Your Daily Guide

💰 Running the PA Legislature Costs Us $400 Million

With a state budget still nowhere in sight, some lawmakers are suggesting the cost-saving measure of cutting the legislature in half. Pennsylvania has the largest and one of the least productive legislative bodies in the country despite six-figure salaries, pensions, and lifelong healthcare adding up to $1 million annually for each lawmaker. [CBS Pittsburgh]

• Related: Why do we not have a state budget? State Sen. Nikil Saval gives us an inside look at the chaos. [🎧 City Cast Philly]

🧑‍⚖️ Family Court Judge Who Allegedly Put Kids in Danger Seeks Reelection

Philadelphia Family Court Judge Daine A. Grey Jr. is up for another 10-year term this November, but the Philadelphia Bar Association does not recommend voters select him. He had 16 rulings later reversed by the state Superior Court, some of which apparently left children in harmful environments. He’s also described as “very erratic in the courtroom.” [🔒 The Inquirer]

⚖️ Dauphin County Man Pleads Guilty to Attack at Shapiro’s Home

Cody Balmer was sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty Tuesday to arson, attempted murder, and other charges. In April, he hurled a Molotov cocktail into the governor’s mansion as Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family slept following a Passover seder. Balmer, who was arrested at 38, will be eligible for parole when he is 63. [ABC News]

🚆 30th Street Station Renovations Have Several More Years To Go

Commuters may need to get used to the sight of scaffolding for a few more years as construction inside the station is ongoing. The $550 million renovation includes deep-cleaning the station, moving customer service to the North Waiting Hall, and opening high-end restaurants. [Philly Voice]

• Related: The station is still accessible despite all the construction. Take the train for day trips just outside of Philly or to Washington, D.C. [🎧 City Cast Philly]

We’re over 100 days without a state budget and everyday Pennsylvanians are bearing the brunt of the legislative in-fighting. Philadelphia’s only rape crisis center had to cut services and employees due to lack of funding. In-state college students are still waiting for financial aid. And the School District of Philadelphia is borrowing money to pay for contracts and other operational costs. So what gives?

State Sen. Nikil Saval, whose district covers parts of South Philly, Southwest Philly, Center City, and the River Wards, sat down with City Cast Philly to discuss what’s happening (or not) inside senate chambers.

Can you explain to Philadelphians why we still don’t have a state budget?

“This is a tremendous crisis and it frankly can be laid at the feet of a single party and their members in the Pennsylvania legislature. Many of them feel that they have no obligation to meet the needs of the commonwealth. Many of them feel that spending cuts are essential. Many of them feel that this is a way to sort of blacken the name of Governor Shapiro, who is running for reelection next year. There are a lot of different motives at play for withholding real negotiations on a state budget. But all of them amount to the same thing. And that's why we're here today.”

What is the political pressure that you’ll use to curb this?

“Ordinary people across this commonwealth, and this is where the power lies, don't support this stalemate. They don't support their funding getting cut or their school districts dipping into reserves and trying to take loans. People don't want that.

“The power that we have not just as elected officials, but as elected officials who can appeal to ordinary people who are feeling this struggle, is to organize sentiment across the state. Frankly, even beyond some of our districts. It's in that popular pressure that we can bring to bear on state government. And that pressure isn't just in legislation. It just doesn't happen in this building. It happens in politics as well. There are elections this year and next year. There are ways that the composition of the legislature can change and those are also forms of pressure. We need to be working to do both.”

How long will this last?

“We're months and months past the point, frankly, that a lot of us thought that we would be. And we're frankly working to find different levers, ultimately the biggest of them being popular sentiment, to end this budget crisis.