Swaths of internet down, outage at cloud company Fastly
LONDON (AP) — Numerous websites were unavailable on Tuesday after an apparent widespread outage at cloud service company Fastly. Dozens of high-traffic websites including the New York Times, CNN, Twitch and the U.K. government’s home page, could not be reached. Fastly said in repeated updates on its website that it was “continuing to investigate the issue.” About an hour later, the company said: “The issue has been identified and a fix has been applied. Customers may experience increased origin load as global services return.” A number of sites that were hit early appeared to be coming back online.

AAA: Western PA Gas Prices Jump as Crude Oil Prices Climb
Gas prices in Western Pennsylvania are seven cents higher this week at $3.240 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                 $3.240
Average price during the week of June 1, 2021                                        $3.177
Average price during the week of June 8, 2020                                        $2.345

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:      

$3.152      Altoona
$3.234      Beaver
$3.214      Bradford
$3.253      Brookville
$3.246      Butler
$3.254      Clarion
$3.239      DuBois
$3.248      Erie
$3.212      Greensburg
$3.244      Indiana
$3.254      Jeannette
$3.219      Kittanning
$3.244      Latrobe
$3.239      Meadville
$3.270      Mercer
$3.219      New Castle
$3.241      New Kensington
$3.259      Oil City
$3.239      Pittsburgh
$3.241      Sharon
$3.277      Uniontown
$3.259      Warren
$3.255      Washington

Trend Analysis:
After ten days of stability, the national gas price average increased a penny over the weekend to $3.05. On the week, the majority of states’ (26) gas price averages either increased by one cent or saw no movement. Only two states saw prices increase a nickel or more. Prices are poised to fluctuate in the coming week, especially in light of a recent drop in demand. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported demand decreased from 9.48 million barrels a day to 9.15 million barrels a day for the week ending May 28. During the same week, total gasoline stocks increased to nearly 234 million barrels as U.S. refinery utilization jumped to 88.7%—the highest rate since February 2020.

This week’s demand number is expected to be higher as it will reflect Memorial Day holiday weekend travel, but it’s not likely to lead to an increase in gas prices for the majority of motorists. However, crude oil is on the rise and could prop up pump prices.

Last week, crude prices increased to their highest price point ($69/barrel) in 2.5 years. Since crude accounts for more than 50% of the price at the pump, when it goes up, so does the price motorists pay. What is promising is that crude may not sustain at this level. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and its allies including Russia, announced last week it still plans to gradually increase crude production in July. If it does increase production, this could lead to a decrease in crude oil prices.

Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.

Harrisburg, PA – Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) Acting Secretary Jennifer Berrier yessterday announced that the transition from the decades-old mainframe to a new, faster, and easier-to-use Unemployment Compensation (UC) system is on track for launch tomorrow.

“We still have many key hurdles to cross, but the transition so far has been smooth, and we are ready for the new system to come online Tuesday,” said Acting Secretary Berrier. “Months of hard work and testing have helped us eliminate many potential issues, and we continue to have staff on hand around-the-clock ready to resolve anything that comes up during the rest of the transition.”

With the new system deployment just hours away L&I is encouraging UC and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) claimants to familiarize themselves with the new system through a series of 25 workshops and other easy-to-use tools and helpful resources.

Upcoming Workshop Dates and Links:

• Wednesday, June 9 at 2:00 PM for Claimants (English)
• Thursday, June 10 at 6:00 PM for Claimants (English)
• Thursday, June 10 at 7:30 PM for Claimants (Spanish)

A full list of scheduled workshops and links to connect to them are here. Recordings of each workshop will be uploaded to this page on www.uc.pa.gov.

Topic-specific instructional videos:

• Login – Create a New Keystone ID
• Login with an Existing Keystone ID
• Reset a Forgotten Password
• How to File an Appeal
• Waiting Room 101
• How to Change Communication Preferences

Other Helpful Resources: 

Claimant User Guides:

• How to login (Spanish)
• File weekly certifications (Spanish)
• Open a new claim (Spanish)
• Overpayment management (Spanish)
• Appeal process (Spanish)
• Fact-finding (Spanish)
• Dashboard – Quick Start Guide

Employer User Guides:

• Request relief from charges
• Granting access to Third-Party Administrators

Claimant and Employer User Guides:

• Appeal process
• Fact-finding

System Tracker

L&I has launched the UC System Enhancements Tracker to help users easily view status updates of the new system after it comes online tomorrow. Updates on the transition to the new system are also being posted regularly on L&I’s Facebook and Twitter pages. The Unemployment Compensation Service Center phone line and email will continue to remain open throughout the transition to the new system.

The UC system went offline Wednesday evening and will continue to be offline until the new system launch tomorrow. When the new system comes online, all eligible UC and PEUC claimants will be able to file for available weeks and filing will change from biweekly to weekly.

The Extended Benefits program will also operate on the new system. The final week of eligibility for this program has passed, but individuals who need to take action within the program – such as viewing past payments – will be able to do so once the new system comes online.

The transition to the new UC system does not affect Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claimants, who file through a separate system.

For more information and updates on unemployment benefits programs, visit www.uc.pa.gov or follow L&I on Facebook or Twitter. 

(Beaver, Pa.) Jury selection continues today in the upcoming trial of Sheldon Jeter Jr. who is accused of killing his childhood friend Tyric Pugh in May of last year. Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano spoke with Beaver County District Attorney David Lozier and he expects jury selection to take three to four days and for the trial to last many weeks.

Investigators say that Jeter’s trial will focus on May 15, 2020 when Pugh was for dead in the street and surveillance video showed a vehicle they believe belonged to Jeter.

Investigators say when they went to Jeter’s home, they found a weapon matching the shell casings found at the crime scene. Jeter’s attorney has denied that Jeter has any involvement in the case.

Gun rights supporters rally outside Pennsylvania Capitol
MARK SCOLFORO Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A couple hundred gun rights enthusiasts are hoping an annual rally on the Pennsylvania Capitol steps will spur action by state lawmakers to extend greater legal protections to the use and possession of firearms. The event’s main organizer is a state representative and said Monday the crowd at the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Rally was the smallest in the past 16 years. Among the attendees’ legislative priorities is letting anyone who can legally possess guns conceal them when they carry them in public without a license or permit. They also want to prevent cities from enacting more restrictive local firearms restrictions.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The state House is advancing revisions to Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana law, seeking to make permanent some of the changes put in place temporarily because of the coronavirus pandemic. Representatives on Monday voted 164 to 38 for the bill, sending it to the Senate. It would permit dispensing a three-month supply at a time, up from one month’s supply. Patients will be able to continue to pick up their medicine outside a dispensary, rather than coming inside the building. The legislation would ease the process by which contaminants must be removed before the final testing. Grower-processors would be permitted to use pesticides under standards the Agriculture Department would develop.

By MARK SCOLFORO Associated Press
The head prosecutor in Pittsburgh is expounding on his policy regarding plea deals, days after it became public that he told his staff to no longer offer them to clients of a Black criminal defense lawyer who called the office “systematically racist.” Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr. announced Monday his office will investigate any claim by a defense lawyer or unrepresented defendant who raise concerns that a plea offer shows racial or other bias. His new policy says that when a lawyer or defendant claims plea talks have treated them differently because of “protected status,” the prosecutor has to look into it and report what’s occurred.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The city of Pittsburgh has posted a condemnation notice on a Pittsburgh high-rise due to damage from an electrical fire last month, but the building owner is vowing to bring in even more people to hasten repairs. Fire officials said the May 19 blaze at the 44-story Gulf Tower was confined to the basement although smoke could be seen rising from the roof from a ventilation shaft. Building owner Rugby Realty said it has more than 200 people working to repair the damage, and chief operating officer Larry Walsh said officials plan to increase that number to 300.

 

FDA approves much-debated Alzheimer’s drug panned by experts
By MATTHEW PERRONE AP Health Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Government health officials have approved the first drug that they say may help slow Alzheimer’s disease. The surprise decision came after the agency’s independent advisers said the treatment hadn’t been shown to help treat the brain-destroying disease. The Food and Drug Administration is not required to follow their advice. The agency approved the infused drug from Biogen. It’s the first new Alzheimer’s treatment in nearly 20 years and the only one that FDA has backed to treat the underlying disease, rather than manage symptoms.

Lawmakers return for June with big agenda, sharp differences
By MARC LEVY Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania state lawmakers are returning to session with a big June agenda and sharp differences. They have four weeks starting Monday to wrap up their work for an on-time budget. The state has some good fiscal news: a huge surplus. Meanwhile, there’s also $7.3 billion of federal coronavirus aid. Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward said the Republican-controlled Senate’s focus is wrapping up the budget, as well as funding for public and private education, broadband and transportation. Election legislation is also a top priority, but deep partisan differences make its passage iffy. Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, wants a $1.3 billion boost to public school aid, about a 20% increase.