ICE asked nine south central Pennsylvania law enforcement agencies last fall if they wanted to cooperate on a 30 day immigration enforcement surge. Local officials said no, citing either limited capacity or need. www.witf.org/2026/03/09/i...

Gov. Josh Shapiro has sent a letter calling for AG Pam Bondi to investigate the death of Nasrallah Abu Siyam, a 19 year old Palestinian-American from Philly who Isreali settlers shot and killed in the West Bank last month, per @whyynews.bsky.social whyy.org/articles/pal...

Pennsylvania has billions sitting in a bank account for transit. The Senate GOP say it's a sign that agencies aren't making use of those dollars even as they ask for more. But two former PennDOT chiefs say the truth is nuanced due to how capital projects financing actually works.

Some gubernatorial CF takeaways? Stacy Garrity would need 7,000 more donors than she's had over her entire career giving $250 to match one Mike Bloomberg check to Josh Shapiro. And Shapiro dropped $84k on "presidential-level service in private aviation." www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/03...

A Silicon Valley lending firm offered its customers gift cards to oppose a Pennsylvania bill that they oppose. Lawmakers in both parties who want to regulate them say it's unethical and needs scrutiny. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/03...

"There is a familiar bait and switch with a lot of buzzy Democratic candidates—that something about their identity will unlock a prodigal base that has strayed and needs merely to be shown the way." These candidates "are invariably white and male." www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Gov. Josh Shapiro says in a statement he questions the Iran war's legality & strategy. "By taking unilateral action, without a broad coalition of international partners, [Trump] is putting our brave servicemembers at greater risk and undermining our national security interests."

ICYMI: Gov. Josh Shapiro this week promised to use "every tool at his disposal," namely lawsuits and permitting, to block the federal government from locating proposed ICE detention centers in Pennsylvania. www.spotlightpa.org/berks/2026/0...

State Sen. Maria Collett (D., Montgomery) wants to ban Pennsylvania law enforcement agencies from buying personal information through data brokers and instead require a search warrant to acquire any digital data.

In a Pennsylvania state House special election yesterday, the Democratic candidates won with less than 7% turnout, per the county election board. In a district of 60,000+ people with 32,000 voters, just 2,250 decided the outcome. This was a race that could have flipped the chamber.

New: Pennsylvania's nonprofit rape crisis centers, which provide support groups, counseling, legal aid, and crisis intervention hotlines, have been flat funded in 6 of the commonwealth's last 10 budgets. Now they say they are at their fiscal limit. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/02...

Frederick Douglass, one of America's greatest agitators and orators, passed away 131 years ago today.

New: Pennsylvania lawmakers approved a sales tax exemption for data centers in 2021. Its exact cost is unknown, but new estimates released by the Shapiro administration this month say it will have cost the commonwealth $2 billion by 2031. W/ @katehuangpu.bsky.social

Good morning everyone. Today is the start of the three week petition period in Pennsylvania, during which hopefuls for elected office can gather signatures from people in their districts to get on the ballot.

This is blackout poetry to me

What does collaboration with ICE look like in PA? ICE can access state data without a warrant. Troopers cannot ask about immigration status, but can and do tell ICE if they otherwise discover someone is undocumented. And prisons honor some ICE detainers. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/02...

News: Gov. Josh Shapiro pitched a $53.3 billion spending plan Tuesday that puts more money into education and transit (in 2027) while asking policymakers to tackle housing and energy affordability in earnest. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/02...

New: Gov. Josh Shapiro is expected to address housing costs, energy demand, and unfinished business like education funding and transit in his budget pitch tomorrow. W/ @katehuangpu.bsky.social www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/02...

News: Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly is building a new manufacturing plant in the Lehigh Valley to produce weight loss drugs, the firm announced today. Pennsylvania is kicking in $75 million in grants and $25 million in tax credits to the project.

News: State Rep. Seth Grove (R., York), a vocal conservative who led Pennsylvania Republicans efforts to review the 2020 election while simultaneously factchecking Trump, has resigned. He was under fire for taking a second job as head of a trade group for concrete manufacturers.

New: Pennsylvania policymakers passed a law last year, similar to ones passed in 11 other states, to crackdown on illicit vapes and fight teen smoking. But public health experts are skeptical it'll do much, citing loopholes and limited state funding. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/01...

Pennsylvania state law enforcement currently cooperates with ICE, per Shapiro's public comments and an administration statement. It is unclear if this tweet signals a policy change or not.

State Rep. Greg Vitali (D., Delaware) wants to ax the commonwealth's data center equipment sales tax exemption.

New: A divide among Pennsylvania Democrats over immigration enforcement has been on display this month. But you have to read between the lines. Plus, a bunch of legislative primary and general election updates as 2026 kicks off. All in this week's Access Harrisburg.

Outrage over a protest that disrupted a church service in St. Paul Sunday -- which attorney general Pam Bondi says will be "met with the full force of federal law" -- recalls even MORE disruptive church protests led by angry steelworkers in PGH in 1984. (Thread) www.cnn.com/2026/01/19/u...

News: On a call the day before his reelection kick off, Josh Shapiro and his campaign team told top donors that they plan to raise $90 to $100 million according to two sources. That's $20+ million more than the current PA gubernatorial fundraising record (set by Shapiro in 2022.)

Inbox: 18 Philadelphia Democratic state legislators, including Speaker Joanna McClinton, call in a joint statement for an end to ICE raids and detentions, accountability for its agents, and for "our Commonwealth and all local governments to renounce collaboration with ICE."

On MS Now last night, Gov. Josh Shapiro addressed the Minnesota ICE killing of Renee Good in similar terms as his reelection announcement. "This is a scary time," he said, arguing Trump's policies bring "chaos, cruelty and corruption." youtu.be/sSymRW8vGQ8?...

News: State Sen. Doug Mastriano (R., Franklin) says he is NOT running for Pennsylvania governor in 2026, leaving an open path for GOP establishment candidate Stacy Garrity who currently faces no serious competition for the party's nod.

State Rep. Brian Rasel (R., Westmoreland) wants to require all students at any public institution of higher learning that accepts state dollars to take "a one-credit class on how communism and socialism pose threats to American ideals."

Inbox: Josh Shapiro will start 2026 with over $30 million in his PAC, per campaign spox Manuel Bonder. That's roughly three times more than either Tom Wolf or Ed Rendell had entering their reelection campaigns.

New: Control of the Pennsylvania legislature -- and of the commonwealth's policy agenda -- is up for grabs in 2026 as both major parties defend one chamber while trying to flip another. Expect expensive races from the 'burbs to farmland to coal country. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/01...

A company known as "FullPAC" has run ads on two of my feeds this weekend, pitching its stock by noting that political campaigns are "one of America's top-growing industries...powered by technology, data and the American people."

Boilo Day > Christmas Day

New: Powered by dark money, Pennsylvania's Supreme Court retention races cost at least $18.7 million -- making it among the top 5 most expensive retention races in American history. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2025/12...

Why is the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority advertising on my fortune cookie fortune.

Today in Access Harrisburg? Influencers at the governor's mansion, a bipartisan housing agenda is brewing for 2026, and the burgeoning market for politico-signed baseballs. All this and more if you subscribe.

Inbox: State Reps. Dan Miller (D., Allegheny) and Josh Siegal (D., Lehigh) have resigned, a spokesperson for House Speaker Joanna McClinton says. The special elections for their seats will be on Feb. 24. Candidates will be picked by local party members.

News: An amendment to enshrine abortion access into Pennsylvania's state constitution has passed the Democratic-controlled state House 102-101. It goes to the GOP-controlled state Senate, who are unlikely to take it up.

The state House is now debating an amendment to add abortion rights to the Pennsylvania Constitution. Follow here: www.youtube.com/live/tFFyemY...

One area of bipartisan agreement in Harrisburg? Opposition to Trump's AI preemption executive order. Both Senate tech committee chair Tracy Pennycuick (R., Montgomery) House tech committee chair Joe Ciresi (D., Montgomery) put out critical statements on it yesterday.

A Pennsylvania judge asked a lawyer arguing against a state rule extending discrimination protections to gay and transgender people if his firm had used AI to write its filing in the case, citing hallucinatory citations. www.wesa.fm/politics-gov...

News: A bill to ban the sale of vapes not yet approved by the FDA in Pennsylvania, slashing the amount that can be sold in the commonwealth down to a few dozen, is on its way to Gov. Josh Shapiro's desk after passing the state House 147-56.

Inbox: State Sen. Lindsey Williams (D., Allegheny) is introducing a ban on the "surveillance pricing" which charged different customers different prices at the center of a recent @consumerreports.org investigation of groccery delivery app Instacart.

ICYMI: Pennsylvania Medicaid recipients will no longer have access to Ozempic and other similar drugs for weight loss after a quiet move by the Shapiro administration to save the state money amid growing budget woes.

In your inbox, if you subscribe to @spotlightpa.org's Access Harrisburg: A retiring state lawmaker will lead an advocacy group while in office, a bill to restrict most vape sales is close to the governor's desk, and a rundown of Josh Shapiro's recent media blitz. Plus much more!

Team PA is partnering with a Pittsburgh-based "AI Strike Team" to "cement [Pennsylvania's] leadership in the New AI Economy," Joanna Doven, a former mayoral aide, PR consultant, and establishment Democratic challenger who runs the team, said. www.post-gazette.com/business/tec...

Today in 1805, abolitionist journalist William Lloyd Garrison was born. In 1831, he founded The Liberator, which popularized opposition to slavery, and was almost lynched in 1835 for this work. But he did not stop the presses until Dec. 1865, after the 13th Amendment became law.

News: Penn State University's faculty -- including full and part time professors at the main and satellite campuses -- have filed for a union election with the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board with SEIU Local 668, setting up the state's largest union election in decades.

SEIU, who are organizing the Penn State faculty into a union, are holding a rally in the rotunda.