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Keystone State News Connection

November 12, 2021 at 9:16 AM
Emily Scott

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Bills making their way through the Pennsylvania General Assembly would provide more resources to people who keep parks and recreational activities up and running.

House Bill 764 would allow all employees working directly with children to be hired on the same 45-day provisional basis as licensed daycare facilities, so long as they’ve completed state-related background checks and have applied for an FBI background check.

Rep. Brett Miller, R-Lancaster, the bill’s prime sponsor, said after a recent camp worker shortage, it would help speed up the hiring process to meet the needs for youth programs.

“People want to get back into the activities,” Miller observed. “The young people want to be able to participate in sports camps, and camping and the like. So, having this bill proceed with a provisional component will allow these programs to continue, youth to be served.”

The bill previously passed out of the House unanimously, and got through the Senate Health and Human Services Committee at the end of October. This week, it was referred once again to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

House Bill 1694 would legally protect volunteer groups that maintain parks from lawsuits related to incidents on park grounds.

Maura McCarthy, executive director of the Fairmount Park Conservancy in Philadelphia, said the groups are integral to the care and management of outdoor public recreation spaces.

She pointed out at least one volunteer group dissolved due to high insurance costs from liability claims, and the bill would ensure the work they do can continue.

“It explicitly includes them in a protected group of folks who cannot be sued,” McCarthy explained. “And this bill actually calls out that volunteer groups do not have a ‘duty of care.’ They do not have an obligation to ensure the safety of folks using that space for recreation.”

More than 100 Park Friends groups help with upkeep on Philadelphia’s 10,000 acres of park land. The bill passed the House Tourism and Recreational Development committee in late October.

Thursday 11-11-21 at 9:47 AM

(Pittsburgh, Pa.) Pittsburgh International Airport is supporting military members by opening up a new center where they can relax and recharge before taking to the skies.

Those who make sacrifices to serve our country have a new welcoming place at the airport. Rebecca Parkes, with the United Service Organizations, said military members can kick back at the USO Pittsburgh Airport Center.
Along with donations from the public, Sheetz provided financial help, as well as snacks in the lounge.
Those in the military can also enjoy amenities like a $10 food voucher, cable tv, reclining chairs, a computer lab, a gaming system and a kids’ area with toys.

By MARK SCOLFORO Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A statewide recount is being ordered in the Nov. 2 election for an open seat on Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court. Two candidates finished within a half-percentage point of each other. That’s according to Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration on Wednesday. Two seats on Commonwealth Court were on the ballot. The agency says Republican Stacy Wallace, a lawyer, won one of them. For the second seat, unofficial returns from all 67 counties show Democrat Lori Dumas leading Republican Drew Crompton by nearly 17,000 votes. That’s within the margin for a mandatory recount.

Pennsylvania’s school mask mandate remains in place, even after a judge ruled Wednesday that it is “void and unenforceable. Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration says that it quickly filed an appeal to Commonwealth Court Judge Christine Fizzano Cannon’s ruling, and that stops the mandate from being overturned.” in the ruling Cannon said the mask mandate for K-12 students didn’t comply with rules for setting regulations and was adopted without an existing disaster emergency declared by the governor. The Commonwealth Court sided 4-1 with the ranking Republican in the state Senate and others who sued to challenge the masking order that took effect in early September. Gov. Tom Wolf on Monday announced he’ll return authority over masking decisions to local school districts in January.

Thursday, November 11, 2021 at 8:48 AM
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Justice was not blind when a lawyer dropped his pants after repeatedly setting off a metal detector at a Pittsburgh courthouse.
Jeffrey Pollock, 59, was trying to pass through security outside family court on Wednesday, but the machine kept sounding an alarm, authorities said. The lawyer told guards his suspenders were causing the alerts and he could not remove them.
The guards asked him to keep trying until the alerts stopped.
“After a heated discussion with the guards, Pollock unhooked his suspenders, dropped his drawers, took them off, and placed them in the bin to go through the metal detector,” the Allegheny Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
Authorities said Pollock stood in his shirt and underwear.
He was charged with disorderly conduct.
“I used poor judgment,” Pollock told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I was trying to make a point.”
The sheriff’s office noted “that visible underwear is not part of the dress code.”