Welcome to Common Sense Weekly! This is the Commonwealth Foundation's weekly news roundup of policy issues being debated in Harrisburg and across Pennsylvania.
How the Shapiro Administration Doubled the Cost of Broadband
The digital divide – the gap between communities with and without access to high-speed internet – is a prominent issue in Pennsylvania. More than 330,000 Pennsylvania households, businesses, and community institutions lack broadband.
Unfortunately, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry (L&I), under Gov. Josh Shapiro’s leadership, has doubled the cost of broadband development with regulatory red tape –leaving many communities in the digital dust.
L&I now faces dozens of broadband expansion projects awarded under the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority’s (PBDA) Capital Projects Fund Broadband Infrastructure Program. In April, PBDA approved $204.1 million in grants to expand high-speed internet access in unserved and underserved areas throughout Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania Waives Food Stamps Work Requirement
Pennsylvania’s work requirement waiver for food stamps now lasts through Aug. 31, 2025.
This is despite recent urging from Republican House lawmakers to apply the mandate to able-bodied adults with no dependents. State data shows nearly 200,000 residents of the more than 2 million enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, fall into this category.
Without a waiver, able-bodied adults would have to work at least 20 hours a week or spend the equivalent amount of time in a workforce development program. Until the requirement is met, benefits would be limited to three months over a three-year period.
Canned Cocktail Sales Expanding Under New Pennsylvania Law
Over the summer, the state legislature passed, and Governor Josh Shapiro signed, new Pennsylvania liquor laws.
The law for longer happy hours went into effect on Friday, and the law that would expand the sale of canned cocktails goes into effect Monday.
“Well, the PLCB sent a letter out saying that you could apply for a special permit to sell the can liquors to go,” said Kimberly Stekovich, the owner of Brownstone Lounge in Harrisburg.
State Supreme Court Says Toss Misdated Ballots
Misdated ballots shouldn’t count in Pennsylvania, according to a ruling from the state Supreme Court.
The 4-3 ruling reverses a lower court decision that deemed the mandate unconstitutional. In the opinion, the majority rejected weighing in because it was only filed against two of the state’s 67 counties, Allegheny and Philadelphia.
Since the case’s merits were not litigated, the plaintiffs – including the American Civil Liberties Union and the Public Interest Law Center – are free to refile the complaint.
Unions Are Planning a Nationwide Takeover — It’s Already Begun in Illinois
In 2022, Illinois voters approved what they likely thought was an innocuous ballot measure, the Illinois Workers’ Rights Amendment, also called Amendment One. Little did Illinoisians know, this constitutional amendment was being tested as a blueprint for unscrupulous union executives to consolidate power nationwide.
Passed with 59 percent support, Amendment One codified “the fundamental right to organize and to bargain collectively” in the Illinois Constitution. Moreover, the amendment explicitly prohibits any new law that “interferes with, negates, or diminishes the right of employees to organize and bargain collectively over their wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment and work place safety.”
To celebrate the release of our brand new scholarship report, "Pennsylvania’s Education Tax Credit Scholarships: How EITC Serves Children and Families in the Commonwealth," be sure to check out the latest episode of our podcast School Choice Report!
