With the help of millions of dollars in federal funding, Pennsylvania has plugged more oil and gas wells in the last year and a half than it did in the past decade. 

Environmental advocates say this marks enormous progress for a state that has long struggled with tens of thousands of dangerous wells that leak methane — a powerful greenhouse gas that fuels climate change — into the atmosphere. 

But they also caution that the unprecedented amount of money flowing into Pennsylvania may not be going toward the worst wells, and they argue the plugging project needs better oversight.

Read Spotlight PA's full coverage: Federal money has supercharged Pa.’s plugging of dangerous wells, but critics want more oversight.

LEGAL FEES: Pennsylvania’s election agency is seeking reimbursement from Fulton County for legal fees and litigation costs, the AP reports. The state Supreme Court previously sanctioned the county for giving a third party access to its 2020 voting machine data to help former President Donald Trump overturn his defeat. One county commissioner said he was unaware of the requested repayment to the state.

NO MANDATE: A Pennsylvania lawmaker has introduced a bill that would ban Pennsylvania universities from requiring undergraduate students to complete a diversity course to graduate, WTAE reports. State Rep. Stephenie Scialabba (R., Butler) cited the University of Pittsburgh as inspiration; the Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences' website says students "must complete one course that is designated as a Diversity course.”

OFFICE SPACE: Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker wants city workers back in the office full-time. But The Inquirer (paywall) reports some question the impact of such a move on already rampant staffing vacancies. In Pittsburgh, officials are seeking $30 million in state aid to help convert empty downtown offices into homes.