these regions.

Local public schools remain the primary option for most rural families.

“We also found that private schools receiving these funds are allowed to – and do – routinely discriminate against students for reasons including disabilities, sexual orientation, religious beliefs and more,” said Polson. “These programs are also exclusive. They subsidize the state’s most elite and expensive private schools as well as affluent families.”

Polson said the report reveals that the Independent Fiscal Office estimated that the average EITC program scholarship was $2,314, while the Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit was slightly less at around $2,000.

The cost of attending one of the top 25 private schools in Pennsylvania is around $41,000 per year. This means these schools are still out of reach for many low- and moderate-income families.

FILE – (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) sent a letter to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Danny Werfel and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urging them to recognize the Norfolk Southern derailment as “of a catastrophic nature” and exempt families from being taxed on reimbursements for reasonable post-disaster necessities, such as shelter, food, and clothing. This letter follows Senator Casey’s questioning of Werfel during an April 16 Senate Committee on Finance hearing where Casey secured a commitment from Commissioner Werfel that the IRS will do everything in its power to deliver tax relief to victims of this disaster.

“Impacted individuals and families faced great hardships and disruption during this period and were forced to deal with sudden unexpected evacuations and school closures with little access to their belongings or homes…The Pennsylvania victims of this disaster should not be forced to pay tax on reimbursements for the hardship they endured and the losses they suffered. These payments were not income, and the Treasury and IRS should use their authority and not recognize them as such,” wrote Senator Casey.

Since the Norfolk Southern train derailment in February 2023, Senator Casey has been fighting relentlessly to ensure victims of the disaster receive the resources, reimbursement, and support they need to recover. On numerous occasions, Casey has pressed Norfolk Southern to meet its obligation to compensate the residents of Darlington and play a significant role in the clean-up and damage remediation process. He has also pushed the federal government to hold Norfolk Southern accountable to that obligation. In total, Casey has pushed Norfolk Southern to provide $1.2 million in funding for Darlington Township.

Senator Casey has also led efforts to protect the health of Darlington residents. He has repeatedly pushed for the federal government to devote significant resources to expand access to clean public drinking water and increase health assistance and monitoring in the region.

Casey has also made preventing future derailments a major legislative focus in the wake of the Darlington derailment. In March 2023, he introduced the bipartisan Railway Safety Act, which would take key steps to improve rail safety protocols and reduce the possibility of derailments. In May 2023, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation passed a version of the legislation on a 16-11 vote. This bill also included provisions based on Casey’s Assistance for Local Heroes During Train Crises Act to set aside funds—paid for by companies that ship and carry hazardous materials—to provide emergency responders, firefighters, and law enforcement with the financial resources needed to replace equipment, pay workers overtime, and address other urgent costs in the event of a serious derailment. Casey has also repeatedly pushed the Department of Transportation and Norfolk Southern to take steps to strengthen safety protocols and decrease the likelihood of future derailments.

 

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published April 23, 2024 11:18 P.M.

(Ambridge, Pa) The Ambridge Bicentennial will be taking place starting next month. Ambridge School District students have begun making a mural to celebrate the event. The District’s art director and students handmade and painted thousands of mosaic tiles and the artistic interpretations that will be incorporated into the mural. Festivities will be held Saturday, May 8 and Sunday May 9, 2024.

A streetscape project will also begin in the town. Borough Manager Mario Leone reports work will take place starting Monday, May 6. Leone reported that Bronder Technology Services of Prospect, PA was hired to do the project. Storm catch basins will be installed in the area.

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published April 23, 2024 8:47 A.M.

(Aliquippa, Pa) Beaver County Coroner David J. Gabauer confirmed Tuesday morning that the remains of a body found at 100 Fifth Avenue, an abandoned building, were those of Rikiah Mahrquis Griffie. She was 24 at the time she went missing on October 11, 2022 from Towne Tower Apartments just a block away from where her remains were found. Aliquippa Police received a tip that there was a body at the site at 11:49am last Thursday. Aliquippa Police requested that the state police take over the  investigation. State Police confirmed this morning that the investigation into Rikiah  Griffie’s death is ongoing, and as soon as the investigation is complete, a report will be issued.

Danielle Smith – Keystone State News Service

A new study raised red flags about respiratory health in Pennsylvania, particularly for those living near oil and gas activity.

The study by GeoHealth said nationwide, oil and gas venting and flaring exacerbate asthma in 73,000 children, including nearly 12,000 in Pennsylvania.

Jackson Zeiler, public health analyst for the Environmental Health Project, said energy developers do flaring and venting on a regular basis to remove excess gas. He explained the study looked at the potential health risks associated with the practice.

“There’s adverse birth outcomes, there’s cancer outcomes,” Zeiler pointed out. “Volatile Organic Compounds are a big part of these emissions, which have a whole host of health effects, including respiratory health issues, different neurological effects like headaches and dizziness for people who are working in those facilities, and people who live really close by.”

Zeiler noted flaring also contributes to an increased risk of hospitalizations, emergency room visits, worsening asthma and even premature death. But the energy industry said flaring is needed to minimize pressure at well sites, for testing and other reasons.

The study used satellite images and gas-imaging techniques to visualize emissions. Zeiler added companies are required to report their emissions to regulatory authorities and the data is compiled into a National Emissions Inventory through various sensors.

“They looked at the National Emissions Inventory numbers and compared it to the actual imaging that they looked at,” Zeiler emphasized. “They found that the imaging saw way more emissions than was accounted for in the National Emissions Inventory. They’re able to conclude that companies are underreporting, essentially, what they’re flaring and what they’re emitting.”

He suggested Pennsylvanians could work with lawmakers on stricter reporting guidelines and transparency requirements for oil and gas operators. He also recommended advocating for greater setback distances between well sites and residential areas to minimize exposure.

FILE – A person walks by the statue of Christopher Columbus at Marconi Plaza in Philadelphia, Monday, Dec. 12, 2022. A Pennsylvania appeals court has kept alive an Italian heritage group’s challenge to efforts by the city of Pittsburgh to remove a statue of Christopher Columbus from a city park. Disputes over Columbus statues have roiled other cities across the nation, including Philadelphia, where supporters in a city with a deep Italian heritage say they consider Columbus an emblem of that heritage. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A Pennsylvania appeals court has kept alive an Italian heritage group’s challenge to efforts by the city of Pittsburgh to remove a statue of Christopher Columbus from a city park.

The Commonwealth Court on Friday sent the dispute over the 13-foot bronze and granite Schenley Park statue back to Allegheny County Common Pleas Court for further consideration of issues raised by opponents of the removal.

The Italian Sons and Daughters of America filed suit in October 2020 after the Pittsburgh Art Commission voted to remove the statue and then-mayor Bill Peduto also recommended its removal. The group argued that the mayor could not override a 1955 city council ordinance that cleared the way for installation of the 800-pound statue. City attorneys argued that the legislation was more akin to a resolution accepting a gift and no council action to rescind it was needed.

Common Pleas Judge John McVay Jr., after urging both sides for two years to work out a solution such as relocation, ruled in 2022 that because the statue is in a city-owned park, it represents government speech. But the Commonwealth Court wrote Friday that McVay erred in concluding that the group’s claims “are barred in their entirety,” rejecting what it called the idea that claims of violations of the city’s charter, code and ordinance were “irrelevant procedural quibbles.”

The appellate court did reject the group’s challenge to McVay’s refusal to remove himself from the case.

Philadelphia attorney George Bochetto, who filed the lawsuit and subsequent appeal on behalf of the group, hailed the ruling and called on the new mayor to “sit down with me to reach a resolution without further costly litigation.” A message seeking comment was sent Sunday to a spokesperson for the Pittsburgh mayor.

The Schenley Park statue, vandalized several times, was wrapped in plastic in 2020, but local news reports indicate that much of the covering has since worn away or perhaps been removed, although the head remains covered.

Disputes over Columbus statues have roiled other cities across the nation, including Philadelphia on the other side of the state, where supporters in a city with a deep Italian heritage say they consider Columbus an emblem of that heritage. Former Mayor Jim Kenney, however, said Columbus, venerated for centuries as an explorer, had a “much more infamous” history, enslaving Indigenous people and imposing harsh punishments.

After 2020 protests about racial injustice and the statue, Kenney ordered the 1876 statue’s removal, calling it a matter of public safety. But a judge reversed that decision, saying the city had failed to provide evidence of a public safety need for removal. In December 2022, a plywood box covering the statue was removed by judicial order. The group that fought for retention of the statue and removal of the covering filed suit last year alleging that officials conspired to abuse the legal process in trying to remove the statue, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

Columbus statues have been removed in nearby Camden, New Jersey, and Wilmington, Delaware. In Richmond, Virginia, a statue of Christopher Columbus was torn down, set on fire and thrown into a lake. In Columbia, South Carolina, the first U.S. city named for Columbus, a statue of the explorer was removed after it was vandalized several times. Another vandalized statue in Boston also was removed from its pedestal.