The Confluence

On today’s episode of The Confluence: A dark money group has pressured state lawmakers to approve school vouchers, which has held up the budget after Gov. Josh Shapiro told Democrats he would line-item veto the program. Following the resignation of Rep. Sara Innamorato, we discuss the balance of power in the state House on our state politics roundtable.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: The city hired an outside consultant to assess staffing among the Pittsburgh Police, we hear about the results of that study; the Children’s Museum turns 40 years old, and is celebrating it’s growth and impact; and a look at an investigation into whether new accountability measures at Penn State have tamped down misconduct.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: Many consider Pennsylvania’s probation system to be outdated, but the most recent push to fix it is opposed by some civil rights advocates who say this update could make the system worse; Medicaid will now reimburse Pennsylvania providers who practice street medicine, giving medical care to unhoused people in non-clinical settings; and a look at whether poor air quality alerts in the Mon Valley apply to those living further away from the Mon River.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: We speak to Lt. Gov. Austin Davis about the delayed state budget, which has been stalled in the legislature, while Davis embarks on a tour of local initiatives to reduce gun violence and address the health of communities; and we speak to a child abuse prevention advocate about where things stand in expanding statute of limitations for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: We discuss what’s to come in the final phase of the federal trial for the man who carried out the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue shooting; Pittsburgh City Council is developing a framework for how to use federal dollars to address food insecurity; and an amendment to a state law will allow the city to more easily take control of privately owned, blighted properties.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: A jury has found the person responsible for a shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in 2018 is eligible for the death penalty; and it has been more than five months since a Norfolk Southern train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio — we discuss railroad safety and policy changes on the horizon.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court has ruled that autopsy records are public records after a Pittsburgh journalist sued Allegheny County for not making such records available through a Right-to-Know request; a local organization has been awarded $300,000 from the state for the inaugural First Change Trust Fund Program to support at-risk students; and the National Aviary is now home to two Guam Kingfisher chicks who are helping repopulate a species that has become extinct in the wild.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: The state Attorney General’s office charged five Jehovah’s Witnesses with rape and exploitation of children, and a survivor of sexual abuse is suing the leaders of her former congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses for allegedly destroying records and ignoring the state’s Child Protective Services Law; we look at the impact of raising the minimum wage as proposals to raise it for county employees and statewide are percolating in the respective legislatures; and a study about how machine learning can identify patients at a high risk for complications after surgery.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: We speak with reporters about their coverage of the closing of the downtown Smithfield Shelter, and how some of the residents who relied on this shelter are doing without this option; a look at how a proposed bill could relieve medical debt for some Pennsylvanians; and a live-performance series profiling Braddock resident Mary Carey.

On today’s episode of The Confluence: Last week Gov. Josh Shapiro said he will sign the budget after the state Senate sends it to his desk, but with the next Senate session not scheduled until September, it could be a while; the Penguins have been busy during the free-agency period, with the new president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas bringing in several new forwards and shaking up the team's roster; and a conversation with the Pittsburgh Silent Film Society director who’s bringing the medium to local theaters with a festival this fall.