State & Regional News

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.

The Pennsylvania Health Department may start conducting its own lab tests for the coronavirus later this week. Currently the CDC is handling all testing for the virus. 

Once home to some of the country's strictest anti-illegal-immigration laws, Hazleton is now 40 percent Latino. The city is younger and bigger than it's been in decades, and the economy is thriving.

Stretching a meal over several days was once a necessity. And in the 1940s, leftovers were a culinary art. Historian Helen Zoe Veit dishes on America's complicated relationship with leftovers.

Meyer says "something fascinating and completely unfair" plagues the restaurant industry: Waiters' incomes have risen far faster than other staff. To balance salaries out, he'll charge more for food.

It's "clean diesel" engine was key to its growth strategy. But top managers' quest to make Volkswagen the world's leading carmaker very likely sowed the seeds of the company's downfall, analysts say.

More than 23,000 Americans end up in emergency rooms each year after taking dietary supplements, an analysis shows. Most cases are linked to weight-loss products or energy-boosting supplements.

How a Florida community college is testing out new tools to boost learning and graduation rates. The key: getting professors access to real-time data on student engagement and performance.

Iowa's population is changing, with the number of Latinos growing fast. Activists are working to get them more engaged in the presidential caucuses, which could impact the state's politics long after.

For the first time since World War II, Japan's military can fight beyond its borders. The move sparked weeks of protests even though the likelihood of involvement in a foreign war appears quite small.

United Nations member states pledged Friday to eliminate extreme poverty by 2030. That's defined as surviving on $1.25 per person per day. What is life really like on that amount?

Several GOP presidential candidates are speaking at the Values Voter Summit, where Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who refused to issue same-sex marriage licenses, will be honored.

House Speaker John Boehner delivered remarks to the press Friday on his decision to resign, and President Obama offered comments on the resignation, as well.