The clock is ticking for Pennsylvania lawmakers to find more than $2 billion to balance the state's budget. No agreements were reported Monday, three days after .
State lawmakers haven't agreed on a budget one week into the start of the new fiscal year. Lawmakers sent the main appropriations bill in a $32 billion budget package to Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf's desk on Monday, but there's a disagreement over how to fund $2 billion. Wolf has until the end of the day Monday to decide whether to sign the proposal.
Five other U.S. states are still grappling with similar impasses: Wisconsin, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massechusetts and Oregon.
90.5 WESA's Mark Nootbaar and The Caucus' Brad Bumsted join us to talk about the hold up in Harrisburg.
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Highmark's Allegheny Health Network plans to spend $200 million to rival UPMC's Hillman Cancer Center. The new center is just the beginning of AHN's sweeping three-year plan to put the younger company on par with UPMC's "marketing machine." The plan includes improvements in care for women's health, psychiatrics and emergency room services.
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reporter Wes Venteicher and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Kris Mamula discuss what changes Highmark is making post-UPMC split.
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Pittsburgh's first land trust broke ground this week in Lawrenceville. With the recent housing price surge in the neighborhood, the Lawrenceville Corporation hopes the land trust will retain affordable home prices for up to 30 families over the next few years.
Pittsburgh City Paper's Ryan Deto and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Diana Nelson Jones explain how a land trust works and if the foundation-backed idea could hold broader promise across the city.
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The Confluence, where the news comes together, is 90.5 WESA’s weekly news program. Each week, reporters, editors and bloggers join veteran journalist and host Kevin Gavin to take an in-depth look at the stories important to the Pittsburgh region.
Find more episodes of The Confluence here.
