• Lancaster City Council pushes PA legislature to raise minimum wage: Tuesday, Lancaster City Council members introduced a resolution in support of state legislation that seeks to raise the state minimum wage. They also called on to end “wage preemption” in Pennsylvania. Preemption prohibits local governments from setting their own minimum wage. Currently the minimum wage in Pa. is $7.25 an hour. The SEIU PA State Council released a statement in advance of the Lancaster City Council meeting. The statement explained that since 2006 Pennsylvania has blocked local governments from setting their own minimum wages, contributing to years of inaction. New Legislation by Gov. Josh Shapiro aims to raise the statewide minimum wage to $15 an hour and adjust annually for inflation. (Source: WGAL)
• SNAP card users will see some changes: The state has added a new security feature for SNAP recipients. The Department of Human Services (DHS) explained the new ConnectEBT system grants recipients to lock their digital EBT cards when not in use. This is in response to some EBT cards being drained by thieves, usually through a skimming device placed on card readers at grocery stores. The DHS says locking an EBT card blocks all purchases, balance inquiries, and transactions to keep benefits secure. (Source: ABC 27)
• Seven branches of Penn State could be shut down: After the information was leaked, Penn State University released a report recommending the closure of seven branch campuses including Mont Alto and York. The 143-page report states that both campuses have high operating costs and have seen a significant drop in enrollment. A section in the report’s executive summary details, “The ecosystem now faces serious structural challenges. Declining enrollment, stagnant state funding, rising operational costs, and shifting student demographics have placed enormous financial strain on the network of campuses, threatening the University’s ability to maintain access and quality across the state.” For the past ten years, enrollment at York has dropped by 40%. Mont Alto has seen a 35% decline over the same time period. (Source: WGAL)
• Report shows Lancaster County economy saw a boost due to US Women’s Open: A recent report displayed the economic impact of the 2024 U.S Women’s Open at the Lancaster Country Club. The conductor of the report and analyst at Independent Fiscal Office, Mathieu Taylor, estimated that the Open generated total direct spending of $13.2 million in Lancaster County. Guest and spectators generated an estimated $8.1 million through local businesses like restaurants, retail shops and gas stations, and produced an estimated 9,300 hotel and short-term rental room nights. The United States Golf Association also carved out an estimated $5.9 million to host, with 89% of that spending occurring in Lancaster. (Source: LNP)
• Nation/world: An AP-NORC poll finds American divide on DEI programs on college campuses (Source: AP News) GOP’s Senior bonus: A token or real benefit (Source: MSNBC) Supreme Court considers Trumps limit on birthright citizenship (Source: NBC News) US Troops in Qatar receive a message from Trump (Source: UPI)
