Sign up for our free newsletters. The 2020-21 hunting season in Pennsylvania will have lots of new wrinkles to it. And while Trump lost at the top of the ticket, Republicans performed well across the state, keeping their majority in the Senate and expanding their control of the House while snagging two coveted row offices. “I think last year has shown a sort of bitterness that we haven’t been used to in American politics, and Pennsylvania hasn’t been immune from that,” he said recently. When the legislature reconvened in January to launch its new two-year session, it set the tone for a potentially rocky relationship with Wolf, who could be hamstrung by his lame-duck status as he navigates the final two years of his second and last term in the office. $120 $180 $300 Other Other Other bills extended the time period for obtaining federal clearances for certain professions, and permitted bars and restaurants hit hard by the pandemic to sell cocktails to-go. As it stands, those judges run statewide, and many Democrats, including Wolf, oppose a change. Still, the state Senate in January did pass — unanimously — a $900 million relief package that includes money to help people struggling with rent and utility bills. The request must be submitted in writing to the Open Records Officer. Pennsylvania's Texting-While-Driving Ban. UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — New changes to Pennsylvania’s voting laws will make it more convenient for Pennsylvanians — including Penn State students, faculty and staff across the Commonwealth — to register and vote in the upcoming state primary election on April 28 and general election on Nov. 3, 2020. Those baseless claims about the presidential outcome contributed to the Jan. 6 deadly assault on the U.S. Capitol, where members of Congress were officially counting the Electoral College votes. That includes one that advocates said would have helped election officials avoid prolonged vote counting that fueled former President Donald Trump’s baseless fraud conspiracies. Under the new law, the Fireworks Act of 1939 was repealed and replaced in its entirety. Introducing a new way to vote would have led to hiccups in any year, and the fact that 38% of votes cast in the general election were by mail speaks to the success of Act 77 during a challenging time, he said. “That is the nature of electoral politics — it seeps into governing. Other measures that ended with the governor’s veto would have granted waivers for businesses like car dealerships, pet groomers, and garden centers to reopen, and allowed restaurants to increase the percentage of people allowed to sit indoors. 2020-11-30 Act No. UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — New changes to Pennsylvania’s voting laws will make it more convenient for Pennsylvanians — including Penn State students, faculty and staff across the Commonwealth — to register and vote in the upcoming state primary election on April 28 and general election on Nov. 3, 2020. FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2020, photo, a canvas observer photographs Lehigh County provisional ballots as vote counting in the general election continues in Allentown, Pa. President Donald Trump’s campaign filed a number of lawsuits across six battleground states this month as he tried to upend the 2020 election. Right to Know. In January 2018, the office sought bids for 145 SIG Sauer P320 Compact pistols, records show. (a) General rule.--The ownership, jurisdiction over and control of game or wildlife is vested in the commission as an independent agency of the Commonwealth in its sovereign capacity to be controlled, regulated … Over the past year, however, they have complained repeatedly that Wolf had turned aloof and autocratic in his decision-making, sidestepping a branch of government that is supposed to provide checks to his executive authority. More: Sen. Dan Laughlin: Court action designed to defend law. $15/mo. Instead, the GOP-controlled chambers spent large portions of the spring, summer, and fall challenging Democratic Gov. Spotlighting includes handheld lights, accessory spotlights … Of the bills Wolf vetoed in 2020, all but two were sponsored by Republicans. “We can go round and round on what the legislature did and did not do,” said Snead, “but ultimately it’s incumbent on us now to look to the future.”. Tom Wolf in 2020 directly addressed problems brought on by the pandemic, according to a Spotlight PA review of the General Assembly’s record. A flagship Republican proposal allowing 21 days of pre-canvassing was shortened to three days and banned drop boxes — the latter a non-starter for Democrats. Tom Wolf amid the coronavirus pandemic. Spotlight PA February 3, 2021. That includes several major budget-related measures, including one that dispersed federal coronavirus relief dollars, but the tally doesn’t include more than a dozen technical appropriations bills. Several GOP lawmakers last month also revived efforts to push through a proposal giving the legislature the power to draw districts for electing appellate court judges. Ultimately, it was the state Supreme Court — and not the legislature — that greenlighted some of the changes sought by counties, including clarity on using satellite election offices and drop boxes. HARRISBURG — In 2020, the coronavirus thrust state government into the lives of Pennsylvanians unlike any other time in recent history. Angela Couloumbis of Spotlight PA and Cynthia Fernandez of Spotlight PA, rules approved at the start of every legislative session, came under fierce criticism for being secretive and unfair, it involves amending the state constitution, draw districts for electing appellate court judges, Pa. House moves to get legal relief for clergy abuse victims back on spring ballot, by Angela Couloumbis of Spotlight PA and Cynthia Fernandez of Spotlight PA, Wolf asks for tax increase on Pa.’s top earners amid pandemic, GOP pans proposal as ‘irresponsible’. Introducing a new way to vote would have led to hiccups in any year, and the fact that 38% of votes cast in the general election were by mail speaks to the success of Act 77 during a challenging time, he said. Only 27 of the 140 bills passed by the legislature and signed by Gov. Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media.Sign up for our free newsletters.. HARRISBURG — In 2020, the coronavirus thrust state government into the lives of Pennsylvanians unlike any other time in recent history. Spotlighting Wildlife:It is unlawful to 1) spotlight wildlife while in possession of a firearm, except by individuals who have a License to Carry Firearms permit, and only with firearms authorized by the permit (most sporting arms are not authorized), bow and arrow, or other device capable of killing wildlife; 2) spotlight wildlife during the regularly scheduled statewide antlered and antlerless deer sea- sons (Dec. … For months, county election officials lobbied for more flexibility in implementing the state’s nascent mail voting law. HUNTING: No closed season. The law prohibits as a primary offense any driver from using an Interactive Wireless Communication Device (IWCD) to send, read or write a text-based communication while his or her vehicle is in motion. Become a member today at spotlightpa.org/donate. Tom Wolf’s expanded powers, which they believed were running dangerously unchecked. Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Only 27 of the 140 bills passed by the legislature and signed by Gov. House Bill 1538, which allows the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole to wait up to three years to consider another parole application from certain violent offenders after … Tom Wolf in 2020 directly addressed problems brought on by the pandemic, according to a Spotlight PA review of … “Everything that happened in Pennsylvania last year had the election backdrop there,” Borick said. In the weeks after the first cases of the coronavirus were detected in Pennsylvania, the legislature approved measures, some at Wolf’s behest, that eased eligibility requirements for unemployment compensation, delayed tax deadlines and waived testing requirements for schools. Another resolution struck down by Wolf in July would have eliminated his disaster declaration for COVID-19 altogether. Government that Works. Another resolution struck down by Wolf in July would have eliminated his disaster declaration for COVID-19 altogether. And separately, a House committee launched a series of hearings examining the integrity of the 2020 election and the Wolf administration’s role in administering it. At the same time, Wolf used his veto power to nix a record 19 bills — 15 more than he did in 2019. Advertisement Boscola was the lead proponent of the language to ban the straight-party voting. 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