>>State's Acting Health Secretary is Resigning
(Harrisburg, PA) -- The woman who's been acting health secretary for the State of Pennsylvania for the past five months is stepping down. Governor Wolf says Keara Klinepeter's last day on the job will be Friday as her first child is due in June. Physician General Denise Johnson, an obstetrician, will take over the health secretary duties. She became physician general in March of last year and will be the first Black woman to head the health department.
>>Woman Dies In Lewisburg Fire
(Lewistown, PA) -- One person has died and four firefighters have been injured in an apartment fire in Lewistown. The four-alarm fire happened early Tuesday morning at a building on Logan Street. Borough Fire Chief Bob Bartlett says that when they got inside the building, firefighters found a woman's body. Her identity has not been released. Six adults and three children were displaced and are now being helped by the Red Cross.
>>First Responders To Interstate-81 Crash Honored For Live-saving Efforts
(Pottsville, PA) -- The men and women who responded to last month's deadly crash on I-81 are being honored for their life-saving efforts. A ceremony on Tuesday in Pottsville near where the pile-up happened also honored the memory of the six victims of that crash that involved more than 50 vehicles. The mass-casualty event involved numerous fire, rescue, and ambulances companies. Officials remarked that many victims made it home, thanks to the quick response of emergency workers.
>>Next Steps For State's Portion Of Federal Opioid Settlement Announced
(Harrisburg, PA) -- State leaders have been meeting to discuss how Pennsylvania will use over one billion dollars from the national opioid settlement. Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro says an independent trust, known as the Pennsylvania Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust, will oversee disbursement of payments. He says 70 percent of the money will go to counties for treatment and to combat the drug's use. Fifteen percent will go to litigating counties, subdivisions, district attorneys, and special districts and 15 percent will go to the commonwealth to be appropriated by the legislature.
>>State Program Aims To Suppress Black Fly Population
(Harrisburg, PA) -- The state is introducing a new program to tamp down the number of black flies. The Department of Environmental Protection demonstrated its tools to combat the summer insects at a media event Tuesday. The program involves aerial and backpack spraying on roughly 17-hundred stream miles in 36 counties. An organic material called b-t-i is used in the sprays to suppress the fly population.
>> Flyers Fall To Maple Leafs In Tuesday Night Action
(Philadelphia, PA) -- The Philadelphia Flyers were not able to help their losing streak in play against the Toronto Maple Leafs Tuesday night. The five-two defeat at Scotiabank Arena was the Flyers' sixth straight setback and their eleventh loss in the last 13 games. The Flyers complete their two-game road trip with a visit to Montreal Thursday night.
>>Governor Proposes Cuts to State's Corporate Net Income Tax
(Harrisburg, PA) -- Governor Tom Wolf wants to cut the state's nearly ten percent corporate net income tax. Under his proposal, the nine-point 99 percent CNIT would drop to 7.99 % by January 2023, and gradual decrease each year until reaching 4.99 %. The governor says he's been pushing a cut to the tax for seven out of his last eight budgets. The proposal announced last week is supported by democratic bills in both the House and Senate.
>>Lawmakers Push For More Local Authority To Fix Creek And Stream Flooding
(Harrisburg, PA) -- Several lawmakers from around the state are proposing bills to give local authorities and landowners more control over fixing flooding issues. Current reported impediments include waiting for permits from the state DEP department. One measure would allow local governments to apply for a permit for continuing maintenance for a period of at least ten years for the streams within their areas.
>>Grants Given to Municipalities for Alternative Fuels
(Harrisburg, PA) -- The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is giving out more than two-million-dollars in alternative fuel incentive grants. Officials say the grants will support electric vehicles, charger installations, and transportation upgrades. The funds will be distributed with priority given to minority, veteran, or women-owned businesses and to Environmental Justice Areas, which the state says are especially vulnerable to the impacts of air pollution.
>>Voting Registration Deadline Coming Up
(Harrisburg, PA) -- May 2nd is the deadline to register to vote in the May primary. Officials with the Department of State urge everyone who wants to vote in the May 17th primary to register or update their information by that Tuesday. Residents also can use the state's online voter site to apply for a new registration, or make changes to your name, address, or party affiliation.
>>Senators Overpower Reading Fightin' Phils Tuesday Night
(Harrisburg, PA) -- The Senators have gotten their third straight win Tuesday night as Harrisburg traveled to Reading to play the Fightin' Phils. The 12-5 routing came with a lot of help from Taylor Gushue, who drove in five hits with two doubles and a home run. The whole team got a season-high 13 hits during the game and made nine walks. With the win, Harrisburg improves to six and four for the season.
>>Commercial Flights may Return to Reading Regional Airport
(Reading, PA) -- Officials at Reading Regional Airport say they've been approached by an unnamed airline to offer service to Florida. The airport director on Tuesday morning says the potential would be for year-round direct flights from the Bern Township airfield to Orlando, Florida twice a week on a Boeing 737 aircraft. He says he can't reveal the name of the airline because the proposal is still in the beginning stages.
>>State Orders Birds Destroyed, Quarantined In Lancaster County
(Lancaster County, PA) -- State agriculture officials have ordered over a million birds to be euthanized or quarantined in response to avian flu in Lancaster County. Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding says they're also establishing a more than six-mile quarantine area encompassing 162 poultry farms. He says they're taking the measures to prevent further spread of the viral disease after it was discovered in the area Saturday. The poultry industry is a more than seven-billion-dollar business in Pennsylvania.
>>Poultry, Egg Shows Banned Due To Avian Flu
(Harrisburg, PA) -- The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has temporarily banned poultry and egg exhibitions due to the threat of avian flu. The ban will last until June 6th unless the department rescinds the order. Some exhibitors fear, though, that the ban will be extended through the summer. They say that will make it tough on kids who take part in 4-H poultry shows.
>>Police Ask for Public's Help for Information on Shots Fired into Lancaster Home
(Lancaster, PA) -- Columbia Borough Police are asking for the public's help for tips related to a house that was shot up Tuesday. Officers responded to the 400 block of Union Street to find the house had been hit by gunfire many times. Officials are asking for anyone who may have home security cameras or for anyone who might have any information about the incident to call them. The cameras could have picked up images in the areas of Pleasant and Church Avenues and the 400 block of Avenue K.
>>Fire Destroys Property, But No People Injured
(Lancaster, PA) -- Fire department officials in Lancaster Township say it took three volunteer fire departments to make sure a farm shed fire didn't spread to other parts of the property. The fire was reported around 4:00-a.m. Tuesday at a farmhouse on Little Yellow Creek Road, and it was fully involved when firefighters arrived. A tractor and ATV were destroyed. Officials say no one was home when the fire started, and no firefighters were injured at the scene.