This week, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) is encouraging drivers traveling to the Little League World Series in Williamsport to plan their trip using the enhanced real-time travel and alternate-route information available on a specialized web page at www.511PA.com/map/page/LLWS.
These enhancements support Gov. Josh Shapiro’s commitment to providing accessible, real-time digital services to every Pennsylvanian.
“Our goal is to help travelers plan ahead by providing them with as much information as possible,” said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll. “By sharing real-time, traffic speed information along alternate routes, drivers can be aware of traffic conditions and choose the route that works best for them as they travel to this year’s Little League World Series.”
Hosted through the department’s www.511PA.com traveler information website, the page is dedicated to monitoring traffic conditions on the primary travel routes to the event:
• Route 15 south to Route 220 to Market Street (from north).
• Route 15 north (from south).
• Interstate 80 east to Route 220 north to Market Street (from west).
• I-80 west to Route 15 north (from east).
The page includes the current travel time for the primary route as well as one or two alternate routes. Users can see incidents, construction, traffic cameras, and traffic speeds on the map.
PennDOT’s Central Region Traffic Management Center is also supporting the Little League World Series by posting real-time travel information on changeable message signs along primary travel routes to the event. Travelers should be prepared for changing traffic patterns, slow-moving or stopped vehicles, and increased pedestrian traffic.
“During the series, and always, please drive safely,” Carroll said. “Always pay attention when you are behind the wheel – put down your phone, it’s dangerous and illegal in Pennsylvania – wear your seat belt and follow the posted speed limit.
Garrity announces $1K bonus
Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity is giving families with qualified PA 529 College and Career Saving Program Guaranteed Savings Plan (GSP) accounts a $1,000 bonus contribution, enhancing education savings for about 107,000 Pennsylvania families.
“We are thrilled to provide this incredible boost for families who depend on the PA 529 GSP for future education and training needs,” Garrity said. “Thanks to families’ dedication to save with PA 529 and strong returns overseen by Treasury’s investment management team, the GSP Fund has grown, and Treasury is excited to share surplus earnings with savers.”
The bonus is being paid for through surplus dollars in the GSP Fund. As of June 30, 2026, the GSP fund was 156.04% funded, reflecting a surplus of $1.06 billion — $106.9 million in surplus funds will be distributed across 106,914 PA 529 GSP accounts — representing 89% of participants in the plan.
PA 529 GSP savers with at least a $1,000 account balance, or those with at least a $100 balance with contributions made since 2022, as of July 31, 2026, are eligible for this bonus deposit. Account owners will see this deposit reflected in their third-quarter statement.
Since taking office, Treasurer Garrity has cut PA 529 fees numerous times, including five consecutive years of waived fees for PA 529 GSP accounts, resulting in nearly $28 million in savings for Pennsylvania families.
The PA 529 GSP has been helping families steadily and strategically save in a tax-advantaged way for a wide variety of qualifying technical, collegiate, apprenticeship, credential, and K-12 educational expenses since 1992. Assets in a PA 529 account do not impact a student’s eligibility for Pennsylvania state financial aid.
The PA 529 GSP allows families to save at today’s tuition rates to cover tomorrow’s tuition costs, with account growth dependent on tuition inflation. PA 529 GSP provides families the option to save at a variety of tuition levels, from community college to Ivy League universities.
For information about PA 529, visit pa529.com.
Bill to expand congressional oversight at ICE facilities
U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Pittsburgh, U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean (PA-04), U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), U.S. Rep. Summer Lee (PA-12), and U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans (PA-03) this week introduced the new Oversight Access Act of 2026.
This bill would allow U.S. Representatives to bring one member of their staff into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities for oversight, without prior notice. This would allow for additional translation services and greater capacity for oversight.
Deluzio said under a current Trump Administration rule, Members of Congress can enter the facility unannounced, but interpreters and other staff must receive prior approval, defeating the purpose of unannounced oversight visits.
“Moshannon officials blocked my staff from joining our oversight visit this May, and it limited the conversations we could have with people detained inside,” Deluzio said. “Unannounced congressional oversight visits to federal facilities are powerful and important accountability measures. However, unannounced oversight would be far stronger if Members of Congress could be accompanied by a staff member who could provide translation services, legal guidance, or policy expertise.”
“Congress has a solemn duty to conduct oversight at ICE facilities in Pennsylvania and across the country, but ICE’s arbitrary rules have made that more difficult,” Dean said. “As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I care deeply about ensuring that any facility receiving federal dollars lives up to the highest standards of care, decency, and safety.”
“When a Member of Congress visits an ICE detention facility to conduct congressional oversight, they must be able to do so effectively,” Scanlon said. “That includes being able to bring an essential staff member or interpreter to support this critical duty.”
“Congressional oversight works when Members of Congress have the proper tools they need, and our staff plays a critical role in that work, from providing translation services to bringing legal and policy expertise to the table,” Lee said. “It’s been made clear that abuse, neglect, and inhumane conditions have plagued detention centers. Members of Congress have a constitutional responsibility and right to conduct oversight, and we must be able to do our jobs without obstruction or intimidation. No administration is above accountability.”
“Over the past year and a half, we have seen numerous reports of inhumane, even deadly conditions of ICE detention facilities,” Evans said.
Deluzio and his colleagues are introducing this bill after he and Congresswoman Lee conducted an unannounced oversight visit of ICE’s largest detention center in Pennsylvania, the Moshannon Valley Detention Center. At the site, the congressmembers were not permitted to bring their congressional staff inside the facility. These staff were immigration policy experts and able to provide translation services. ICE’s blocking of congressional staff from entering the facility limited the congressmembers’ ability to communicate with people detained inside Moshannon.
Specifically, the bill would:
• Remove the requirement of prior notice for a Member or an employee to enter any facility operated by or for the Department of Homeland Security.
• Prohibit temporary modification in any such facility that would alter what is observed by a Member of Congress while conducting oversight.
• Prohibit the Secretary of Homeland Security from preventing Members of Congress and congressional employees accompanying a Member from entering a facility with the purpose of conducting oversight.
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Reach Bill O’Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on X @TLBillOBoyle.