FILE – A great egret flies above a great blue heron in a wetland inside the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge in Trenton, Mich., on Oct. 7, 2022. President Joe Biden’s administration on Friday, Dec. 30, announced a finalized rule for federal protection of hundreds of thousands of small streams, wetlands and other waterways, rolling back a Trump-era rule that environmentalists said left waterways vulnerable to pollution. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

ST. LOUIS (AP) — President Joe Biden’s administration has finalized regulations that protect hundreds of thousands of small streams, wetlands and other waterways, repealing a Trump-era rule that federal courts had thrown out and that environmentalists said left waterways vulnerable to pollution. The rule announced Friday defines which “waters of the United States” are protected by the Clean Water Act. For decades, the term has been a flashpoint between environmental groups that want to broaden limits on pollution and farmers, builders and industry groups that say extending regulations too far is onerous for business. The EPA and the Department of the Army say the rule is based on definitions in place prior to 2015, and that they wrote a “durable definition” of waterways to reduce uncertainty.

Signatures of former President Donald Trump and former first lady Melania Trump appear on their individual tax returns for 2016, released by the Democratic controlled House Ways and Means Committee, are photographed Friday, Dec. 30, 2022. The returns, which include redactions of some personal sensitive information such as Social Security and bank account numbers, span nearly 6,000 pages, including more than 2,700 pages of individual returns, and more than 3,000 pages in returns for Trump’s business entities. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)

Democrats in Congress have released six years of former President Donald Trump’s tax returns. It’s the culmination of a yearslong effort to learn about the finances of a onetime business mogul who broke decades of political norms when he refused to voluntarily release the information as he sought the White House. The returns are from 2015 to 2020. Trump is criticizing the release, saying “Democrats have weaponized everything, but remember, that is a dangerous two-way street!” He contends the returns show ”how proudly successful I have been.” The tax information could take on added significance now that Trump has launched a campaign for the White House in 2024.

FILE – This Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019, file photo, shows the Volkswagen logo on an automobile at the 2019 Pittsburgh International Auto Show in Pittsburgh. Volkswagen is recalling nearly 42,000 Beetles in the U.S. and Canada, Friday, Dec. 30, 2022, because they have potentially dangerous Takata air bag inflators. The recall covers Beetles from the 2015 and 2016 model years. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

Volkswagen is recalling nearly 42,000 Beetles in the U.S. and Canada because they have potentially dangerous Takata air bag inflators. The recall covers Beetles from the 2015 and 2016 model years. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says in documents posted Friday that the inflators can explode with too much force and hurl shrapnel. Takata used ammonium nitrate to create a small explosion to inflate air bags in a crash. But the chemical can deteriorate over time when exposed to high temperatures and humidity. Since 2009, the exploding air bags have killed at least 33 people worldwide, including 24 in the United States. Dealers will replace the driver’s air bag in the Beetles. Owners will be notified by letter starting Feb. 17.

FILE – A Museum of London employee poses for photographers next to an 1897 oil on canvas portrait of Sherlock Holmes author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle by illustrator Sidney Paget on display as part of the exhibition “Sherlock Holmes: The Man Who Never Lived and Will Never Die” at the Museum of London in London, Oct. 16, 2014. Sherlock Holmes is finally free to the public in 2023. The long dispute on contested copyright on Doyle’s tales of a whip-smart detective will come to an end in 2022, as the final Sherlock Holmes stories by Doyle will be released on Saturday, Dec. 31, as copyrights from 1927 expire on Jan. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sherlock Holmes is finally free to the American public in 2023. The long-running contested copyright dispute over Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s tales of a whipsmart detective will finally come to an end as the 1927 copyrights expiring Jan. 1 include Conan Doyle’s last Sherlock Holmes work. Once a work enters the public domain it can legally be shared, performed, reused, repurposed or sampled without permission or cost. Duke University’s Center for the Public Domain highlighted notable releases. Films entering the public domain include the first talkie, “The Jazz Singer” and Fritz Lang’s seminal sci-fi classic “Metropolis.” Musical compositions include “Puttin’ on the Ritz.”

In this grab taken from video released by Observator Antena 1, Social Media personality Andrew Tate is led away by police, in the Ilfov area, north of Bucharest, Romania, Thursday, Dec. 29, 2022. Romanian news outlets are reporting that divisive social media personality Andrew Tate has been arrested on charges of human trafficking and rape. The reports say Tate and his brother Tristan were detained late Thursday. Romania’s anti-organized crime agency said two British citizens and two Romanians are accused of being part of an organized crime group, human trafficking and rape. (Observator Antena 1 via AP)

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romanian authorities say that divisive social media personality Andrew Tate has been arrested on charges of human trafficking and rape. A spokesperson for Romania’s anti-organized crime agency said Friday that Tate and his brother Tristan were detained late Thursday in the Ilfov area north of Romanian capital Bucharest. Romania’s anti-organized crime agency said two British citizens and two Romanians are accused of being part of an organized crime group, human trafficking and rape. The agency says the British citizens recruited women who were subjected to “acts of physical violence and mental coercion,” sexually exploited and forced to perform pornographic acts intended to reap “important financial benefits.”

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A suspect in the killings of four slain Idaho students has been arrested in eastern Pennsylvania, an official said Friday. Arrest paperwork filed by Pennsylvania State Police in Monroe County Court says 28-year-old Bryan Kohberger was being held for extradition in a criminal homicide investigation based on an active arrest warrant for first degree murder issued by the Moscow Police Department and Latah County Prosecutor’s Office. The four students were all friends and members of the University of Idaho’s Greek system. They were stabbed to death at a rental home near campus sometime in the early morning hours of Nov. 13.

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The Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 Omnibus Appropriations Bill signed Thursday by the President includes funding to bring TSA employee compensation to a level commensurate with other federal agencies. It also supports funding to expand collective bargaining rights for our screening workforce.

After years of advocating for fair pay for TSA employees, the provision allows the agency to bring pay rates in alignment with other federal agencies, effective July 1, 2023. TSA’s frontline employees, Transportation Security Officers (TSO), have generally been paid up to 30% less than their federal counterparts. The bill also included funding for expanded collective bargaining rights for TSA’s non-supervisory TSOs as well as new computed tomography and credential authentication technology acquisitions that will significantly enhance our checkpoint screening capabilities.

TSOs now regularly screen more than two million passengers per day, and we expect travel volumes to continue to increase throughout 2023. The FY23 Omnibus Appropriations Bill further enables the critical national security work that TSA employees do each day to protect the nation’s transportation systems.

FILE – Pennsylvania Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro speaks at an election night event, Nov. 8, 2022, in Oaks, Pa. Gov.-elect Josh Shapiro will take office with a decisive mandate from Pennsylvania voters, who overwhelmingly rejected a Republican drive to pare back abortion rights and voting laws in the premier battleground state. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)

HARRISBURG, PA – Today, Governor-Elect Josh Shapiro announced the appointments of six Deputy Chiefs of Staff with a wealth of experience, talent, and a deep knowledge of the Commonwealth to the Shapiro Administration. These individuals will bring decades of experience – from state, local, and federal government work, to leadership in organized labor and issue advocacy organizations – to the table as they join the Shapiro Administration. The Deputy Chiefs of Staff will serve key roles in Governor-Elect Shapiro’s leadership team, and they will work directly with state agencies, stakeholders, government officials, and local communities all across Pennsylvania as they assist in advancing the Governor-Elect’s top priorities.

The six Deputy Chiefs of Staff who will be helping lead the Shapiro Administration’s efforts to grow our economy, improve our schools, and make our communities safer are:

• Joseph Lee, Deputy Chief of Staff for Administration and Opportunity
• Lindsey Mauldin, Deputy Chief of Staff for Health and Human Services 
• Danielle Okai, Deputy Chief of Staff for Economic Development
• Michael Pipe, Deputy Chief of Staff for Public Safety
• Sam Robinson, Deputy Chief of Staff for Consumers and the Environment
• Tori Shriver, Deputy Chief of Staff for Education and Workforce Development

These accomplished individuals are joining a historic Administration – one that will bring people together, represent our entire Commonwealth, and deliver results for all Pennsylvanians every day. With this growing, capable, hard-working leadership team, Governor-Elect Shapiro will be ready to get to work for the people of Pennsylvania on day one.

“With these dynamic, smart, and capable public servants joining our team as Deputy Chiefs of Staff, our Administration will hit the ground running to streamline communication, operate nimbly, and get things done for Pennsylvanians,” said Governor-Elect Shapiro’s incoming Chief of Staff Dana Fritz. “Governor-Elect Shapiro and I are ready to get to work with this diverse and experienced group to build an economy that works for everyone, improve our schools to ensure our children receive a quality education, and make communities across the Commonwealth safer for our families.”

FILE – Dame Vivienne Westwood poses for a photo after collecting her insignia from Britain’s Prince Charles during an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace, London on June. 9, 2006. Westwood, an influential fashion maverick who played a key role in the punk movement, died Thursday, Dec. 29, 2022, at 81. (Fiona Hanson, Pool via AP, File)

LONDON (AP) — English designer Vivienne Westwood has died at 81. Her fashion house announced her death Thursday on its social media platforms, saying she died peacefully in South London surrounded by friends and family. A cause was not immediately disclosed. Westwood was an influential fashion maverick who played a key role in the punk movement. Westwood’s fashion career began in the 1970s with the punk explosion, when the onetime primary school teacher’s radical approach to urban street style took the world by storm. But she went on to enjoy a long career highlighted by activism and a string of triumphant runway shows and museum exhibits.