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Pennsylvania budget gives funding for professional caregivers
(WHTM) — Professional caregivers in Pennsylvania are among the winners in the new state budget. Governor Josh Shapiro held a ceremonial bill signing, highlighting new funding to help those with intellectual disabilities and autism. The budget allocates $354 million to supplement the pay of the professionals who care for them. “How we’ll see it at […]
Weakened version of health care non-compete limitations becomes law
(The Center Square) — Among a flurry of bills signed into law recently, Pennsylvania has taken a step in reducing the barriers created by non-compete agreements in health care. But the law in effect is a watered-down version of what was proposed in the General Assembly. “It’s a C+,” said Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Pittsburgh, who introduced House Bill 1633. “There’s a significant amendment that diluted the impact of the bill. But it clearly remains a step forward with more work to do.” ...
This Year’s Budget Overturns Local Bans on Rodeos. No Pa. Lawmaker Will Take Credit
This story first appeared in The Investigator, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring the best investigative and accountability journalism from across Pennsylvania. Sign up for free here. HARRISBURG — Under a little-noticed provision in the new state budget, Pennsylvania municipalities will be forced to allow rodeo events to take place in their borders even if local lawmakers have voted to restrict them. Only one place in the commonwealth appears to fit this description: Pittsburgh, which more than 30 years ago banned the use of some tools to control animals, including electric prods and spurs. The language is tucked into the nearly 140-page fiscal code, an...
NCLGS: Backers of smoke-free casinos see progress in Pennsylvania, other fronts
Fighting to make more casinos smoke free is like chipping away at a boulder, Bronson Frick says. Small cracks here and there eventually yield success. Advocates of a proposal to ban smoking from Pennsylvania’s gaming floors, one of the state’s last public areas or workplaces where it’s allowed, hope they made a chip with a small rally Thursday outside Rivers Casino Pittsburgh, site of the Summer Meeting of the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States (NCLGS).
Another change to Pennsylvania mail ballot envelopes: Full year will be preprinted
Votebeat is a nonprofit news organization reporting on voting access and election administration across the U.S. Sign up for Votebeat Pennsylvania’s free newsletter here.Update, July 19, 11:55 a.m.: This story was updated with additional comments from Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt to clarify his interview.The Pennsylvania Department of State is hoping another change to mail ballot return envelopes will eliminate the chance of ballots being rejected this November because of voters failing to write in the year completely.In a directive earlier this month, the Department of State told counties that they should now preprint ballot return envelopes with the full,...
VIDEO: Garrity says Trump rally shooting likely ‘nothing more than incompetence’
(The Center Square) – The cascading security failures that let a would-be assassin shoot at former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally Saturday look like “nothing more than incompetence” to Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity. “I think that we will see that with the reports come out because it was a failure to have a sniper on the building, failure to just shut down the rally,” she told The Center Square during an interview at the Republican National Convention on Thursday. “So, I think we...
Governor Josh Shapiro signs legislation aimed at saving pharmacies
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Governor Shapiro signed legislation Wednesday aiming to save local pharmacies from going out of business. Since January 1, more than 140 pharmacies in Pennsylvania have shut down, according to proponents of the bill.A KDKA investigation first profiled those struggling pharmacists in March. At issue is the role of pharmacy benefits managers, who are middlemen between the insurance companies and pharmacies.The state legislation signed Wednesday aims to create more transparency in that process. It's a win in the pharmacies' fight to stop losing money on every prescription filled. Pennsylvania State Rep. Jessica Benham led that fight. One day...
14U Steel Valley All Stars softball team improves to 2-0
(PENDLETON, IN) - The Steel Valley All Stars (SVAS), a combined 14u girls softball team with players from Boardman, Canfield, Poland and Struthers, won their second game of the day against Kentucky's state champion in the Little League Central Regional - Junior Division 9-1. Justice Paris pitched a complete game,...
English folk-punk artist Billy Bragg brings activist show to Palace Theatre
Jul. 18—Although Billy Bragg, a folk-punk artist from Great Britain, has been coming to the U.S. for 40 years, he's never been to Greensburg — before this week. When he arrives, Bragg said he plans to stroll through the downtown to get a feel for the character of the communtity. That way, he can put on a show that fosters what is at the heart of live music for Bragg: a sense of belonging. ...
Officer shoots armed man in Forest Hills, police say
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A Churchill Borough Police Department officer shot an armed man in Forest Hills on Thursday, authorities said. The Allegheny County Police Department said in a news release that officials were notified of a "disturbance" in the 200 block of Glasgow Road around 9:30 p.m. Police said multiple departments responded to the scene. When officers arrived, the news release said they "heard a firearm being chambered and a shot fired." County police said officers saw a 48-year-old man armed with a firearm and a Churchill officer shot the man in the torso.The injured man was taken to a local hospital in critical condition, authorities said. His identity has not been released. It was not immediately clear if the man pointed his firearm at law enforcement or why he fired a shot. No officers were injured, police said. Police said there is no threat to the public at this time. No other information was released on Thursday night.
Tygart Lake water levels hit record low amid ongoing West Virginia drought, Corps of Engineers reports
BUCKHANNON — The ongoing drought in West Virginia has caused Tygart Lake’s water levels to plunge to a record low, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reports that no measurable precipitation has been recorded since July 5, resulting in...
Lt. Gov. Austin Davis headlines annual state Mayors' Conference in Johnstown
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (WJAC) — The Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, Austin Davis, visited Johnstown on Friday where he spoke at the Pennsylvania State Mayors' Association annual conference. Lt. Gov. Davis talked with us about the bipartisan budget for next year that Governor Josh Shapiro signed last week. He says the...
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