State and Local

On Mar. 25, Gisele Fetterman visited AL DÍA Newsroom to discuss her journey to becoming Second Lady of Pennsylvania, and her plans for using her new platform to advance the work that she has done on immigrant rights, poverty, and the power of “soft” leadership.

In the first week after the launch of this new program, the positive reactions have been widespread — along with a little fear.

On Monday, Apr. 8, Philadelphia City Council’s Labor and Civil Service subcommittee held the first formal hearing on domestic workers’ rights and protections.

In the first year of his administration, District Attorney Larry Krasner has fulfilled several of the campaign promises which gained him the support of nearly 75 percent of Philadelphia voters and swept him into office in 2017. But how successful have the changes that Krasner has introduced been in reducing the city's out-sized incarceration rate - and what will be the consequences locally and nationally as he continues in his efforts to reform the criminal justice system?

“It will affect how we are treated by the federal government over the next decade, and the way things have been going we have to make sure we get everyone counted,” Mayor Jim Kenney said during Census Day 2019

The state legislator is launching a bid for mayor in the 2019 Democratic primaries, his second run at the position, against incumbent Mayor Jim Kenney.

The Pennsylvania Domestic Workers Alliance, Councilwoman Maria Quiñones-Sánchez, and other elected officials announced on March 14 that the City Council will hold hearings on a proposed Philadelphia Domestic Worker Bill of Rights.

A local worker-led organization is leading the fight to ensure that legal protection is extended to one of the most vulnerable professions in the labor force of Philadelphia - which could become the largest U.S. city to date to pass such legislation.

Shapiro joined AL DÍA last week to discuss the Office's prosecutions of predator priests for sexual abuse of children, leaving open a hotline for the public to continue denunciation of cases beyond the 1,000 uncovered by a Grand Jury Report.

Despite the latest grand jury report’s findings, Shapiro’s office has only been able to bring charges against two of the 301 “predator priests,” because of “weak laws and the statute of limitations.”

“His decision will pull resources from natural disaster relief in Puerto Rico, and will prohibit money from being spent to fix our public schools, repair our roads and bridges, and  provide affordable health care for Philadelphians,” City Council candidate Fernando Treviño told AL DÍA.

“The conditions imposed by the DOJ were an unconscionable attempt to bully the City and its residents into changing our policies,” Mayor Jim Kenney said in a press release.

Mayor Moran visited AL DÍA to discuss his first year in office, his efforts to spur economic development in Camden, and his vision moving forward for the city just across the river from Philadelphia.

Kenney’s announcement does not come as a surprise. Thus far, just one Democratic challenger has declared his candidacy - former city controller Alan Butkovitz.

City Councilman David Oh sat down with AL DÍA to discuss the controversial soda tax, the recently passed Fair Workweek legislation, violence in the city, the opioid crisis, marijuana legalization, Philly's sanctuary city status, and more.

“Across the commonwealth, we have workers aging out of our workforce, and too often the next generation of worker is not there or doesn’t have the skills to replace them. If we can’t strengthen our workforce, we will fall behind,” Gov. Wolf said.

The plan would raise the minimum wage to $12 an hour by July 1, 2019, and by 50 cents each year thereafter until reaching $15 an hour in 2025. According to the governor’s office, the increase would affect one million workers.