First Read PA – Oct. 18, 2023

WEATHER: Philadelphia: mostly sunny, high of 64; Harrisburg: mostly sunny, high of 63; Pittsburgh: mostly cloudy, high of 62.

FROM CITY & STATE:

* A state House committee advanced two bills yesterday that would allow independent voters to vote in primary elections for the first time by eliminating the state’s closed primary system, though the proposal still faces a long path to becoming law. 

* Philadelphia’s mayoral nominees – Democrat Cherelle Parker and Republican David Oh – answered children’s questions during a student-led mayoral conversation at the Please Touch Museum yesterday. The forum not only presented the students with a unique opportunity to engage with the mayoral nominees, but was also a rare instance of both candidates attending the same event.  

NEW THIS MORNING:

* A new Spotlight PA analysis of recently released opioid settlement payments shows which Pennsylvania counties are receiving the most money per resident to help them respond to an epidemic that continues to kill thousands of people each year in the state.

* At least a month before a convicted murderer escaped from a southeastern Pennsylvania prison, eluding a massive manhunt for two weeks before he was recaptured, a prison guard had warned that he was planning an escape, according to an email exchange made public this week, The Associated Press reports. 

* It’s been one year since journalists and editors at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette walked off the job over wages and health care, joining members of their sister unions who had gone on strike two weeks prior, WESA reports. 

* Philadelphia joined a growing number of Democratic-led cities calling themselves places of refuge for transgender people when Mayor Jim Kenney signed yesterday an executive order protecting those who come here for gender-affirming care, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports. 

* Bill Bachenberg, the owner of Lehigh Valley Sporting Clays who keeps a low profile, is alleged to have provided a $1 million line of credit trying to prove that the 2020 election was stolen, the Inquirer reports. 

* Philadelphia Register of Wills Tracey Gordon, who has just 11 weeks left in that post, was hit yesterday with a fifth lawsuit from a former employee accusing her of firing him for refusing to help fund her failed campaign for a second term, the Inquirer reports. 

* The union that represents food service workers at the Wells Fargo Center is negotiating with the 76ers over the basketball franchise’s proposal to build a new arena in Center City, saying that the plan would primarily create part-time jobs that won’t sustain families if the team doesn’t do more to create permanent full-time positions, the Inquirer reports. 

* U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly was the only Pennsylvania Republican to not back Rep. Jim Jordan for speaker yesterday, voting for Rep. Steve Scalise instead, the Inquirer reports. 

* PennLive hopes to help you sort through the ballot in your community with a Voter’s Guide, featuring submissions by all participating candidates in their own words.

* The state Senate passed a bill yesterday that would enhance school bus safety, establishing new traffic rules and increasing penalties for overtaking a school bus, WPXI reports. 

EDITORIAL PAGES:

* The Inquirer has an op-ed from John Sandman, who covered student loans and higher education finance for TheStreet.com and writes that bankruptcy rights are guaranteed in the Constitution, but student loans don’t have the same bankruptcy protection as all other consumer debt.

* The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes that a bill in the state House of Representatives would give the Public Utility Commission the power to enforce a schedule for removing ghost poles – wooden utility poles left standing next to their replacements. 

NATIONAL POLITICS:

* President Joe Biden landed in Israel today for an audacious and perilous war-zone visit that puts him at the center of a volatile conflict growing worse by the day, after a deadly explosion at a hospital in the Gaza Strip left Palestinians and Israelis trading blame, The New York Times reports.

* Rep. Jim Jordan failed in a single round of voting yesterday to win enough Republican support to become the next speaker of the House, extending the GOP’s chaos and uncertainty over who should lead the chamber after Rep. Kevin McCarthy was ousted two weeks ago, The Washington Post reports. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: To Suzanne V. Estrella, commonwealth victim advocate … Want to wish someone a happy birthday in our newsletter? Email their name, job title and upcoming birthday to editor@cityandstatepa.com.

MOVING ON: Kyle Sampson has been elected vice chair of the Real Estate Commission … and Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney has appointed David Holloman to the position of interim executive director of the Office of Homeless Services after previous OHS Executive Director Elizabeth Hersh resigned on Oct. 3… Have a career change or life event to announce? Email us: editor@cityandstatepa.com.

TODAY’S SKED:

8:30 a.m. – The Legislative Budget and Finance Committee meets, Room 8E-A, East Wing, Harrisburg. 

9 a.m. – The Senate State Government Committee holds a public hearing on ERIC and voter list maintenance, Hearing Room 1, North Office Building. Watch here. 

9 a.m. – The House Judiciary Committee meets, Room 140, Main Capitol. Watch here.

9:45 a.m. – The House Health Committee meets, Room G50, Irvis Office. Watch here.

10 a.m. – The House Commerce Committee meets, Room B31, Main Capitol. Watch here.

10 a.m. – The House Labor & Industry Committee meets, Room 523, Irvis Office. Watch here.

10 a.m. – The House Local Government Committee meets, Room 60, East Wing. Watch here.

10 a.m. – Philadelphia City Council Committee of the Whole meets remotely. Watch here. 

10 a.m. – Pittsburgh City Council Standing Committee meets, Council Chambers. 

10:30 a.m. – The Senate Education Committee meets, Room 8E-B, East Wing. Watch here. 

11:15 a.m. – Gov. Shapiro will highlight work to cap orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells, Hillman State Park, Burgettstown. 

Off the Floor – The Senate Rules & Executive Nominations Committee meets, Rules Committee Conference Room. 

Call of Chair – The House Appropriations Committee meets, Room 140, Main Capitol. Watch here.

KICKER: 

“Those have been the demands and they haven't changed for a year and the company has just refused (to engage with the demands) … Without health care, no one's going back to work.” – TNG-CWA President Jon Schleuss, via WESA