State & Regional News

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, state parks across Pennsylvania were inundated with visitors.

State officials late last month announced the theme for this year’s annual tick-themed art contest, “Protect. Check. Remove.” Last year, there were no winners in the Lehigh Valley.

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

Republican congressional candidates Maria Montero and Ryan Mackenzie criticized U.S. Rep. Susan Wild after she said Carbon County "drank the Trump Kool-Aid" on a conference call with prominent Pennsylvania Democrats.

News Director Jen Rehill talks with journalists Tom Shortell and Brittany Sweeney.

More than $2 million was allocated to nine organizations across Pennsylvania to fund various research efforts, all linked to the state’s $132.5 billion agriculture industry.

Campaign finance reports show Republican Kevin Dellicker outraised the rest of the GOP field combined in his bid for PA-7. But Democratic incumbent Susan Wild raised twice as much as all of the Republicans put together.

Two Lehigh Valley’s representatives in the state house have recently proposed legislation to make affordable housing more accessible.

Under a proposal by Gov. Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania would cap tuition and fees at state-owned colleges to $1,000 a semester for in-state students from households earning up to the median income.

The number of people developing cancer is on the rise, but the survival rate is also going up according to the American Cancer Society. Doctors believe there are two contributing factors.

Rep. Robert Freeman, Pennsylvania's longest serving House member, has quietly changed Pennsylvania's planning laws.

The high cost of living is the biggest problem for rural voters, according to a new national survey commissioned by the Save the Children Action Network.

Disputes over partisanship led local organizations to schedule competing workshops for potential political candidates.

The commonwealth's unemployment rate has dipped below four percent for the first time since recording of the rate started.

For the 15th year in a row, the region, including the Lehigh Valley, is being recognized for the most organ donations in the country. Gift of Life Donor Program aided in reaching that goal.

The city's first major running festival since Runner's World's in 2019 will include a 5K, 10K and half-marathon.

Pennsylvania lawmakers are looking to remove a provision in state law that bars educators from wearing religious garb while in the classroom. The Senate approved the legislation by a 49-0 vote on Wednesday. The measure now goes to the House.

A proposed constitutional amendment being considered in Harrisburg would bring more clarity for when a politician charged with a crime must be forced out of office.

Democrat Josh Shapiro will become the 48th governor of Pennsylvania at Tuesday's inaugural ceremony at the state Capitol, taking the oath of office on a cold winter day in the nation's fifth-most populous state on the heels of his blowout win in November's election.

Youth from across the state and Allentown in particular are attending the gubernatorial inauguration on Tuesday.

Members of the governor-elect's transition team were required to sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), so the public may never know how it progressed or who paid for it.

A rockslide shut down Route 611 north of Portland, Pa., in early December. Last week, PennDOT said the road isn't expected to reopen for another 7 months. On the heels of pandemic losses, many merchants said they don't know if they can withstand this hit.