Governor Josh Shapiro of Abington was recently profiled by Philadelphia Magazine in an article titled “What Leaders Can Learn From Josh Shapiro“.
The article notes that some are hoping to see Shapiro as a presidential candidate in 2028 and goes on to detail his skill sets, his willingness to look for win-win scenarios, his push for creative solutions to solve problems, and his ambitions.
An excerpt:
Shapiro has always impressed me because his first instinct is to look for solutions that actually help everyone. He does that, again, by listening to people — and taking good ideas no matter where they come from. During his first budget cycle as governor, for instance, he made a point of reaching out to Republicans even before he submitted a budget proposal.
In related news, Acting Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) recently published an acknowledgement of the Shapiro Administration’s improvements to permitting processes in the state.
From the article:
DEP, alongside the Governor’s Office of Transformation and Opportunity, is making enormous strides in reviewing more than 45,000 permits every single year, all while maintaining the levels of environmental and public health protection that Pennsylvanians expect and deserve.
Under the leadership of Gov. Josh Shapiro, we are looking at ways to improve our processes. We’ve heard from applicants who want to know more about the review of their application, and what to expect. And we’ve also heard from residents who want to know more about proposed development located near where they live, work, and go to school.
DEP is also working to reduce the permit application backlog and modernize our permitting processes. Since hiring additional staff members and cataloging and reviewing DEP’s nearly 800 available types of permits, DEP has reduced the backlog by nearly 1,750 permits – that’s a 75 percent reduction – as of November 15, 2024.
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