Pennsylvania tenants and homeowners missed out on roughly $108 million in federal relief funding because state programs made it too hard to access, Spotlight PA reports.

Now that money will go to the Department of Corrections for payroll expenses.

Over the summer, Pennsylvania created two new housing programs to spend money it received under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act: $150 million for rent relief and $25 million for mortgage help. But the rental initiative was flawed from the beginning, with a demanding application process and a $750 per month cap that led many landlords not to participate.

Despite being aware of these problems since July, the GOP-controlled legislature declined to institute fixes. 

THE CONTEXT: An estimated 240,000 Pennsylvania families may face eviction in January, when a federal ban on evictions for people who could not pay rent expires, and back rent is due.

Congress on Sunday agreed on a $900 billion relief package that reportedly could extend the eviction ban until the end of January and includes $25 billion in emergency rent assistance. Still, it's unclear how that money will be distributed and if it will come soon enough to stave off what advocates warn could be a surge of eviction cases in the new year.

"If we want to save lives and livelihoods — and I’m thinking of restaurants and bars here — we need to get residents and employees in long-term care facilities vaccinated as soon as possible."

— Zachary Lysek, Northampton County coroner, on a $750 incentive to get employees of the Gracedale nursing home vaccinated for COVID-19

SEEING, NO SMELLING: The 2021 Farm Show is going virtual this year, with daily cooking and educational demonstrations starting Jan. 9. While you won't be able to pet (and smell) the farm animals, you can still get your fix with special online events like "Alpaca Obstacle Courses."  

PUPPY SCAMS: Yes, that's right — puppy scams. Attorney General Josh Shapiro recently warned of "pet sale scammers" who charge people thousands of dollars for dogs that don't exist. One Quakertown-area woman lost $5,500 in such a con. 

MOVE OVER, FROSTY: A roving band of pranksters has left inflatable, 18-foot-tall snowmen at the homes of nearly 40 people in Beaver County. Instead of being weirded out as your newsletter writer would be, people in the area seem to be delighted: "My husband and I were just saying the way this year has been, this is something nice," one resident said.

TODAY I LEARNED: As a certified whiskey-head, I'm a bit ashamed to admit I didn't know until Sunday that Old Overholt originated in Westmoreland County. In an attempt to raise the brand's profile, the company has released a 114-proof whiskey, and an 11-year-old straight rye, only in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Santa, please take note. 

MOTHER OF THE BLUES: As a gift to myself, I've been saving "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" to watch this weekend. I've read August Wilson's masterpiece, but I'm just now learning about the real Getrude “Ma” Rainey, who "broke new ground for generations of blues singers to come by fusing vaudeville with southern blues."