From Philebrity:

So according to our source at the meeting this morning, two lawyers representing PNI, along with PNI VP of Finance Andrew Harrison, were grilled by a lawyer from the U.S. Trustee's Office, appointed by the court to oversee bankruptcy proceedings, on a variety of matters from status of current lawsuits on down to PNI's own current financial status. What was revealed was just a little cringe-inducing. As it stands now, PNI only really has two assets that are worth a damn: The PNI offices at 400 N. Broad, and its printing facility in Conshohocken. But whatever value those pieces of real estate have is somewhat sullied by this fact, also revealed this morning: PNI hasn't paid around $450K in real estate taxes owed to the City. What's more, PNI brass also confessed that they could be out of money -- as in out of money -- as soon as July.

Gov. Ed Rendell officially created the Pennsylvania Stimulus Oversight Commission last week, a 13-member panel charged with overseeing the state's allocation of federal dollars within the stimulus plan.

Among the appointees are members of the state House and Senate, as well as federal lawmakers. Noticeably absent, though, is former Republican Rep. Phil English, who the Republican delegation in D.C. nominated to the panel. English's successor, Democrat Kathy Dahlkemper, was apparently upset about the nomination and word got through to Rendell that Democrats weren't happy, staffers say.

House Democratic Leader Todd Eachus suggested yesterday that Republican Tom Corbett take a cue from his counterpart in Virginia and consider resigning as attorney general if he runs for governor next year.

Last month, Virginia's head prosecutor, Bob McDonnell, stepped down to seek the state's top office, saying it wouldn't be fair to the taxpayers to keep one office while pursuing the other.

Corbett "will have to judge, when he actually announces his candidacy, whether he can balance the two, both from a political point of view and from the efficacy of taxpayers," Eachus (D., Luzerne) told the monthly luncheon of the Pennsylvania Press Club yesterday in Harrisburg.

But Eachus fell short of calling on Corbett to step down. Nor did Eachus accuse Corbett - as some Democrats have suggested - of partisanship in his 26-month-old corruption probe known as Bonusgate.

"The attorney general's got to proceed with his investigation the way he sees fit," said Eachus.

Here's hoping. This story disgusted me, and that's tough, considering I'm a jaded SOB.

A state senator on Monday advocated that juveniles be required to have a lawyer in court in the aftermath of hundreds of youth convictions being thrown out because of judicial corruption in northeastern Pennsylvania.

The proposal is one of several planned by Sen. Lisa Baker, R-Luzerne, to shore up the rights of juveniles and redress the wrongs suffered by the victims of two judges who pleaded guilty to taking millions of dollars in kickbacks from youth detention centers.

''These kids certainly did not get the kind of treatment I would want for my child, as well as everybody else's child,'' Baker said.

He may be the one bringing the criminal charges, but the pressure is now on State Attorney General Tom Corbett.

His announcement last week of fresh charges against a former top House Democrat has again raised questions about whether Corbett, a Republican, will ever indict members of his own party.

So far, his 26-month-old Bonusgate investigation has ensnared a dozen former and current House Democratic legislators and staffers, including Mike Veon, the former No. 2 Democrat in Harrisburg's lower chamber. The 12 are accused of a conspiracy to use taxpayer money and resources, including bonuses, to help advance Democratic political campaigns.

No Republican has been charged, although there have been clear signs for months that agents have turned their focus on members of the House GOP.

Corbett has said repeatedly that his investigators are not working on anyone's timetable and that when and if he determines a case is ready, he will file charges.

America's oldest brewery might soon be the largest American-owned brewer.

Riding a 20-year wave of growth, D.G. Yuengling & Son Inc. is closing in on sales of 2 million barrels a year, bringing the 180-year-old company within a pint or two of surpassing the Boston Beer Co. and its Samuel Adams brands in sales.

A big reason is that foreign-based companies have acquired such beer behemoths as Anheuser-Busch and MillerCoors. Another is the coal-region beer's rapid growth.
Business is Brewing

Yuengling also has a ways to go when it comes to overall market share, holding less than 1 percent of the U.S. beer market. Yet the company is a giant compared with microbrewers such as Harrisburg's Troegs Brewing Co., which sells about 19,000 barrels annually.

John Hanger, acting secretary of the state Department of Environmental Protection, and state Sen. Mary Jo White, R-Venango, are no strangers, having tangled on many occasions about environmental and energy issues.

It's expected they'll go at it again Wednesday when the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee that Ms. White chairs meets in Harrisburg to consider Gov. Ed Rendell's August nomination of Mr. Hanger for DEP secretary.

When Mr. Hanger was nominated seven months ago, Ms. White said she wouldn't support his nomination because he had accused her of being corrupt due to her ties to various extractive industries.

"She stated when he was nominated that she was disappointed with the governor's nomination and she has not changed her position," said Patrick Henderson, the committee's director.

"I would say she's not inclined to support the nomination but is holding the hearing to give an opportunity to publicly question the nominee."

Mr. Henderson said that during the last seven or eight years when Mr. Hanger was executive director of Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future, he testified before the committee and called her integrity and motives into question.

From The Scranton Times-Tribune:

I am a pro-life Democrat. I believe that life begins at conception and ends when we draw our last breath and that we must protect life at every point in that process.

My actions as a U.S. senator have been consistent with this philosophy. I have voted against federal funding of stem cell research that would destroy living embryos.

I have voted to codify the federal regulation that provides unborn children with health coverage under the Children's Health Insurance Program.

I have voted to prohibit funding to organizations that support coercive abortions.

I have voted to prohibit circumvention of parental involvement in abortion decisions.

I have consistently supported the Hyde Amendment and the Helms Amendment regarding federal funding of abortions or abortion-related services.

And I have worked closely with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and other faith groups to introduce S. 270, the Pregnant Women Support Act -- last year and again last month. This legislation would reduce the number of abortions by providing health care, education, counseling, nutrition, pre-natal care, and information for pregnant women.

Many pro-life activists talk about one strategy only -- the appointment of a justice who may tip the Supreme Court against Roe v.Wade. I understand this approach. I, too, believe that Roe was wrongly decided. I strongly oppose the Freedom of Choice Act which would codify the Roe decision. While this bill has not been introduced, I will oppose it if it is introduced.

Click Here to read the rest of Senator Casey's guest editorial

If you want power and fame, run for governor. But if you want wealth, be a professor, a bean counter or a turnpike czar.

At least 96 state employees are paid more than Gov. Ed Rendell, whose salary is $174,435. All together, at least 656 have salaries in excess of $150,000. At least 3,836 are paid more than $100,000 a year.

That's a big bill footed by taxpayers, and government watchdog groups say high salaries should be scrutinized carefully. The state employees' bosses, of course, say they earn every penny.

John C. Cavanaugh, chancellor of the State System of Higher Education, tops the list with a $327,500 salary. That's 7 1/2 times as much as the average Pennsylvanian makes in a year. Still, it's much less than the $558,378 that the state of Georgia pays the chancellor of its university system.

With a salary of $320,000, James Preston, executive director of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency, isn't far behind Mr. Cavanaugh.

Stephen M. Curtis, president of the Community College of Philadelphia, comes in third with compensation of $227,584, including a $37,500 housing and car allowance.

Other Pennsylvania state workers earning more than the governor include judges, university professors, seven investment officers for government employee retirement systems and two legislative aides, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette found in a review of salaries from dozens of state agencies that responded to right-to-know requests in February and March.

Pat Toomey is sounding more and more like a candidate for the U.S. Senate.

The former congressman drew resounding cheers Saturday when he told the state's largest gathering of conservatives that he is "very, very likely" to announce that he will challenge incumbent Arlen Specter in the 2010 Republican primary.

Toomey came close to beating Specter in the 2004 primary.

In his speech to the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference, he sharply criticized Specter for voting for the federal economic stimulus package and other big spending bills supported by Democrats.

He said Pennsylvania's senator should stand up for the GOP ideals of lower taxes and smaller government.

Toomey is all but certain to face opposition in the primary from others, including fellow conservative activist Peg Luksik of Johnstown.

Gov. Ed Rendell lifted his state hiring freeze to place on his payroll ex-state Rep. Mike Veon's lobbying partner for $102,500 a year.

Rendell hired Colleen Kopp last week, the third high-profile exception he has made to the freeze he implemented in September. He hired defeated Democratic Rep. Dan Surra of Clearfield County for $95,000 a year to oversee a nature-tourism project, and last week agreed to pay Ken Snyder of Philadelphia $100,000 to tout the federal stimulus package. Snyder, a public relations man who consulted for Rendell in 2003, represented a nonprofit pillaged by convicted former Sen. Vincent Fumo.

Kopp is briefly mentioned in a grand jury report, released Wednesday, that resulted in new charges against Veon. She is not accused of wrongdoing and did not return phone calls or e-mails seeking comment.

In a stunning turn of events late Friday, a Philadelphia Common Pleas court judge disqualified Seth Williams, the leading candidate for Philadelphia District Attorney, on the ground that he "failed to report the receipt of expenses in excess of $10,000 from his campaign," as required financial disclosure forms filed with the city. In a related ballot challenge, Common Pleas Court Judge Allan Tereshko ruled that candidate Michael Turner has sufficient valid signatures on his nominating petitions to remain on the ballot. Before the ruling, there were five Democrats and one Republican on the ballot for the May 19 primary election.

In a written statement, the Williams campaign said it would appeal Tereshko's decision.

The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission chairman fired by Gov. Ed Rendell can receive a maximum annual state pension of about $6,100.

The estimated figure is an Associated Press calculation based on information provided by the State Employees' Retirement System under a Right-to-Know Law request.

The part-time job paid $28,500 annually and Mitchell Rubin served on the commission for nearly 11 years.

Rendell ousted Rubin from the job on Monday citing "overwhelming" evidence that he accepted a no-work contract from a state senator for $150,000.

The contract was described in the recent corruption trial of former state Sen. Vincent Fumo of Philadelphia.

Former Democratic Whip Mike Veon is now on offense against Republican Attorney General Tom Corbett.

A lawyer for Veon, formerly of Beaver Falls, said Thursday that his client is an innocent victim of "political assassination" by a Republican prosecutor.

Defense attorney Joel Sansone tore into Corbett a day after Veon and an aide were charged with misusing state tax money sent to a Beaver County nonprofit that Veon controlled.

Veon and former aide Annamarie Peretta-Rosepink were arraigned yesterday before District Justice Barbara Pianka of Harrisburg. She released them on $50,000 unsecured bonds. They face an April 22 preliminary hearing.

Veon, Peretta-Rosepink and 10 others were first charged in July, accused of doing political work with state resources.

Sansone of Pittsburgh repeatedly referred to Corbett as a Republican, noting that no GOP lawmakers have been charged and claiming that no Republicans have been investigated. Numerous GOP staffers have appeared before a statewide grand jury in Harrisburg.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court said yesterday that it would give a judge the discretion to overturn the cases of as many as 1,200 juveniles sentenced by a Luzerne County judge who admitted taking payments from detention centers to which he sentenced some of them.

Calling the unanimous order a first step toward restoring public confidence in the justice system, the court said it applies to first-time offenders convicted of minor crimes who appeared without counsel before Luzerne County Juvenile Court Judge Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. between 2003 and 2008.

"Today's order is not intended to be a quick fix," Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille said in a statement. "It's going to take some time, but the Supreme Court is committed to righting whatever wrong was perpetrated on Luzerne's juveniles and their families."

In a report to the court filed March 13, Berks County Senior Judge Arthur E. Grim said his investigation uncovered "routine deprivation of children's constitutional rights to appear before an impartial tribunal and have an opportunity to be heard."

Starting today, playing hooky in Philadelphia is about to get more expensive.

City Council yesterday unanimously passed an ordinance that would slap a $25 fine on the parents of school-age children found wandering the city between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. on school days.

The measure - endorsed by the school district and the Police Department - gives any city law-enforcement officer the authority to obtain the name, age, and address of the youth caught skipping school and of his or her parent or legal guardian. The officer will then issue a violation to the truant child, and a notice will be mailed to the household.

"The idea of this is not to be punitive, but to get the parents' attention that their kids are sometimes not going to school," said Councilman William Greenlee, sponsor of the bill with Curtis Jones Jr.

Violation of the daytime curfew would be a summary offense. Parents of repeat violators would face $300 fines.

The daytime curfew will supplement state law and a longstanding city anti-truancy program.

The House Democratic Caucus on Thursday canceled its contract with a consulting firm, fewer than 24 hours after the release of a stinging report by a statewide grand jury.

Delta Development, an economic development consultant and lobbying firm based in Mechanicsburg, received $1 million from a Beaver County nonprofit agency controlled by former state Rep. Mike Veon, D-Beaver Falls, for doing "little or no work," the grand jury said in a report issued Wednesday.

"After seeing the details of the grand jury report, we have terminated our contract with Delta Development effective immediately," said House Majority Leader Todd Eachus, D-Luzerne County.

Delta, a large contributor to Democrats' campaigns, hired Veon's brother Mark for $160,000 a year, the grand jury said. For years, Delta has had a separate contract with the House Democratic Caucus for $360,000 to $450,000 a year, records show. The firm helped prepare grant applications and find grant opportunities, a caucus spokesman said.

Pennsylvania charter school officials on Thursday released a Code of Accountability that promises transparency as they fight for equal-funding rights.

The code, which focuses on academic, ethical and financial accountability, was developed by the Pennsylvania Coalition of Charter Schools in West Chester, which represents 120 of the state's 127 charter schools.

"Truth and accountability goes both ways," said Larry Jones, CEO of Richard Allen Preparatory Charter School in Philadelphia. "And we have the right to ask one simple question: Who decided that our students were worth only 70 percent of what other schools receive?"

Charter schools are public schools managed by parent, community or educational groups and given a charter to operate by school districts. They are not bound by many traditional mandates, which gives them more freedom in how they teach students. But that freedom comes at a price, as schools are not eligible to apply for any public grants.

City Council's mounting frustration with Mayor Nutter boiled over during a contentious budget hearing yesterday as members questioned the administration's proposed property-tax hikes, its assumption that state legislators will act to help the city - and even the competency of a major department.

The daylong hearing - the first of dozens - foreshadowed a long and difficult negotiation between Council and Nutter. By law, Council and the mayor must pass a budget by June 30.

Much of the debate centered on which tax to raise to close a $1.38 billion five-year deficit.

It's like watching The Wire, or the Fumo trial.

Today's charges grow out of the operation of the Beaver Initiative for Growth, a Veon-organized economic development program that was funded through state grants.

In June of last year, the Post-Gazette reported that BIG was the subject of a state investigation by the attorney general and quoted one former director as saying he left after becoming uncomfortable with how state development grant monies were handled by Mr. Veon's staff.

"Money was just sort of seen as a kind of arbitrary commodity that could be shifted and flowed wherever needed, regardless of what kind of stipulations were put on it," said John Gallo, who Mr. Veon hired to run BIG between 1999 and 2003, when Mr. Gallo resigned, sensing an impending disaster.

Hey everybody - just a quick note to let you know that, as far as I can tell, comments and registration are now fixed. Sorry for the recent problems and let me know if you have trouble logging in or commenting!

Lt. Gov. Joe Scarnati, a Republican, disagrees with Gov. Ed Rendell, a Democrat, over whether a better system to prove residency is needed for anyone getting public benefits such as Medicaid, cash assistance and unemployment compensation.

Mr. Scarnati, who is also the top Republican in the Senate, said yesterday he will try again with Senate Bill 9, which would require the Department of Public Welfare to positively establish that anyone getting these benefits is legally in the United States and has a permanent residence.

Mr. Scarnati said a recent audit by state Auditor General Jack Wagner found that at least 2 percent of those receiving property tax or rent rebates, welfare payments, Medicaid and jobless benefits aren't legally residing in Pennsylvania. Mr. Scarnati claimed that "tens of millions" could be improperly being paid out by the welfare department.

The Pennsylvania Malt Beverage Distributors want the state Supreme Court to review a recent lower-court ruling that allows beer to be sold in supermarkets, claiming that if the ruling stands it could lead to "beer sales almost anywhere."

"The sale of multiple six packs in grocery stores has never been the Pennsylvania model," Dave Shipula, president of the distributors group, said yesterday.

Last month, Commonwealth Court approved beer sales in restaurants run by the Wegman supermarket chain. The decision upheld license approvals by the state for Wegman stores in Williamsport and Bethlehem and perhaps other towns. The distributors group had sued to stop those licenses.

The distributors said the lower court decision could cause "the most substantial change in the manner and venue of beer sales in Pennsylvania since passage of the Liquor Code 70 plus years ago."

U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter said Tuesday he will vote to prevent legislation that would make it easier for unions to organize from coming to a Senate vote.

Specter, a Philadelphia Republican, said his vote against the so-called card check legislation could be decisive.

Specter, who is expected to face a tough primary challenge next year, said the deciding factor was "the elimination of the secret ballot, which is the cornerstone of how contests are decided in a democratic society." The bill would allow employees to organize when a majority of workers sign cards.

Specter said he would vote against cloture, a motion to end debate. That would allow a threatened filibuster to continue against the bill. He left open the possibility of changing his mind.

Despite pleas that its canal boating operation is hardly worthy of a terrorist screening, Easton's Hugh Moore Park has been told its mule guides must get special fingerprint-coded identification cards before the April 15 deadline.

The federal government's directive essentially ends the organization's bid to avoid paying about $400 for four Transportation Worker Identification Credentials.

Under a new rule, all Coast Guard-certified boat operators must get the high-tech government IDs. But U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent, R-15th District, says he's continuing to press for an exemption.

Sarah Hays, Hugh Moore's operations director, had argued that the fee would be a drain on the nonprofit's bottom line and that guides on a Lehigh Canal boat that carries school groups and families shouldn't be subject to the same rules as longshoremen and truck drivers in the nation's ports.

The credentials, valid for five years, would cost about $100 for each of the canal boat ride's four Coast Guard-certified operators and add to the $300-per-person fee the museum pays every five years to renew the operators' Coast Guard licenses.

Gene Stilp wanted the state Ethics Commission to investigate whether House leaders used $290,000 in state money for political polls. Instead, Mr. Stilp is the one who wound up under investigation.

While the commission dismissed his complaint against former state House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese, it fined Mr. Stilp $500 last year for publicly discussing his filing with newspaper reporters.

Aiming to ensure that doesn't happen again to him or anyone else, Mr. Stilp Friday filed suit against the commission in U.S. District Court in Harrisburg. He claims the commission's regulation unconstitutionally violates his right to free speech.

"It's very, very chilling. It makes people afraid to file a complaint," said Mr. Stilp, founder of the activist group Taxpayers and Ratepayers United.

Ethics regulations prohibit filers from discussing active complaints, with a few exceptions.

Mr. Stilp distributed news releases to reporters before filing his complaint, but did not discuss the complaint once it was before the commission.

State Attorney General Tom Corbett said today he soon will make an announcement regarding a state grand jury's corruption investigation into the state Legislature.

We do have something coming up within a few days," Corbett told KYW/KDKA radio.

"We have something come up that's imminent that when people hear it they'll think it's Bonusgate but it's not," Corbett said. "That's about the only way I can put it."

Bonusgate refers to the first phase of Corbett's probe that resulted in the filing of criminal charges in July against 12 people with ties to the House Democratic Caucus. Many of the charges against former staffers and a former Democratic legislative leader were tied to allegations of using taxpayer-funded stipends to reward caucus employees who worked on campaigns or did political work.

A growing number of Pennsylvania school districts are saving taxpayers thousands of dollars a year -- not by cutting taxes, but by paying less to collect the tax, in some cases hiring a bank to do the work.

The goal sounds simple enough. But in a state where tax collectors are generally elected, it isn't.

School districts can't unilaterally eliminate tax collectors, so they must provide an incentive -- or disincentive, depending on your perspective -- through an ultimatum: Work at the lower rate or let us decide how to collect the tax.

''They're asking us to vacate the position,'' said Diane Telly, Hilltown Township tax collector, who acts as spokeswoman for the eight Pennridge collectors. ''You're elected by the public to do the job. That's why we do have to take it to court.''

Three prominent elected officials want President Barack Obama to channel the public anger over the AIG bonuses into action that supports public works projects.

Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger have joined New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg in a coalition that promotes rebuilding roads, bridges and other projects.

Rendell says the controversy over the bonuses paid to executives at the insurance giant American International Group Inc. has taken attention away from Obama's efforts to get the country moving again.

The three appeared Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press."

Next month, the state must certify whether the fund has enough money to provide property tax cuts. Gov. Ed Rendell's administration said that there will be money for tax cuts.

But with a month to go, the fund hasn't reached the threshold to ensure that homeowners receive tax cuts, according to the administration.

The account had a balance of $456 million as of March 16, according to the Governor's Office of the Budget. Under state law, the fund must contain at least $570 million for the state to distribute money to reduce homeowners' property taxes.

It's not clear what will happen if that threshold isn't met by April 15, the date of certification.

"We are confident that gaming revenues will come in at a sufficient level to provide sustainable property tax relief this year," said Susan Hooper, a spokeswoman for the budget office.

Hooper said that the March 16 figure does not include gambling revenue from February and March. Hooper wrote in an e-mail that when the February gambling revenue is added in, the fund should have about $505 million.

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Democrats in Washington are bent on "lurching the country to the left," Pat Toomey was saying, with their "serial bailouts" favoring big government over individual freedom and responsibility and, of course, the $787 billion stimulus and its "pig odor."

Murmurs of assent greeted the conservative former congressman as he built his case, but the crowd of 250 at the Franklin County Republican Party's annual spring dinner burst into applause only when he called out Sen. Arlen Specter (R., Pa.) as the Democrats' chief enabler.

"The fact is, Arlen Specter made this happen," said Toomey, president of the national limited-government activist group Club for Growth. "I think a Republican senator from Pennsylvania ought to govern based on the conservative ideas at the heart of the Republican Party, and that's why - Arlen, are you listening? - it is very likely that I will become a candidate for the United States Senate."

Toomey came within 17,000 votes of beating Specter in the 2004 Republican primary, and he had been laying the groundwork for a campaign for governor next year - until Specter provided one of only three Republican votes for President Obama's stimulus bill, and landed back in trouble with his party's right wing. Then Toomey changed his goal.

Embattled state Turnpike Commission Chairman Mitchell Rubin has submitted a letter to Gov. Ed Rendell placing himself on an indefinite leave of absence without pay from the post he has held for more than a decade.

Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardo confirmed Sunday that Rubin had submitted the letter, but he said neither he nor the governor had yet had a chance to review it.

Rubin has been under fire since the conviction of former Philadelphia Democratic state Sen. Vincent J. Fumo and Rubin's wife, Ruth Arnao, on corruption charges. One of the charges against Fumo was that he had arranged for Rubin to be paid $150,000 under a state consulting contract even though Rubin performed no work to earn the money.

From the Inquirer:

Hundreds of hotel housekeepers, bellhops, and waiters gathered in Philadelphia yesterday for their first convention as a new union.

"This is the most excited I've been in 42 years in the labor movement," said Edgar Romney, the president of the new organization, Workers United, adding that the new union would be better positioned to help workers achieve a better life.

The event even featured a guest appearance by one of the most charismatic and colorful leaders of the labor movement - Andy Stern, the president of the nation's fastest-growing union, Service Employees International Union.

The former head of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Foundation has stepped up pressure on the board that fired him from his $150,000-per-year part-time position.

Michael Hershock, 64, who was ousted March 2, said in a letter from his attorney that he "remains willing to discuss and negotiate a severance package" as allowed by his contract. The letter from his attorney, Walter Cohen of Harrisburg, threatened a lawsuit if a response isn't received by March 27.

"I am hopeful that you will encourage your client to negotiate a settlement with us that will save both the foundation and Mr. Hershock a significant amount of time and expense," Cohen wrote in the letter dated Wednesday and addressed to foundation attorney James White.

Foundation officials have said Hershock was fired from the fundraising foundation over a dispute about his expenses. Among them were a $1,032 hotel bill at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York City, where Hershock met with a potential donor, and a satellite installation at Hershock's home in New Mexico. The foundation was created in 2001 by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency.

Within moments of introducing his $3.84 billion budget yesterday, Mayor Nutter found his plan under attack by City Council members assailing his call for steep hikes in property and sales taxes, and by union members incensed at the exclusion of wage and benefits increases.

Though Nutter labeled his proposal and accompanying five-year spending plan the "People's Budget" - a tribute to the public input that shaped it - he acknowledged the considerable discord surrounding it.

"I don't like having to do some of the things I had to do," Nutter said in an interview in his office after delivering his budget speech in Council chambers. It is "not fun, and sometimes doesn't make you the most popular, but it is a sign of leadership, which is why we're here - to make the tough choices."

Together with the tax hikes, which would be temporary, Nutter's chief deficit-closing tactic is to target the pay, pensions, health care, and work rules of the city's 23,197-member workforce.

His proposals - which would freeze salaries for five years, lower city contributions to union health plans, reorganize the pension system, and reduce holidays, among other steps - would save $637 million over five years if he can clear a series of enormous political and contractual hurdles.

Mitchell Rubin's status as chairman of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission appears to be in jeopardy.

Gov. Ed Rendell took the initial steps to determine whether he can and should remove Rubin as his appointee to the board overseeing the nation's oldest superhighway, Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardo said Thursday.

Rubin held a no-show job as a state Senate consultant, according to the federal indictment of former Sen. Vincent Fumo, a Philadelphia Democrat who paid Rubin $150,000 a year in state tax dollars. A jury Monday convicted Fumo of 137 criminal charges, including one concerning Rubin's employment. Fumo could face up to 10 years in prison when sentenced July 13.

Rubin's wife, Ruth Arnao, a longtime Fumo aide, was convicted of 45 counts, including obstruction. Prosecutors said she benefited from Fumo's largesse.

Rubin, 57, of Philadelphia has not been charged. He could not be reached for comment.

The acting chief of Pennsylvania's Labor and Industry Department was too drunk to sign a citation for public drunkenness, according to Harrisburg police.

Sandi Vito entered a rehabilitation facility last week, shortly after news stories were published about the incident at the bar of a downtown hotel.

The Patriot-News of Harrisburg published a copy of the citation in Thursday's editions. It said Vito, 43, was "extremely drunk" and the line for her signature contained the entry "too drunk to sign."

Vito has been acting secretary since February 2008, earning $136,000 a year. She is awaiting a Senate vote on her nomination by Gov. Ed Rendell to serve in the position on a permanent basis.

Four state gambling regulators attended a September conference at a posh Rome hotel that cost their agency about $27,000 and included charges by at least one of them for the pool bar, laundry and limousine service.

The state Gaming Control Board members and a staffer took the trip with approval of Gov. Ed Rendell's office after Rendell imposed a ban on state travel, officials acknowledged Wednesday.

The five attended the International Association of Gaming Regulators conference at the Rome Cavalieri, where rooms cost more than $400 a night.

Board member Sanford Rivers of Churchill said he paid for his trip in advance and became concerned about it after Rendell imposed the travel ban last fall.

"Being the governor's appointee, the last thing I wanted to do was embarrass the governor," Rivers said. He said he called Greg Fajt, Rendell's chief of staff, who approved it. Rivers said the costs might seem high because of the value of the U.S. dollar in Italy.

Anytime PA legislators call another government entity "a sovereign nation" and "answerable to no one," you know it's bad. Our legislators really would know best what that's like...

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board came under fire yesterday from a group of state legislators irate over revelations that it spent thousands of dollars on travel, including a trip to Rome, in the midst of a worsening economy.

"The gaming board is operating like a sovereign nation answering to no one," said Rep. Mike Vereb (R., Montgomery). "They are spending money like a bunch of drunken sailors."

Vereb and 13 other representatives and senators held a Capitol news conference to assail the board on several fronts and called for the resignation of its chairwoman, Mary DiGiacomo Colins.

A board spokesman said the travel had been appropriate and stressed that the money had come from casino profits and not taxpayers. He also said Colins had no plans to step down.

In addition to asking residents to accept higher taxes to help close a budget gap, Mayor Nutter will ask elected officials today to give up two of their perks.

He is expected to forward to City Council a bill that would disqualify Council members and other elected officials from participating in the controversial DROP pension program.

At the same time, the mayor has begun pleading with those officeholders in phone calls to return their city-issued vehicles.

Doing away with both perks would not save a tremendous amount of money, but residents complaining about about how the city spends money singled them out.

"I have to take it on at some point in time," Nutter said in an interview yesterday.

Despite his call to drastically slash budgets to deal with a worsening recession, Gov. Rendell is paying $100,000 to a Philadelphia political strategist and media consultant to help him with publicity.

The administration has hired Ken Snyder on a monthly retainer of $9,090 between now and Jan. 31 for part-time work, or a minimum of 30 hours a week. Snyder will assist Rendell's Communications Office in the Capitol with media strategy, with a focus on helping provide information about the billions of dollars in federal stimulus aid coming to Pennsylvania.

Top administration officials yesterday defended the expenditure. They said it was necessary to explain to Pennsylvanians exactly what the stimulus money would pay for and how it could help them weather the economic downturn.

From the amazing John Micek:

Lawyers For House Democrats and former consultant Bill Chadwick have agreed to let a retired Dauphin County judge decide their dispute over the ownership of a Bonusgate-related court file.

Ex-Judge G. Thomas Miller will hear the dispute, a spokesman for Majority Leader Todd Eachus, D-Luzerne, said this afternoon. Last week, Judge Lawrence F. Clark recommended that the warring sides allow a special master to hear the case.

Hey KPer's,

I've heard a lot of feedback over the past month about our migration to our new content system, the design of the site, etc. First, I want to say that I agree. I was premature in moving us over to this new system, and I've been dissatisfied with the results ever since. Next time, I'll be more careful.

While we're sticking with this system for the foreseeable future, the good news is that we're bringing the design and features you loved most about KP back to the site. I'm working right now to finalize an updated (though not final) design that I think will address many of your concerns. After that, we'll work on bringing in some new features to make the site better than ever.

Thanks for being patient, ya'll.

--Greg

Republican Rep. Mike Turzai "must be nuts" for seeking a state tax cut when the state needs more revenue, Gov. Ed Rendell said Tuesday.

Turzai of Bradford Woods yesterday suggested reducing the state's 3.07 percent personal income tax to 2.99 percent, and more deeply cut the Department of Community and Economic Development's budget than Rendell proposed in February.

"It's ludicrous," said Rendell. He said it might mean a $20 tax break for most people.

With the state facing a $2.6 billion deficit and people losing jobs during the recession, the last thing Pennsylvania needs is Turzai's plan, Rendell said. "It's about creating more jobs and putting more money back into the economy," he said.

Turzai, the minority whip, fired back: "I think the governor is nuts for having overspent the last six years. He increased spending by 40 percent while the inflation rate increased 20 percent. He's absolutely nuts for mortgaging the future of our kids and grandchildren. He's borrowed over $6 billion that we will pay back to the tune of $10 billion, all to satisfy his insatiable appetite (for spending)."

An Amish farmer in Cambria County was ordered Tuesday to spend 90 days in jail for refusing to bring a pair of outhouses into compliance with state sewage laws.

Andy Swartzentruber of Ebensburg cites his conservative religious beliefs for refusing to abide by a court order to make the privies used by schoolchildren compliant and pay a fine. He was led away by a sheriff's deputy after Cambria County Common Pleas Judge Norman Krumenacker upheld a contempt of court ruling.

Krumenacker said he had no choice but to sentence Swartzentruber to jail and pay a $1,000 fine. He ordered the Amish school and outhouse padlocked.

When thousands of students ditch home computers and gather in makeshift classrooms across the state today, the future of their cyber charter schools is uncertain.

Testing begins on reading and math portions of the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment, the measure by which the state determines whether public schools are making "adequate yearly progress" under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Last year, only three of the state's 11 cyber schools -- which educate more than 19,000 students -- achieved AYP.

Traditional schools that fail to do so face corrective action from the state that increases in severity each succeeding year, up to a state takeover. Cyber schools face the threat of the state not renewing their five-year charters, effectively shutting them. Six charters are up in the next two years, and test scores will be a big factor in renewals, said Leah Harris, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Sarah McCluan, spokeswoman for the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, which oversees Pennsylvania Learners Online in Homestead, said cyber schools are raging against the importance placed on the PSSA, a standardized test that determines students' proficiency in math, reading, science and writing.

"You can't compare traditional students' test scores to a cyber school's test scores," McCluan said. "In many ways, using these tests to measure our students' achievement against other schools is almost like using a ruler to measure somebody's weight."

Good riddance. We've been waiting for this scumbag to go to jail since KP opened five years ago.

HE WAS a political powerhouse in Harrisburg who boasted of securing $8 billion in state largesse for Philadelphia.

He had about 90 state-paid aides and contractors at his beck and call to do his personal and political bidding.

He paid a private eye with state money to spy on his political enemies and tapped a tax-exempt nonprofit he founded to finance a lawsuit against a powerful Senate rival.

But today, former state Sen. Vince Fumo stands as a disgraced pol after a federal jury of 10 women and two men yesterday found him guilty on 137 counts of conspiracy, fraud, obstruction of justice and related offenses.

Pennsylvania AFL-CIO president Bill George said yesterday that he and other labor leaders have told Sen. Arlen Specter (R., Pa.) that they would help him survive a primary challenge next year if he supports legislation that makes it easier to unionize workers.

"If he's there for us, we'll be there for him," George said in an interview. "We would do everything we can to make sure he wins," he said, including efforts to persuade union members to register as Republicans so they could back Specter at the polls.

A newly disclosed e-mail from a high-ranking Pennsylvania House Democrat acknowledges an employee's thanks for a bonus that she described as a reward for campaign efforts.

The e-mail exchange between Rep. Bill DeWeese and caucus research analyst Karen E. Steiner is notable because DeWeese has consistently maintained he was unaware that any bonuses had been given out for campaigning.

''I can't thank you enough for the bonus for campaigning,'' Steiner wrote in December 2004 to

DeWeese, at a time when he was the Democrats' floor leader. ''I am speechless, as most of us are.''

DeWeese, D-Greene, replied in computer lingo: ''UR welcome.''

From philly.com:

Former State Sen. Vincent Fumo was convicted of all 137 counts against him today as his marathon federal corruption trial ended in a stunning victory for prosecutors.

The jury also found co-defendant Ruth Arnao guilty of all 45 counts against her.

After a 30-minute hearing this afternoon, U.S. District Judge Ronald L. Buckwalter agreed to let Fumo and Arnao remain free pending sentencing although he ordered them to post bail of $2 million and $500,000, respectively, by Wednesday.

"STAY TUNED for a big announcement on Monday everyone!"

So wrote a blogging juror who's been deliberating for five days in the public corruption trial of former state Sen. Vincent J. Fumo, in a comment posted Friday on his Facebook Internet profile.

The posting by Juror No. 5 - Eric Wuest of suburban College-ville - raised questions:

Is a verdict imminent? Did Wuest have third-party discussions about the trial as a result of his postings on Facebook and Twitter social networking Internet accounts during the 15-week trial and the ensuing deliberations?

Last night, Fumo defense attorneys NiaLena Caravasos and Peter Goldberger filed an emergency motion seeking an immediate suspension of deliberations so the judge could conduct "a delicate, but probing inquiry" of the juror Wuest's actions.

"Depending on the results, the lawyers wrote, "one or more jurors ought to be removed and possibly replaced."

An e-mail provided to defense attorneys in the so-called Bonusgate case might contradict former House Democratic Leader Bill DeWeese's longstanding claim that he knew nothing about state-paid bonuses for campaign work.

In December 2004, an e-mail written by legislative research analyst Karen Steiner thanked DeWeese, D-Greene County, and then-House Democratic Whip Mike Veon of Beaver Falls for a "bonus for campaigning." DeWeese responded with "U R welcome," copies of the exchange obtained by the Tribune-Review show.

Prosecutors provided the e-mail to defense attorney Bryan Walk, who represents former House Democrat staffer Brett Cott on charges of theft and conflict of interest.

Steiner could not be reached for comment. The amount of the bonus she received in December 2004 could not be immediately determined.

The e-mail is among 25,000 Walk has received from Attorney General Tom Corbett's office, which is prosecuting the case.

"It's my understanding that other defense attorneys also received this information," Cott said Sunday night.

A spokesman said DeWeese did not recall the e-mail.

"Given the volume of e-mail that comes to him and given that some of it is handled by staff, Bill does not recall this e-mail," said spokesman Tom Andrews. "At the time responding kindly to one of many 'thank yous' for Christmas bonuses would have been a routine matter."

Could the 17th time be the charm?

Every year since 1992, state Sen. Stewart Greenleaf has introduced a keg-registration bill.

This year, the proposal has gotten farther than it ever has, said Greenleaf, a Republican who represents Montgomery and Bucks counties. On Wednesday, the Senate's Law and Justice Committee sent it to the full Senate for consideration.

"We have a better chance now," Greenleaf said.

Greenleaf said he believes the bill would curtail underage and binge drinking. If police can track a keg to the purchaser, adults would be less likely to buy one and turn it over to minors, he said.

Beer trade associations have successfully battled keg-registration proposals for years, and Greenleaf's latest effort is no exception.

"I think we should stick to the real solutions: educating kids, raising awareness and enforcing some of the laws we already have on the books," said Jay D. Wiederhold, president of the Pennsylvania Beer Wholesalers Association in Harrisburg.

Senate Bill 44 would require each purchaser to complete a numbered form listing his or her name and address. The beer distributor would attach an identification tag to the keg that corresponds to the numbered form. Greenleaf's office could not provide the cost of creating this system.

A bill that would extend anti-discrimination protections to include sexual orientation is heading to the Pennsylvania House floor after a party-line committee vote.

The State Government Committee approved the bill Wednesday.

It would amend the state Human Relations Act to extend protections against bias in housing, employment, credit or public accommodations.

In addition to sexual orientation, it also would extend protections to gender identity or expression.

All 12 Democrats voted for the bill, while all 11 Republicans were against it.

Supporters say it has wide support among the people of Pennsylvania, while opponents worry that it will infringe on the religious beliefs of others.

In Gov. Rendell's mind, it was a very simple request.

In these tough economic times, he wanted every corner of state government, including the courts and the legislature, to cut 4.25 percent from their budgets to help cover a $2.3 billion shortfall this year.

He made the request in October. Yet five months later, the governor says he has heard back from only a single entity: House Democrats.

"It's mind-boggling to me," an exasperated Rendell said in an interview this week. "I'm amazed that given the depth of this economic crisis, we appear to be stonewalled by everyone."

Many state agencies, including the courts, the Auditor General's Office, and the Attorney General's Office, don't see it that way.

They say they've made deep cuts in the last few months and are operating on shoestring budgets, possibly setting the stage for a showdown with the administration.

Robert Gamburg confronted Nutter after the news conference, as Nutter chatted with reporters. He asked whether the mayor was aware that he was in the process of arranging to pay his taxes.

"I'd also like to know if we are the only three people in the entire city that owe back taxes," Gamburg said, and wanted to know why Nutter chose his building to hold the news conference.

"I'm not going to argue with you on the sidewalk - you owe the city money, pay your taxes," Nutter said.

When Gamburg questioned why Nutter was getting "upset," Nutter raised the bar.

"Oh, you've never seen me upset," Nutter said. "So I'm not upset. Just pay your taxes and everything will be fine."

Gov. Ed Rendell called for an investigation of a Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board contract awarded to a top PLCB manager's husband, even as more details surfaced questioning the contract bidding process, including suspicions from competing firms that the award was "fishy" and seemed like an inside job.

The PLCB recently awarded a $173,000 contract to Solutions 21, a West End consulting firm whose president is married to a state store system regional manager. PLCB officials said the process was legitimate, but it led to calls from state legislators for an explanation, and Mr. Rendell yesterday agreed.

Via CQ:

A defense lobbyist and his family made $1.5 million in political contributions from 2000 through 2008 as the lobbyist's now-embattled firm helped clients win billions of dollars in federal contracts. A sizable chunk of those campaign dollars went to the House members who control Pentagon spending.

Paul Magliocchetti, founder of the PMA Group, and nine of his relatives -- two children, his daughter-in-law, his current wife, his ex-wife and his ex-wife's parents, sister and brother-in-law -- poured contributions into the coffers of candidates, political action committees and national and state party committees, according to a CQ review of public documents.

During this time, PMA grew from a start-up to the 11th-richest lobbying outfit in the country.

The top beneficiaries were a select group of Democratic members of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, other allies of the top Pentagon appropriator in the House, Rep. John P. Murtha , D-Pa., and the company's own political action committee, which in turn made contributions to many of the same lawmakers.

A state lawmaker today will introduce legislation to levy sales tax on political advertising, but a prominent campaign consultant said that's akin to taxing freedom of speech.

Television or radio ads by political candidates would be subject to the 6 percent tax, said Rep. Anthony DeLuca, D-Penn Hills.

He would use the estimated $6.6 million in revenue to help pay for adultBasic health care, state subsidized medical insurance for low-income workers.

The tax would apply to presidential candidates, those seeking statewide offices, and candidates for the General Assembly.

A former lawyer for state House Democrats who was paid $1.3 million by taxpayers won't give caucus leaders a file on a public corruption investigation.

Bill Chadwick, who represented the caucus as a legislative bonus scandal unfolded, said Tuesday that House Majority Whip Bill DeWeese instructed him not to provide the file to the caucus. Chadwick represented the caucus and DeWeese while DeWeese was majority leader through 2007 and 2008.

DeWeese of Greene County asserted attorney-client privilege, said Chadwick, a former state inspector general. "I am ethically bound to honor a client's directions," he said.

"The taxpayers paid for Mr. Chadwick's services," House Majority Leader Todd Eachus, D-Luzerne County, countered in an interview.

Eachus late Monday filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Democratic Caucus, asking a judge to order Chadwick to turn over the file.

A Johnstown conservative who unsuccessfully ran for governor three times will challenge Sen. Arlen Specter next year for the Republican nomination.

Peg Luksik, 53, is best known as a right-to-life advocate who founded a charity to assist single mothers.

Her entry into the GOP primary could divide conservatives if former Republican U.S. Rep. Pat Toomey, who narrowly lost to Specter in the 2004, decides to run as well.

Luksik said that wouldn't affect her campaign.

"(Toomey) told me he wasn't running in February. I'm assuming I can take him at his word," Luksik said.

Toomey, 47, declined to comment.

"But he's still seriously thinking about the run," said Nachama Soloveichik, communications director of the Club for Growth, a limited-government group Toomey heads.

Arguing that Pennsylvania families "need help now" to weather the recession, Gov. Rendell yesterday said he would redirect millions of dollars for health insurance, mortgage assistance, home-heating assistance, and job-counseling programs.

Calling it "emergency economic relief," the governor said he would immediately offer coverage to an additional 16,000 people now on a waiting list for the state-subsidized health-insurance program for lower-income adults. More than 200,000 residents are on the adultBasic waiting list now - 25,000 of them added just last month.

Rendell said he also would move $5 million into an existing fund that helps recently unemployed residents pay their mortgage while looking for jobs. The money will help an additional 550 families, the governor said.

The governor said he was taking the actions by executive order after job losses continued to mount, adding that the rate in some counties had reached double digits. Pennsylvania's unemployment rate is 7 percent.

As the most daunting fiscal crisis of a generation swirls around him, Mayor Nutter will present a budget next week to a City Council whose support for him remains stubbornly uncertain.

On March 19, Nutter will ask Council members and their constituents to accept deep service cuts, onerous tax increases, or both - requests that will severely stress the relationship between the mayor and Council.

"It's going to be testy," said Councilman Darrell L. Clarke, who as majority whip is responsible for rounding up votes in a body where allegiances are still evolving. "It may challenge that relationship."

State Superior Court Judge Jack Panella will apparently run unopposed for the Democratic nomination for state Supreme Court this spring.

Panella's expected opponent, Philadelphia Judge Teresa Sarmina, said Monday she has decided to put party unity ahead of her own ambitions and withdrew from the race.

''I just re-evaluated where I was,'' she said. ''And for the betterment of the party, I decided to withdraw for another day.''

Panella, of Palmer Township, netted the state Democratic Party's official endorsement at a meeting in suburban Harrisburg in January. At that meeting Sarmina announced she planned to run without the party's endorsement and mount a primary challenge.

When it comes to teaching its employees good manners, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board is keeping it all in the family.

The PLCB recently awarded a $173,000 contract to Solutions 21, a West End consulting firm whose president is married to the PLCB's Western Pennsylvania regional manager. The contract prompted demands for an explanation from two state senators despite assurances from an PLCB spokesman that the bidding process was entirely above board.

Buddy Hobart, president of Solutions 21, which is located at 152 Wabash Ave. in the city's West End neighborhood, is married to Susanne Hobart, the Western Pennsylvania regional manager for the state store system, the PLCB spokesman confirmed after the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette received an anonymous tip about the relationship.

Neither Mr. Hobart nor Mrs. Hobart returned calls for comment, but Mrs. Hobart "had no role in the procurement process," said Nick Hayes, a spokesman for the PLCB.

Gov. Ed Rendell says he would seriously consider signing a bill to stop slot-machine gambling dollars from flowing to Philadelphia if the city continues to resist construction of two casinos there.

The former Philadelphia mayor made the comments Monday in response to a question about opposition to a pair of riverfront casinos that have been licensed by the state.

By law, Philadelphia gets a share of the state tax revenue from slots to lower the wage tax that is paid by people who live or work in the city.

Pennsylvania Republican Chairman Rob Gleason predicts the "over-reaching liberal agenda" of President Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi creates an opportunity for growth for the GOP.

In a recent interview, Gleason suggested the Obama's administration's staggering spending, spiraling national debt and higher tax proposals will lead to voter backlash. In office almost two months, Obama has shepherded through Congress a $787 million economic stimulus bill and proposed a $3.6 trillion federal budget.

When the stimulus bill passed last month, Gleason said it was time to stand up against "bloated government and uncontrolled spending policies."

Gleason of Johnstown rejected the notion that Pennsylvania has become a "blue," or Democratic, state. But he acknowledges these are tough times for the GOP.

Missed manners: PLCB is spending $173,000 to coach workers on how to talk to customers.

Liquor store clerks across Pennsylvania are about to get a crash course in manners.

The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board is spending more than $173,000 to try to improve the manners of workers at its more than 600 state stores. The board wants to make sure clerks are saying ''hello,'' ''thank you'' and ''come again'' to customers coming in for wine and liquor.

''This is part of the renaissance of the Liquor Control Board,'' Joe Conti, the PLCB's chief executive, told The Philadelphia Inquirer for a story published Sunday. ''The point is to become a specialty retailer and not be known as a government monopoly.''

The board has hired a Pittsburgh consulting firm, Solutions 21, to help coach store managers on how to get their staff to be good sales reps.

The managers will then go into stores and instruct clerks on things like how to greet a customer, how to read a customer's cues and where to stand.

For years, former state Sen. Vince Fumo affected your life in ways you probably never knew - how your bridge tolls were spent, who set your property taxes or ran Fairmount Park, who sat in judgment on your civil and criminal disputes.

In a 30-year career, Fumo accumulated power and influence on a scale rarely seen, raising and spending enormous amounts of money and building influence among elected officials, judges, and countless boards and agencies that make policy, control jobs and award contracts.

So what happens now, as Fumo awaits a jury's verdict in his federal corruption trial? Will the Fumo empire endure? Will it find a new leader?

No, say most Fumo allies and observers.

While friends, allies and appointees of Fumo will remain embedded in influential positions for some time, the network has lost its nerve center and will no longer function as a team.

To a generation of Philadelphians, they are known simply as "the free clinics" - city-run health centers where one can get care ranging from pediatrics to dentistry to OB-GYN.

But they may not be free any more.

Even as public-health officials consider massive disruptions in health care - among the options on Mayor Nutter's desk is closing the city nursing home and up to three of the clinics - one change is increasingly likely: Patients without insurance will face fees on a sliding scale at all the centers.

The fees won't be a lot - tentatively a $5 to $20 co-payment per visit - but no one knows the impact on people who are struggling.

"Some will be happy to pay," said Cheryl Bettigole, clinical director of Health Center No. 10, in the Northeast, "but there's no question that it's going to be hard. It's a working-poor population. People are proud. If they can't pay, they might not come."

Another special election is needed for the Pennsylvania Legislature now that Republican Rep. David Argall has won a Senate seat.

No date was immediately set for an election to fill Argall's 124th District seat, which is in parts of Berks and Schuylkill counties.

Unofficial returns from Tuesday's special election show Argall with 62.4 percent of the vote to 37.6 percent for Stephen Lukach, a Democrat who has conceded defeat and says he won't run for Argall's House seat.

Argall and Lukach were vying to replace Sen. James Rhoades, who died in October. The Senate district covers all of Schuylkill County and parts of Berks County, the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos.

The head of the fundraising arm of Pennsylvania's student aid agency has been fired in a dispute over his travel expenses.

The board of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Foundation voted unanimously to terminate Michael Hershock from his $150,000-a-year job as its president and CEO, citing a "willful breach of the president's fiduciary duty involving personal profits."

Hershock's lawyer, Walter Cohen, accused the board of "totally disregarding" the terms of his client's contract, but said he was unsure whether they would pursue legal action challenging Monday's firing.

State Rep. David Argall overcame a blizzard of negative ads in recent weeks, then a real snowstorm Monday, to win the late James J. Rhoades' seat in the state Senate on Tuesday.

Argall declared victory at 10:45 p.m. to a cheering crowd at his campaign headquarters in Tamaqua.

''I just wish that Jim Rhoades was here to see this,'' Argall said. ''He was a friend for a very long time.'' Flanked by his family, he hugged his mother and asked supporters to ''please keep Jim and his whole family in your prayers, because they've been through a terrible ordeal.''

Argall noted to cheers of ''Sen-a-tor, sen-a-tor,'' that he won every county in the district -- ''from Tower City to Camelback Mountain. I couldn't ask for more than that.''

Final but unofficial tallies gave Argall 20,786 votes to Schuylkill County Clerk of Courts Stephen M. Lukach Jr.'s 12,551.

Pennsylvania's public schools could get $437 million more than they were expecting under Gov. Ed Rendell's proposed budget and the four state-related universities could bank an additional $42 million, thanks to the federal stimulus money headed this way.

Rendell announced Tuesday he plans to use $418 million of the stimulus money to boost the state's basic education subsidy to $5.98 billion in the next fiscal year. The basic education subsidy funds public school operations and instruction.

Rendell originally proposed increasing the subsidy by $300 million from state funds. Now that $300 million would be available to plug other budget gaps.

The governor is also proposing $319 million of stimulus money for school districts to spend on ''other academic investments'' and keeping property taxes down. Districts could spend that portion on modernizing, renovating or repairing their schools, on basic or special education, career and technical education, or adult and family literacy programs, said Education Department spokesman Michael Race.

Even as the state struggles with a growing budget deficit, senators yesterday questioned why the Rendell administration is proposing to cut at least $20 million to hospitals that disproportionately serve Medicaid patients as well as the uninsured poor.

At a budget hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee, both Democratic and Republican senators expressed concerns about Gov. Rendell's proposal to slash payments to those hospitals by roughly 15 percent in his proposed $29 billion budget for 2009-10.

Pat Toomey, who six weeks ago said he had turned his attention toward a possible run for governor, now says he is considering a repeat bid for U.S. Senate.

The about-face by the former Lehigh Valley congressman comes as three other Republicans continue to pursue the governor's mansion in 2010 and with conservatives itching to put up a credible challenge to Republican Sen. Arlen Specter.

Specter's support for the economic stimulus bill last month has left the party hierarchy on the fence over whether it will back the five-term lawmaker again next year.

''Unfortunately, the recent extraordinary response of the federal government -- more corporate bailouts, unprecedented spending and debt, higher taxes -- is likely to make things worse,'' Toomey said in a statement Monday

At worst, Hillary Transue thought she might get a stern lecture when she appeared before a judge for building a spoof MySpace page mocking the assistant principal at her high school in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. She was a stellar student who had never been in trouble, and the page stated clearly at the bottom that it was just a joke.

Prosecutors say Judges Michael T. Conahan, and Mark A. Ciavarella Jr., above, took kickbacks to send teenagers to detention centers.

Instead, the judge sentenced her to three months at a juvenile detention center on a charge of harassment.

She was handcuffed and taken away as her stunned parents stood by.

"I felt like I had been thrown into some surreal sort of nightmare," said Hillary, 17, who was sentenced in 2007. "All I wanted to know was how this could be fair and why the judge would do such a thing."

Twenty-nine years into his U.S. Senate career, Arlen Specter cast what he calls his most difficult vote ever -- a "yes" on the $787 billion economic stimulus bill that made him the only Republican facing re-election in 2010 to support it.

Now, with GOP anger still simmering, Specter is under pressure to buck the party again and support "card check" legislation to make it easier for workers to form unions.

It is only the latest tight spot for the 79-year-old Specter, a political moderate and maverick who is used to being on the political rack, stretched between the wishes of an increasingly conservative party in an increasingly liberal state.

He is in meetings every day about the card check bill, he said, hearing more about it than any other issue and not revealing to anybody which way he is leaning.

"I've been in this line of work long enough that people ... know my arm's not twistable," Specter said in an interview Thursday.

It is that streak of independence that the fifth-term Specter flaunts and Republicans fear.

Whether he wins or loses his federal corruption trial, former state Sen. Vincent Fumo will be remembered here as a sharp strategist, a charmer and a bully, and a champion for his hometown of Philadelphia and himself.

"I always thought Fumo was the kind of guy who would step on his own mother to get ahead," said William G. Williams of Camp Hill, a former aide to the late Republican House Speaker Matthew Ryan. "I never trusted the guy."

Fumo, a former banker and lawyer who boasted about his membership in a high-IQ organization, leaves a legacy after 30 years in the Senate of secret budget deals, huge sums of money for Philadelphia, the legalization of casino gambling, and passage of Act 44, the multibillion-dollar transportation funding law, say former legislative staffers, lawmakers and political analysts.

A federal jury Tuesday is expected to begin deliberations in Philadelphia in the 139-count indictment against Fumo, which alleges widespread abuse of power. Four months of testimony about Fumo's personal and political world only underscored the veteran Democrat's legacy.