State & Regional News

Take a look at stories throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact or that you might want to look at again.

Punxsutawney Phil was pulled from his tree stump at dawn on Thursday to 'predict' six more weeks of winter. But there's plenty of evidence that won't be the case in the Lehigh Valley and throughout the region.

LGBTQ community leaders in Pennsylvania formed Keystone Equality, a new statewide LGBTQ advocacy organization. Orefield resident Corinne Goodwin will be the Lehigh Valley representative on the board.

Medical experts say recent legislation could help reduce the number of opioid overdose deaths in Pennsylvania.

A spokesman for the center said the conservative attacks made them concerned about the safety of kids and parents.

Denise Snyder founded St. Luke’s Nurses Honor Guard for those dedicated to the profession.

The city is hoping to gain approval as one of only a handful of World Heritage Sites in the U.S. — and join with other locations in Europe as a single Moravian Church settlement site of significance.

Grants of up to $400,000 that focus on addiction treatment services for communities that were hard-hit by the opioid epidemic will be awarded later this year.

“When a bill jumps $200 or $300, that’s the difference between groceries on the table. So we have to see what legislative remedies there are at our disposal, because ‘you’ve gotta pay your bill’ is not the answer I want to give anybody," said Rep. Josh Siegel.

Rules around gifting have changed for top officials in Gov. Josh Shapiro's administration.

Thursday's March For Our Lives rally marks its fifth anniversary since its inception after a 2018 mass shooting at a Florida high school. Hundreds are expected at Thursday's rally in Harrisburg, which coincides with rallies this week in Florida, Michigan, California and Texas.

Gov. Josh Shapiro said he's long admired the Lehigh Valley's unique ability to build partnerships. It's a skillset he said he hopes to bring to other communities across the state to promote economic growth. Shapiro was keynote speaker at the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp. annual meeting in Bethlehem.

A six-month investigation found the state’s “competency” review system is so broken it often extends incarceration, which can exacerbate mental health issues.

Another social-media fueled challenge has spurred a rise in the theft of Kia and Hyundai vehicles in Pennsylvania, but has the trend caught on in the Lehigh Valley?

Reporting an increase in violent incidents in the state's prisons in 2022, the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association has suggested that staffing needs to increase, and policies need to be reviewed to help make the prisons safer.

U.S. Army Capt. Christopher Scott Seifert died in an attack on troops in Kuwait. His killer was sentenced to death. For Seifert's parents in the Lehigh Valley, the passage of time hasn't eased the loss. 'He was a much-wanted child and a very loved young man,' says his mother Helen.

Officials say some people have received a text message asking for EBT card information and claiming that their card is blocked.

From a stall program in Reading, Pa., to tracking real-time parking spot availability in Arlington, Va., these are the ways cities are addressing their own parking woes.

Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center hosted the first event of the 2023 PA LGBTQIA Health Summit, which featured discussion on how social factors affect LGBTQIA health.

Shapiro wants to eliminate both the sales and use tax and the gross receipts tax on cell phone services. Doing so would save Pennsylvanians $124 million each year.

The the Pa. Chamber of Business and Industry is putting out its own bracket called “Coolest Thing Made in PA.”

Pennsylvania's 2023 legislative session could include consideration of a bill outlawing the use of hand-held devices while driving, which would be stricter than Pennsylvania's current law.