HARRISBURG, May 7 – Wednesday, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed legislation ( H.B. 2426 ) introduced by state Rep. Anthony Bellmon, D-Phila., that would allow larger draft vessels to access the Delaware River. Bellmon’s legislation would increase the maximum draft size from 27 feet to 29 feet. “With the deepening of the Delaware River in 2021, the limit for a maximum draft of 27 is too restrictive and provides unnecessary burdens for river pilots,” Bellmon said. “The change that this bill makes would ensure that our pilots are able remain competitive and work with larger draft vessels that are now able to access the river.” The Joint Pennsylvania and Delaware Apprentice Pilot Training Program is a rigorous, multi-year apprenticeship designed to train maritime pilots for navigating commercial vessels on the Delaware River, Bay and its tributaries. Apprentices must complete 500 or more trips over several years, pass the exam, and receive licensure from the state Navigation Commission. Currently, Class Six pilots are only allowed to pilot a vessel with a maximum draft of 27 feet; yet the pilots have 500 to 800 trips under a licensed supervisor for a similar or larger size vessel. H.B. 2426 now heads to the Pennsylvania Senate for consideration. Read more

HARRISBURG, May 5 – Today, state Rep. Anthony Bellmon, D-Phila., and U.S. Rep. Brendan F. Boyle, PA-02, ranking member of the U.S. House Budget Committee, held a news conference at the Pennsylvania State Capitol to announce new legislation and a joint effort to stop the Trump administration’s Medicaid cuts from hurting Pennsylvanians. In 2025, the Republican-controlled U.S. Congress passed Trump’s so-called “One, Big Beautiful Bill Act” which implements over $1 trillion in cuts from Medicaid and other safety-net programs. Pennsylvania is expected to lose more than 300,000 people’s Medicaid coverage. With these Medicaid cuts set to begin at the end of this year, Bellmon and Boyle announced legislation they are introducing in both the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and the U.S. House of Representatives. They both are urging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to work with states to issue operational guidance on the impending Medicaid cuts. “As public servants, it is our duty to ensure that the most vulnerable of those we represent have access to basic necessities like healthcare,” Bellmon said. “What Republicans in Congress are doing is not governance, it is malice that will be devastating for so many Pennsylvanians. If Pennsylvania is to adhere to this harmful law, we need to be able to communicate it and help those who are affected.” Read more

HARRISBURG, May 5 – On Monday, Pennsylvania school superintendents from across the state gathered in Harrisburg to celebrate the first successful year of the Solar for Schools program. The group was joined by education advocates who encouraged schools to apply for the bipartisan state grant program’s second year of funding . “With electricity prices rising quickly, schools need a solution to reduce operating costs. The 74 K-12 schools awarded Solar for Schools grants last year expect to save more than $5 million in electricity costs annually. We urge our legislators to continue funding this successful grant program that enables our schools to invest in student learning rather than utility bills,” said Shannon Crooker , Pennsylvania director of Generation180. In January, when the program reopened for applications, a bicameral, bipartisan group of legislators celebrated the program’s second year of funding. Solar for Schools legislation was originally introduced by Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler, D-Phila. “At its core, this project is about more than just energy. It’s about responsibility, innovation and opportunity,” said Willie Slade, superintendent of Steelton-Highspire School District. “As educators, our mission is to prepare students not just for the next test, but for the future they will inherit. That future demands that we think differently about how we use resources, Read more

HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania lawmakers have unanimously approved a bill that would require landlords to disclose parking availability and fees upfront, aiming to prevent renters from facing unexpected costs after signing a lease. Read more

HARRISBURG, April 29 – Today, the PA House of Representatives passed a bill sponsored by state Rep. Roni Green, D-Phila., that would increase transparency of residential parking fees for tenants. House Bill 344 would require landlords to define parking availability and the associated fees to prospective tenants before they sign a lease. Green said this transparency is needed so people aren’t stuck with unexpected parking fees after moving into a new home. “This will empower tenants to hold their landlords accountable if they were unaware of required parking fees when they signed their lease,” said Green.“Tenants deserve to know everything about a rental property before they enter into a lease agreement, and that includes whether parking is provided and any associated costs. The cost of housing is already unbearably high; unexpected parking fees added to monthly expenses are unethical at best and can, in extreme cases, cause people to lose their housing. We need to help people keep a roof over their heads and not be forced out due to surprise costs,” said Green.Green said that while this is becoming a bigger problem with the condo-building boom in Philadelphia, the measure would create accountability and provide recourse by allowing parking fee disputes to be heard in court, enhancing protections for renters throughout Pennsylvania.The bill was approved unanimously in the House and now goes to the state Senate for consideration. Read more

“Our responsibility is to ensure that utility rates are fair, justified and sustainable —because at the end of the day, these decisions impact every household and every employer in our communities,” said Rep. Morgan Cephas, who represents portions of Philadelphia and co-hosted the hearing. “We need transparency, accountability and a clear understanding of what’s driving these increases—and what can be done to protect workers, working families and seniors.” Read more

Stephanie Shepard, executive director of the Last Prisoner Project, served nine years of a ten-year sentence, before returning to a community with a shifting attitude toward the substance at the heart of her conspiracy to distribute marijuana conviction.Cannabis, she said, has grown into a massive industry, though many of the people benefitting from it “really didn’t look like me or many of the people that I was incarcerated with.”And while she hailed lawmakers’ efforts to legalize or decriminalize recreational cannabis, she urged a panel of Democratic state House members Monday to stay focused on the people most affected by criminalization.Rep. Morgan Cephas (D-Philadelphia) was also in attendance, and described her journey from skeptic to supporter of cannabis legalization.“My colleagues know it took me a while to get here when it comes to cannabis,” she said. “What really brought me to the table was both Rep. Parker and Rep. Krajewski talking about the decriminalizing of cannabis, and what does that look like for those whose communities have been targeted, whose communities have been taken advantage of, have been overpoliced, which was something that was not a part of the original conversation when they were talking about legalization here in Pennsylvania.” Read more

Some lawmakers in Harrisburg continue to press for legal cannabis, while a bipartisan measure to legalize cannabis for adults is stalled in the Pennsylvania State Senate.State Representative Morgan Cephas is asking the key question regarding House Bill 20 with what's being called the clean slate provision when it comes to non-violent marijuana offenses."I don't want to see legalization unless there is some impact on those who've been arrested, whose lives have been changed," Rep. Cephas (D) said. Read more

“The Brews to Barns Act turns waste into opportunity,” Bizzarro said. “By connecting brewers with local farms, we reduce waste, strengthen our agricultural economy, and help local businesses lift each other up. This bill is an opportunity to help Pennsylvania brewers and farmers during a difficult economic time.” Read more