Tuesday, June 2, 2020

Tuesday PA Capitol & Coronavirus NewsClips 6.2.20

Senate returns to voting session June 8, 9, 10 [Call Of President Pro Tempore]
CHANGE: House cancels sessions days: June 15, 16, 17, 25, 26, 29, 30; Will Only Be In Voting Session June 8, 9, 10, 22, 23, 24 [Call Of House Speaker]

 TODAY is Primary Election Day!

Wolf Signs Executive Order Extending Deadline For 6 Counties To Receive Absentee, Mail-In Ballots To June 9 [PaCN]
Editorial Cartoon: Don’t Vote, Elect Trump!
National/International
George Floyd Protests
National/International
Coronavirus
Op-Ed: Bringing PA Back From The Pandemic - Gene Barr, PA Chamber
Other States/National/International
Tuesday PA Environment & Energy NewsClips 6.2.20 -- Click Here
Helpful Resources:
Click Here for latest PA Capitol NewsClips & News (Daily Subscriber Email 2:00)
Click Here for latest Environmental NewsClips & News (Daily Subscriber Email 2:00)
[Posted: June 2, 2020]
at No comments:

Monday, June 1, 2020

Wolf Signs Executive Order Extending Deadline For 6 Counties To Receive Absentee, Mail-In Ballots To June 9

On June 1, Gov. Tom Wolf signed an executive order extending the deadline for county election offices in Allegheny, Dauphin, Delaware, Erie, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties to receive absentee or mail-in ballots by mail to 5 p.m. June 9, 2020, amid a surge in mail-in ballots, the COVID-19 public health emergency and civil disturbances in those counties. 
The ballot must be postmarked no later than Tuesday, June 2, 2020. The deadline to hand deliver absentee or mail-in ballots remains 8 p.m. June 2, 2020.
“This is an unprecedented time for Pennsylvania and our nation as we face a major public health crisis and civil unrest during an election,” said Gov. Wolf. “Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy and I want to ensure that voters can cast their ballot and that it is received in time.”
The six counties included in today’s executive order are part of a disaster emergency declaration the governor signed Saturday in response to civil unrest to provide all necessary assistance to the municipalities.
While the vast majority of counties have been able to process their applications and mail their ballots, the volume of applications in the six counties caused by the COVID-19 crisis combined with the recent civil disturbance make it necessary to extend the deadline for the counties to receive completed civilian absentee and mail-in ballots. 
Curfews, travel restrictions and other unforeseen circumstances have made returning ballots more difficult in these counties. The extension will help to ensure that voters in those counties are not disenfranchised through no fault of their own.
Mail-in ballots are new to Pennsylvania under Act 77 of 2019, which Gov. Wolf signed last year as part of the state’s most sweeping election law improvements in 80 years. The law created the option of mail-in ballots with no excuse needed, along with later deadlines for voter registration and for returning mail-in and absentee ballots.
Nearly 1.8 million Pennsylvania voters have applied for a mail ballot since the onset of COVID-19.
Due to the COVID-19 crisis, in March the Pennsylvania General Assembly passed and Gov. Wolf signed Act 12 of 2020, which rescheduled the primary election from April 28, 2020, to June 2, 2020, to reduce crowding at polling places and encourage voters to use mail-in ballots.
The last time an executive order was utilized to extend the deadline to return absentee ballots was in 2012 due to Hurricane Sandy.
at No comments:

May PA Tax Revenue $439.7 Million Below Estimates; $2.9 Billion Below For Fiscal Year

On June 1, the Department of Revenue reported state revenue in May was $439.7 million, or 17.3 percent, less than anticipated. Fiscal year-to-date General Fund collections total $29.6 billion, which is $2.6 billion, or 8.2 percent, below estimate.
The department estimates that approximately $199.8 million of the $439.7 million shortfall in May can be attributed to moving due dates for various taxes. 
The remaining $239.9 million of the May shortfall is due to reduced economic activity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Although we are certainly seeing the effects of the pandemic reflected in the commonwealth’s revenue collections, it’s also important to recognize that a significant portion of the shortfall in May can be attributed to moving several tax deadlines to provide relief to Pennsylvania taxpayers during the pandemic,” Revenue Secretary Dan Hassell said. “We expect to receive much of this revenue in the next fiscal year, which means we’ll have a clearer picture of the pandemic’s effect later in the year.” 
The Independent Fiscal Office released a similar report showing May revenue was below their estimates by $502.6 million of which $430 million was the result of lost economic activity, $70 million loss due to the extended tax due dates.  Read more here.
Dept. Of Revenue
Here is a full overview of May revenues by tax type:
Sales tax receipts totaled $699.1 million for May, $282.9 million below estimate. Year-to-date sales tax collections total $9.8 billion, which is $576.1 million, or 5.5 percent, less than anticipated.
Personal income tax (PIT) revenue in May was $947.2 million, $44.8 million above estimate. This brings year-to-date PIT collections to $11.8 billion, which is $1.5 billion, or 11.2 percent, below estimate.
May corporation tax revenue of $145.6 million was $164.7 million below estimate. Year-to-date corporation tax collections total $4.4 billion, which is $560.9 million, or 11.2 percent, below estimate.
Inheritance tax revenue for the month was $69.1 million, $26 million below estimate, bringing the year-to-date total to $1 billion, which is $3.7 million, or 0.4 percent, above estimate.
Realty transfer tax revenue was $33 million for May, $18.1 million below estimate, bringing the fiscal-year total to $464.7 million, which is $31.5 million, or 6.4 percent, less than anticipated.
Other General Fund tax revenue, including cigarette, malt beverage, liquor and gaming taxes, totaled $159.6 million for the month, $20.1 million below estimate and bringing the year-to-date total to $1.4 billion, which is $55.3 million, or 3.8 percent, below estimate.
Non-tax revenue totaled $51.9 million for the month, $27.2 million above estimate, bringing the year-to-date total to $629.5 million, which is $69.8 million, or 12.5 percent, above estimate.
In addition to the General Fund collections, the Motor License Fund received $220.9 million for the month, $59.4 million below estimate. Fiscal year-to-date collections for the fund — which include the commonly known gas and diesel taxes, as well as other license, fine and fee revenues — total $2.4 billion, which is $180.3 million, or 6.9 percent, below estimate.
at No comments:

Dept. Of Health Reports 12 Additional Deaths From COVID-19 In PA: Live Briefing 3:30

On June 1, the Department of Health reported 12 more people have died in Pennsylvania from COVID-19 for a total of 5,567 confirmed deaths.
As of 12:00 a.m. June 1, there were 356 additional positive cases of COVID-19, bringing the statewide total to 72,282 in all 67 counties.
There are 389,431 patients who have tested negative to date.  Approximately 5,463 of Pennsylvania’s total positive cases are in health care workers.
Of the patients who have tested positive to date the age breakdown is as follows:
-- Nearly 1 percent are aged 0-4;
-- Nearly 1 percent are aged 5-12;
-- Nearly 2 percent are aged 13-18;
-- 6 percent percent are aged 19-24;
-- Nearly 37 percent are aged 25-49;
-- 25 percent are aged 50-64; and
-- 28 percent are aged 65 or older.
Most of the patients hospitalized are aged 65 or older, and most of the deaths have occurred in patients 65 or older. There have been no pediatric deaths to date. More data is available here.
In nursing and personal care homes, there are 15,545 resident cases of COVID-19, and  2,663 cases among employees, for a total of 18,208 at 608 distinct facilities in 44 counties. Out of our total deaths, 3,557 have occurred in residents from nursing or personal care facilities.  Click Here for a county breakdown.
Live Briefing
Monday Live Briefing: Secretary of Health, Secretary of Aging provide COVID-19 Update at 3:30 p.m.  Watch Live:  https://www.governor.pa.gov/live/ or facebook.com/governorwolf/  or pacast.com/live/doh
For the latest information on the coronavirus and precautions to take in Pennsylvania, visit the Department of Health’s Coronavirus (COVID-19) webpage, Follow them on Twitter, or Like them on Facebook.
NewsClips/Announcements:
Helpful Links:
Responding To COVID-19 In Pennsylvania - General Resource Page All Topics
Attorney General - Coronavirus Price Gouging Updates 
[Posted: June 1, 2020]
at No comments:

Monday PA Capitol & Coronavirus NewsClips 6.1.20

Senate returns to voting session June 8, 9, 10 [Call Of President Pro Tempore]
CHANGE: House cancels sessions days: June 15, 16, 17, 25, 26, 29, 30; Will Only Be In Voting Session June 8, 9, 10, 22, 23, 24 [Call Of House Speaker]

 AP: Primaries Become Test Run For Campaigning During Coronavirus
Other States/National/International
Coronavirus
National
Monday PA Environment & Energy NewsClips 6.1.20 -- Click Here
Helpful Resources:
Click Here for latest PA Capitol NewsClips & News (Daily Subscriber Email 2:00)
Click Here for latest Environmental NewsClips & News (Daily Subscriber Email 2:00)
[Posted: June 1, 2020]
at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)