Pennsylvania Latest State to Embrace Automatic Voter Registration, Triggers New Integrity Fears

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) has implemented automatic voter registration, triggering new legal and election integrity concerns over voter roll maintenance as nearly half of U.S. states now follow such a policy.

Shapiro announced last Tuesday that the commonwealth would implement automatic voter registration, which means that residents obtaining state ID cards and driver’s licenses at Department of Transportation (PennDOT) centers will be automatically registered to vote.

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Pennsylvania Freedom Caucus Blocks Penn State Hospital Funding over Trans Puberty Blockers Policy

Republicans in Pennsylvania’s Freedom Caucus have at least temporarily blocked a bill funneling taxpayer dollars to Penn State University following news that the university hospital is prescribing puberty blockers to children.

House Bill 1456 failed to reach the needed two-thirds majority threshold Thursday that it required to pass the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

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Pennsylvania House Democrats Pass Minimum Wage Hike, Republicans Fear Job Loss

Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives this week passed legislation raising the state minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2026 and permanently indexing it to inflation going forward. 

Currently, the Keystone State mandates $7.25 in minimum hourly pay for most workers. If the bill passes the state Senate it will receive the supportive Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro’s signature and become law. The measure, sponsored by Representative Jason Dawkins (D-Philadelphia) will move the low-end wage to $11 per hour next January and $13 per hour the following January before bringing it to $15 the year after that. 

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Pennsylvania Freedom Caucus: No Penn State Funding Until Puberty Blockers Ditched

The Pennsylvania House Freedom Caucus (PAFC) this week issued an ultimatum to the Pennsylvania State University: Either your hospitals will stop providing puberty blockers to children or funding won’t be forthcoming. 

Penn State Health operates six hospitals in central Pennsylvania. The PAFC is castigating the university-run system for “prescribing experimental puberty blockers and providing “‘gender-affirming care’ to children as young as FIVE YEARS OLD.”

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Pennsylvania Freedom Caucus Condemns Greater Johnstown Schools’ Gender-Transition Policy

A group of conservative Pennsylvania state lawmakers on Thursday voiced outrage at the Greater Johnstown School District’s “Gender Transition Plan” and “Gender Support Plan.” 

Particularly troubling to members of the Pennsylvania Freedom Caucus (PAFC) are provisions in the district policies to circumvent parents’ involvement in the way their gender-dysphoric student may address his or her condition. 

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