House Majority Leader Benninghoff to PDE: All Students Deserve Transportation

HARRISBURG – House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre/Mifflin) today sent a letter to the Pennsylvania Department of Education asking them to issue guidance that will ensure school transportation for students returning to in-person education.

The letter is in response to growing concerns about students of nonpublic and nontraditional public schools being denied transportation services.

“To clear up any confusion about the responsibility of local school districts to provide this service, I am asking that your department issue clarifying guidance on the matter to ensure that both public and nonpublic school students have access to their regular school transportation and the best possible educational opportunities. As I am sure your office and Pennsylvania’s 500 school districts remember: Despite these uncertain times, the legislature intentionally fully funded education for the entire year so that school districts would have the tools they need to return students to in-person education,” Benninghoff’s letter says in part.

“Without transportation, even those schools that have worked to develop a model for safely returning their students to in-person instruction will be unnecessarily hindered in doing so. With a few short weeks remaining before the start of school, we need to remove this unnecessary hurdle,” the letter continues. “Keep in mind, both parents of public and nonpublic school students pay taxes to Pennsylvania and its school districts. Government must be accountable to them by providing transportation to school. This includes providing transportation to nonpublic school students returning to in-person learning even if the accountable public school has elected to begin their school year virtually.”

For more information, visit KerryBenninghoff.com or Facebook.com/RepBenninghoff.

Radical or moderate? Trump paints Democratic ticket as both
By JILL COLVIN, ZEKE MILLER and JONATHAN LEMIRE Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s campaign is struggling to define Sen. Kamala Harris. Joe Biden’s decision to choose Harris as his running mate has further complicated the Trump campaign’s crude efforts to paint Biden as out of step with the country as Trump continues to lag in the polls. Less than 90 days out from Election Day, Trump’s team faces a pivotal choice in how it tries to define the Democratic ticket. Do they attempt to fire up their base and scare off moderates by painting Biden and Harris as radical socialists? Or do they aim to depress enthusiasm among Democrats by arguing Biden and Harris are opportunistic and insufficiently liberal?

Story by Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano

(Hopewell Twp., Pa.) Students in the Hopewell School District are scheduled to return to school on Tuesday, September 8.  .  Dr. Michelle Miller, superintendent said that the  students have the option of in-person learning, hybrid , which is part in-person and part remote, and the district has the  Hopewell cyber school program. The plans were approved by the school board, along with the  revised health and safety plan  in accordance with the guidelines issued by the governor’s office, PDE and the Centers for Disease Controls. There were power problems during the ZOOM  meeting which was held in the  school auditorium, causing delays.   Parents asked many questions of the board concerning  the opening of school and other issues related to the opening.

(Beaver Falls, Pa.) The City of Beaver Falls Police Department is requesting that anyone who may have information or video from a shooting incident that occurred in the area of 14th St. and 5th Ave. on Sunday night,  August 9th 2020, that left three people injured is urged to contact the Beaver Falls Police Department. The request was made on the Departments Facebook Page

The City of Beaver Falls Police Department via press release said they were dispatched around 11:30 Sunday night, August, 9. 2020, for several reports of persons having been shot and gunshots heard in the area of 14th Street and 5th Ave. in the city.

According to the release Officers and Medical crews did locate two gunshot victims away from the location of the incident and a third victim was found to have been transported to a local hospital in someone’s personal vehicle.

Police say the victims one that is 19 year old female and another that is a 20 year old male are in stable condition and the third is a 23 year old male who is in critical but stable condition. Police said no further information on the victims will be released at this time and they are asking anyone who may have information that could assist in the investigation to contact them at (724) 846-7000.

Story by Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano

(Ambridge, Pa.) Mario Leone, Jr.  was  hired by Ambridge Borough Council at Tuesday’s meeting to be  the new borough manager of Ambridge.  Leone, who was not present at  last night’s  meeting will  begin his duties on Tuesday, September 8, 2020.   His contract runs until December 31, 2021. He is currently Monaca’s Borough Manager. The borough received 17 applications for the position, according to Council president Mike Mikulich.

Felicia Mycyk,  thanked council for their support for the  programs  that Ambridge Connection  has going on in  the borough and that more are forthcoming.

Ford recalls midsize SUVs to fix possible brake fluid leaks
DETROIT undefined
Ford is recalling more than 558,000 midsize SUVs in North America because the brakes may not work properly. The recall covers certain 2015 through 2018 Ford Edge and 2016 through 2018 Lincoln MKX vehicles. Ford says in a statement Wednesday that some front brake hoses can rupture, causing brake fluid to leak. If too much fluid leaks, it could take more effort to stop the vehicle and stopping distances could increase. The company says it doesn’t know of any crashes or injuries.  Drivers should see a brake warning light on the dashboard if the fluid gets too low. Owners will be notified starting the week of Sept. 14. Dealers will replace the front brake jounce hoses.

Georgia city votes to remove pavilion where slaves were sold
By SUDHIN THANAWALA Associated Press
Officials in a small city in rural Georgia have voted to remove a rare, 18th century pavilion where slaves were once sold. Louisville City Administrator Richard Sapp said Wednesday that the City Council voted 4-1 to take down the Market House from the downtown area. Sapp, however, said the decision must still clear legal hurdles. According to preservationists, the Market House was built in the late 1790s and used for the sale of slaves from its inception. Critics said that legacy required its removal from a public thoroughfare. The City Council’s decision came amid a renewed push to remove Confederate monuments after George Floyd’ death.

Media mogul Sumner Redstone dies at 97
By The Associated Press undefined
Sumner Redstone, who built a media empire from his family’s drive-in movie chain, has died. He was 97. Redstone built his operations through aggressive acquisitions, but many headlines with his name focused on his severing ties with wives, actors and executives. In multiple interviews, he said he’d never die.His tight-fisted grip on the National Amusements theater chain, which controls both CBS Corp. and Viacom Inc. through voting stock, has been passed down to his daughter Shari Redstone, who battled top executives to re-merge the two entities that split in 2006.

Biden selects California Sen. Kamala Harris as running mate
By ALEXANDRA JAFFE, KATHLEEN RONAYNE and WILL WEISSERT Associated Press
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Joe Biden has chosen California Sen. Kamala Harris as his running mate. It’s a move that fulfills the wish of Democrats clamoring to see a woman of color on a major party’s presidential ticket for the first time in history. The 55-year-old Harris was elected to the Senate in 2016 after serving as California’s attorney general. Harris competed against Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination but left the race before voting began as she struggled to raise money. One of Harris’ standout moments of her presidential campaign came at the expense of Biden, when she slammed his past opposition to school busing.