Pennsylvania category, Page 201
Pennsylvania’s big higher education problem gets a spotlight
HARRISBURG — Gov . Tom Wolf’s proposal to start a major new scholarship program for students at Pennsylvania’s state-owned universities caused a stir over his idea to divert the money from a sacred cow, but it also spotlit an uncomfortable truth about Pennsylvania’s ragged performance on higher education funding. By...
Trump used Philly girl’s story to attack ‘failing’ schools. But she’s at one of the city’s most desired charters
PHILADELPHIA — President Donald Trump turned a Philadelphia fourth grader into a poster child for the school-choice movement Tuesday when he told the nation thousands of students were “trapped in failing government schools” and announced that she was finally getting a scholarship to attend the school of her choice. But...
Study: Pa. roads average 1,030 litter items per mile
Pennsylvania state agencies are declaring war on litter. On Wednesday, the agencies released the results of the first statewide study on litter — the cost of cleaning it up, public attitudes toward litter — and announced the formation of a working group to shift Pennsylvania’s strategy from cleanup to prevention....
Groundhog Day 2020 sets attendance record in Punxsutawney
That Punxsutawney Phil really brings people together, and in big numbers. This year’s Groundhog Day celebration in Punxsutawney had attendance that exceeded 40,000, according to PennLive citing estimates from the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. According to PennLive, the previous Groundhog Day attendance record was 35,000 in 1997, with average attendance coming...
Vice President Pence to mix politics, education policy in Pennsylvania swing
HARRISBURG — Vice President Mike Pence is making a swing through Pennsylvania on Wednesday to tout the Trump administration’s support for funding tuition for private school students and, on the campaign side, to make an appeal to women voters. He will be with U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and senior...
Police: Street shooting in Philadelphia leaves 3 men wounded
PHILADELPHIA — A street shooting in Philadelphia left three men wounded early Wednesday, including one who was hospitalized in critical condition. Police officers responding to numerous reports of shots fired found the three victims around 12:30 a.m. Two people were seen running from the scene, but police said it was...
Pennsylvania lawmakers laud, slam Trump’s State of the Union speech along party lines
U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey credited President Donald Trump with setting “an optimistic and ambitious agenda for the future” in Tuesday night’s State of the Union speech, which cited goals such as eradicating the AIDS epidemic, curing childhood cancer and planting the first flag on Mars. Toomey, a Lehigh Valley Republican,...
Jailed Lebanon County woman in need of cancer surgery moved to state prison
HARRISBURG — A woman sentenced to 10 months in jail for a $109.63 theft, despite needing surgery to treat what her family says is advanced uterine and cervical cancer, is being transferred to a Pennsylvania state prison, her lawyer said Monday. Ashley Menser’s family is asking the sentencing judge to...
Pat Toomey says he will vote against articles of impeachment
HARRISBURG — Republican Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania said Tuesday he will vote to acquit President Donald Trump on two impeachment charges, maintaining that the president didn’t commit an impeachable offense and that removing Trump would cause “societal upheaval.” Toomey sided with nearly all of his fellow Republicans in advance...
Highlights of Gov. Tom Wolf’s state budget proposal
HARRISBURG — Highlights of Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf’s spending plan for the 2020-21 budget year that starts July 1: THE BIG PICTURE — Increases spending through the state’s main bank account to $36.1 billion. Including nearly $600 million for the current fiscal year, Wolf is seeking authorization for another $2.6...
Pennsylvania hunters killed record 4,653 black bears in 2019
HARRISBURG — Wildlife authorities say Pennsylvania hunters killed 4,653 black bears last year, setting a new record. The Pennsylvania Game Commission said Monday the total is far above last year’s total of 3,153, which was the 11th highest total recorded but was also the lowest in almost a dozen years....
Woman pleads guilty to soliciting stepfather’s murder
WILKES-BARRE — A woman has pleaded guilty to soliciting the homicide of her stepfather nearly five years ago in northeastern Pennsylvania. Twenty-five-year-old Kendra Dias entered the plea Monday as her trial was about to open. Under a plea agreement, Luzerne County prosecutors withdrew a conspiracy count and are to recommend...
No evidence Flyers mascot Gritty hit 13-year-old in the back, police say
Did Gritty physically assault a 13-year-old boy in November? No, said Philadelphia police Monday. A news release stated that the actions of the person wearing the Flyers’ mascot costume that night did not constitute physical assault. The investigation is no longer active. The person wearing the mascot costume has not...
Pennsylvania ranked as 5th best state for singlesVideo
Being single for Valentine’s Day might not be so bad this year — especially for people in Pennsylvania. The Commonwealth came in fifth out of all 50 states as the best place to be single in 2020, according to a recent WalletHub.com report. The report used 29 metrics related to...
2 men arrested after gas station gunfire exchange kills 2 in ChesterVideo
CHESTER — Police have arrested two suspects after a gas station convenience store robbery and gun battle that left two people dead near Philadelphia. Officers in Chester were called to the Sunoco A-Plus Mini Market shortly after 4 a.m. Saturday and found 29-year-old Tahriq Doward in front of the store...
Sweeping changes to Pennsylvania election law could make early voting a norm
The heat is on — and it’s getting hotter for election officials across Pennsylvania as the April 28 presidential primary approaches. A new state election law that allows, among other things, no-excuse mail-in balloting 50 days before an election, coupled with the introduction of new voting machines in 22 counties,...
What to watch for in Pennsylvania governor’s budget proposal
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Gov. Tom Wolf’s sixth budget proposal to the Republican-controlled Legislature will come out Tuesday, and the Democrat is expected to seek more for public schools and emphasize the urgency of addressing student-loan debt and cleaning up lead and asbestos in schools. Many details of the plan, which...
Pennsylvania on track to expand overtime pay eligibility
HARRISBURG — Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration is on the brink of making Pennsylvania one of a handful of states to expand eligibility for overtime pay beyond federal thresholds, winning a final vote Friday from a state regulatory board. The Independent Regulatory Review Commission voted 3-2 to approve a regulation that...
Lead, asbestos contamination shuts down Pennsylvania schools
Students at three Pennsylvania schools were told to stay home Thursday amid concerns over lead and asbestos contamination, as Pennsylvania State Police investigate what former district officials did to address problems with tainted water. One day after Gov. Tom Wolf unveiled a $1.1 billion plan to help Pennsylvania’s public schools...
Sheetz Christmas campaign collects $700K for children’s charity
Sheetz For the Kidz, a charity affiliated with the Altoona-based Sheetz convenience store chain, raised a record amount in its Christmas 2019 fundraiser for children in need, the company announced on Thursday. The $704,658 raised from in-store customer donations provided toys, clothes and other necessities for more than 9,600 children...
Trump support edges up in Pennsylvania poll as impeachment continues
President Trump has grown stronger with Pennsylvania voters despite ongoing impeachment proceedings, a poll finds. A majority of the 628 registered Pennsylvania voters who responded to a Jan. 20-26 Franklin & Marshall Poll said it is time for a change in the White House. Still, 38% of them said President...
3rd-degree murder charge filed in death of 91-year-old grandfatherVideo
WILKES-BARRE — Authorities allege that a man charged in the death of his 91-year-old grandfather last week ingested LSD and exhibited “violent and erratic behavior” that prompted his friends to leave the northeastern Pennsylvania home hours before the victim’s body was found. Nineteen-year-old Joshua Bacon is charged in Luzerne County...
Pennsylvania has early primary envy, plots to move up in 2024
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania wants to be a player in the presidential primary, instead of an afterthought. The state Senate on Wednesday unanimously approved a bill that would move up Pennsylvania’s primary elections in presidential election years by five weeks, starting in 2024, in a state where critics say its presidential...
Unwed, pregnant teacher in Pennsylvania can sue Catholic school over bias
SUNBURY — A Pennsylvania teacher who alleges that she was fired from her job at a Roman Catholic school because the diocese was upset she was pregnant and unmarried has lost another bid for reinstatement, but she will be allowed to proceed with her discrimination lawsuit. A judge in Northumberland...
Gov. Wolf floats plan to attack lead, asbestos in Pa. schools
HARRISBURG — Gov. Tom Wolf unveiled a new $1.1 billion package Wednesday intended to help eliminate lead and asbestos contamination in Pennsylvania’s schools, homes, day care facilities and public water systems. The five initiatives include money in Wolf’s upcoming budget proposal and expanding existing grant programs, his administration said. One...
