Pennsylvania in Focus

(The Center Square) – A joint bid for U.S. Steel from two domestic rivals has the potential support of Gov. Josh Shapiro. In a statement to The Center Square on Monday, the governor’s office said Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves has made “meaningful commitments to Pennsylvania” in conversations about a formal offer the Ohio-based company plans to make with Nocur, a steel manufacturer headquartered in North Carolina. “Before the governor would even consider endorsing any potential deal, Cleveland-Cliffs needs to make a formal bid to buy U.S. Steel and present specific details on what it will do to protect Pennsylvania jobs for the long term,” said Manuel Bonder, Shapiro’s spokesman.

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(The Center Square) — A new report published by ConsumerAffairs ranks Pennsylvania as the third best state for raising a family. The report ranked each state in affordability, safety, education, pediatric health care and quality of life. The combined metrics were used to determine the states' overall rankings. The score puts Pennsylvania in rarified air, behind only Maine and Vermont, while southwestern states California, Texas and New Mexico bottom out the list. Notably, Pennsylvania is the only state for which the report calls out political leadership or specific legislation, citing last year’s $1.11 billion increase to the state’s education budget.

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(The Center Square) – Gov. Josh Shapiro faces a new challenge after the White House blocked U.S. Steel’s overseas acquisition. Join the lawsuit the company filed alongside its would-be Japanese-owned buyer, Nippon Steel, and make sure Pennsylvania doesn’t lose more jobs to “friggin’ Ohio.” Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward threw down the gauntlet Monday during the Marty Griffin show on KDKA radio, referencing the governor’s infamous quote during his budget address in February 2024: build an economy that puts the Buckeye State’s to shame. According to Ward, this could happen because the collapse of the deal on Friday leaves the backdoor open for domestic buyers – namely Ohio-based Cleveland-Cliffs, which offered to acquire U.S. Steel in July 2023 for less than half of the $14.9 billion Nippon bid.

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(The Center Square) – One member down, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives struck an, at times, somber yet congenial bipartisan tone as they opened the 209th legislative session. Rep. Matt Gergley, D-McKeesport, remains hospitalized in Allegheny County following a medical emergency he suffered over the holiday, leaving the chamber evenly split with 101 members on each side of the aisle. Nevertheless, the election and appointments of leadership roles went off without a hitch. After a tied first round of voting for Speaker of the House, Minority Leader Rep. Jesse Topper, R-Bedford, removed his name from the running, clearing the way for Democrats to re-elect Rep. Joanna McClinton, D-Philadelphia, the first woman to have served in the role.

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(The Center Square) – Twenty-one states across the US are raising the minimum wage in 2025. Pennsylvania Democrats would like to see the commonwealth soon join their ranks. Sen. Art Haywood, D-Philadelphia, joined legislators and representatives from the business community in Lancaster to draw attention to the state’s flagging $7.25 minimum. “We are here on New Year’s Eve for a reason,” said Sen.-Elect Patty Kim, D-Harrisburg, citing the increases that will take effect tomorrow in other states. “Unfortunately, Pennsylvania has not made the list” Kim was among leaders who saw a bill raising the wage through the House last year. The effort ended when it reached the Republican-controlled Senate.

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(The Center Square) – Sixty-five million people turn the lights on every day thanks in large part to the oversight of the nation’s largest power grid operator, PJM. Thirteen states, including Pennsylvania, plus Washington D.C., rely on the century-old organization to manage the flow of power across the system minute-by-minute, as well as plan for future electricity needs — like more power to supply data centers, electric vehicle charging stations, and energy storage for solar and wind farms. PJM, however, can only plan within the parameters set by state and federal governments. 

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The Center Square's Pennsylvania 2024 Year in Review including the election, big legislative accomplishments, & the potential buyout of U.S. Steel.

Keep up with all of the national news in 2025 at The Center Square: https://www.thecentersquare.com/pennsylvania/

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(The Center Square) – Maternal health care, obesity, dental care, and substance use disorders are just a handful of crises facing health care providers in rural parts of the state. “Rural health care in Pennsylvania faces some very unique challenges specific to its population and location,” Sen. Dan Laughlin, R-Erie, in a policy meeting earlier this year. Rural communities have faced increasing isolation as local health care providers shutter their doors and costly travel to regional medical centers deters many from seeking routine screenings and recommended follow-up care. Meanwhile, many face limited access to the basics required for good preventative care, like nutritious food and health education.

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(The Center Square) – The teacher shortage in Pennsylvania has reached a critical point. While a large cohort of educators heads toward retirement, the state has been struggling to attract new talent into the field, resulting in an a deficit of over 4,400 teachers in the 2022-2023 school year alone. That's why the public Insight PA Cyber Charter School is answering the call to use their Career and Technical Education, or CTE, programming to guide interested students toward teaching careers and to address the 70% decline in new certifications over the past decade.

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(The Center Square) - By commuting the sentences of 1,500 people who were released to home confinement during the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic, President Joe Biden drew the ire of many Pennsylvanians who were affected by what became known as the “kids for cash” scandal in Luzerne County. “It is truly disheartening to see a national leader on criminal justice issues for decades so wantonly undermine the rule of equal justice in his waning days,” said Sen. Lisa Baker, R-Dallas. Michael Conahan was one of two judges accused of receiving kickbacks in exchange for sending juvenile offenders to two private prisons. He received a prison sentence of 17.5 years in 2011, which has now ended over two years early in the largest single-day act of clemency issued by a president.

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