State & Regional News

The Pennsylvania Dairymen's Association is celebrating a milestone birthday with ice cream, not cake. They'll debut a new milkshake flavor at this year's PA Farm Show, but fans can get a free taste at pop-up events through December.

Voters with no religious affiliation supported Democratic candidates and abortion rights by staggering percentages in the 2022 midterm elections. And the religiously unaffiliated are growing.

Less than a month after the critical midterm election, Democratic and Republican leaders in the Pennsylvania state House are contesting which party can run the body, a dispute that could determine who has the power to call special elections to fill pending vacancies, and shape who lawmakers pick to lead the chamber on Jan. 3.

Makers of products like Children's Tylenol say they're trying to keep up with big demand as RSV, flu, and COVID spread. But medical experts note that kids' fevers don't always call for medicine.

Three weeks after the end of voting, challenges to certify midterm election results are playing out in just two states, Arizona and Pennsylvania, where Democrats won the marquee races for governor and Senate.

On World AIDS Day, three Lehigh Valley residents reflect on their role in helping fight the AIDS crisis at the height of the epidemic. One, a doctor, did not realize at the time he was treating the first patients in the Lehigh Valley with AIDS, let alone the extent of the impact the disease would have on the world.

A pattern change known as the "Greenland Block" could introduce cold air — and perhaps wintry weather — into the region by mid-December, meteorologists say. But what is the pattern and why could it bring snow?

Two seafood monitoring groups downgraded Maine lobster's sustainability ratings, prompting Whole Foods to pause purchases. Here's how environmental groups and state leaders are reacting.

Lowhill Township supervisors denied a land development plan for one of three proposed warehouses in the township.

"Deana's Law" will add harsh penalties for drunken and impaired drivers who repeatedly violate the law in Pennsylvania.

Gov. Josh Shapiro’s gift ban says he can’t take tickets from groups with “financial relations with the Commonwealth.” Team Pennsylvania was awarded $1.8 million in state contracts this year.

The most popular names have been a constant the past few years, according to the major health networks. But one trend that emerged in 2023 in the Lehigh Valley seems to be tied to sports — specifically, the success and popularity of the Philadelphia Phillies. Taylor Swift also may be having an impact.

The Pennsylvania Department of State is starting a new office to help train county election workers, Pa. Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt said. It also plans to update its guidance for logic and accuracy testing that could have caught issues with the Northampton County voting machines.

Lafayette College will host the 2024 vice presidential debate this coming September, drawing the world's eyes to its Easton campus. Nicole Hurd, the college's president, hopes it will be an opportunity to highlight the liberal arts school and the greater Easton community.

Lawmakers in Harrisburg passed nearly three dozen laws last week in a final burst of action as they held their last voting session of the year.

Nippon Steel is set to pay more than $14 billion to acquire Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel in a deal that Rep. Susan Wild said is “really kind of heartbreaking."

Pennsylvania's gas tax– the highest in the nation in 2023 – will drop from $0.611/gallon to $0.576/gallon and will remain in place through 2024.

It might seem counterintuitive, but harvesting holiday trees year after year is better for the environment than using an artificial one, experts said, especially amid the proliferation of plastic piling up in landfills.

Bethlehem Police Chief Michelle Kott said these types of incentives will help to attract “the best and brightest” candidates to serve the city.

More than three dozen projects in the Valley were awarded grants, receiving about 7% of the total funding awarded. Statewide, $335 million in grants were announced Wednesday.

Driven by $8.1 billion in manufacturing, the Lehigh Valley's Gross Domestic Product grew to a record $50.2 billion in 2022. The region's economy now ranks above Vermont and Wyoming.

State Sen. Lisa Boscola said it's a fallacy if the U.S. Postal Service thinks it can save up to $7 million by shipping outgoing mail from the Lehigh Valley to Harrisburg for processing without cutting jobs. On Monday, she called on USPS to do further analysis of its plans.