First Read – Jan. 24, 2024

WEATHER: Philadelphia: chance of rain, high of 43; Harrisburg: rain, high of 42; Pittsburgh: rain, high of 52. 

FROM CITY & STATE:

* Pennsylvania’s Republican Party endorsed York County District Attorney David Sunday for state attorney general. The endorsement, which comes after state committee members met virtually Monday evening, will likely be a major boost to Sunday’s campaign. 

NEW THIS MORNING:

* Pennsylvania lawmakers are considering significant changes to the way charter schools are funded – currently, by the public school districts in which students live – as they undertake a monumental overhaul of public education mandated by a court ruling, Spotlight PA reports.

* It turns out Democrats aren’t the only ones upset with U.S Rep. Scott Perry’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election. John Henry Newman announced on Monday that he’s challenging the congressman in the Republican primary, The Keystone Newsroom reports.

* Federal and state officials yesterday announced the completion of the first electric vehicle charging station in the state, built as part of a $2.5 billion program to improve EV infrastructure across the country, the Pennsylvania Capital-Star reports. 

* Former President Donald Trump will be the keynote speaker at the National Rifle Association’s Presidential Forum in Harrisburg next month, in his first scheduled trip to Pennsylvania of the 2024 election cycle, the Capital-Star reports.

* The Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit Enhancement Act, written and sponsored by U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, is being introduced today and would allow working parents to recoup up to half of child care costs, totaling up to $16,000, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

* Once called a “radical socialist,” U.S. Sen. John Fetterman is straying from progressive orthodoxy on the border and Israel, giving GOP colleagues hope that he might keep surprising them as an “independent” who’s “sticking to his guns,” Politico reports.

* The Owen J. Roberts School Board voted unanimously to enact a later start time in the coming school year, ending years of discussion and studies and putting board members at odds with the majority of the people who addressed the board, The Mercury reports.

* Philadelphia City Council will begin a new era tomorrow as it begins another four-year term. Lawmakers are expected to take up the 76ers’ proposal to build a new arena in Center City and Mayor Cherelle Parker’s first budget proposal, the Inquirer reports.

* State Rep. Stephen Kinsey will not seek reelection after representing Germantown and parts of surrounding Northwest Philadelphia neighborhoods since 2013. Kinsey, a Democrat, will leave the General Assembly this year at the end of his term, the Inquirer reports.

* Allegheny County Council is aiming to address some of the symptoms of the county’s broken property assessment system, with members introducing three bills related to the matter yesterday, WESA reports.

EDITORIAL PAGES:

* The Inquirer has an op-ed from Kyle Sammin, who writes that Congress should take up the issue of copyright on digital materials. While physical books and products are rightfully owned by the purchaser, digital items are a lot more complicated. 

NATIONAL POLITICS:

* Former President Donald Trump easily won New Hampshire’s primary yesterday, seizing command of the race for the Republican nomination and making a November rematch against President Joe Biden all the more inevitable, AP reports.

* Two of Biden’s top advisers, Mike Donilon and Jen O’Malley Dillon, will depart the White House and join his reelection campaign early next month as the president pivots to an all-hands-on-deck mode, The Washington Post reports.

TODAY’S SKED:

10 a.m. – Press conference for the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania to highlight 2024 legislative priorities, Main Rotunda, Capitol Building, Harrisburg. 

10 a.m. – Pittsburgh City Council standing committee meeting, Council Chambers, City-County Building, Pittsburgh.

KICKER: “I don’t care about the data. There is a lady back here crying her eyes out because of this decision you’ve made. You have done nothing for families that work for a living.” – South Coventry parent Matt Pennypacker, via The Mercury