HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A proposal to end Pennsylvania’s ban on Sunday hunting has the approval of the state Senate. Senators voted 36 to 14 on Wednesday for a bill that would permit hunting on one Sunday during deer rifle season, one during deer archery season, and on a third day. The legislation directs the Game Commission to determine which three Sundays will be legal for hunting.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania’s Republican-controlled Legislature is teeing up legislation to temporarily block any sort of tax or ban on the sale or distribution of plastic bags or just about any other container, wrapping or bag. The provision was added to wider budget-related legislation advancing Wednesday night in the House of Representatives. It comes as Philadelphia city officials strongly consider a sweeping ban on single-use plastic bags and a 15-cent fee on reusable bags that many stores provide.

At least one Republican state lawmaker is speaking out about why he voted NO against the $34 billion state budget passed by the House on Tuesday. Overall, the budget drew bipartisan support from local legislators…but State Representative Aaron Bernstine of the 10th district, appearing on yesterday’s edition of Teleforum with Frank Sparks, said he voted against the state budget he felt that the budget ignores taxpayers..

Bernstine’s two GOP colleagues also representing the county, state Reps. Jim Marshall of the 14th district, and Josh Kail, of the 15th district, voted for the budget…as did state Rep. Rob Matzie, D-16, Ambridge. Marshall explains why he voted for it…

…and Josh Kail of the 15th district was voting on his budget after entering the House in January….

 

 

HIGHLAND PARK, N.J. (AP) — Authorities say a teenage girl from western Pennsylvania who went missing has been found safe in New Jersey with a man she met online. The 16-year-old West Newton girl was reported missing Tuesday afternoon, a few hours after she was last seen at her family’s home. She was found Wednesday in Highland Park after a friend provided information to authorities. The teen was with a 23-year-old man she had spoken with through social media. Authorities say no charges have been filed against the man.

WEATHER FORECAST FOR THURSDAY, JUNE 27TH, 2019

 

TODAY – PARTLY CLOUDY AND HOT WITH AFTERNOON SHOWERS OR
THUNDERSTORMS. HIGH – 88.

TONIGHT – A STRAY THUNDERSTORM IS POSSIBLE
THROUGHOUT THE EVENING. LOW – 66.

FRIDAY – INTERVALS OF CLOUDS AND SUNSHINE. A STRAY
SHOWER OR THUNDERSTORM IS POSSIBLE. HIGH
AROUND 90.

SATURDAY – SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS…MAY CONTAIN
STRONG GUSTY WINDS. HIGH – 86.

SUNDAY – MOSTLY CLOUDY SKIES WITH SCATTERED
THUNDERSTORMS IN THE MORNING. HIGH – 85.

Refinery to close after fire; modest gas price impact seen
By MARC LEVY and CATHY BUSSEWITZ Associated Press
The largest oil refinery on the East Coast will close after a devastating fire last week that set off explosions and damaged equipment, and consumers could see gas prices rise as summer travel hits full swing, officials and analysts said Wednesday.
Philadelphia Energy Solutions has decided to shut down the facility in the next month, affecting more than 1,000 workers, Mayor Jim Kenney said. The company appeared dead set on its decision, despite city officials’ attempts to discuss options, he said.
Gasoline futures prices spiked Tuesday night after the first news of the refinery’s possible closure, and prices remained high Wednesday, according to the markets research company FactSet.
Motorists in the Mid-Atlantic region will likely see modest price increases as more summer travelers hit the road, AAA spokeswoman Jana Tidwell said in a statement.
The refinery has been an important source fueling transportation in the region, far from Gulf Coast refineries, and “at least temporarily, it’s going to require some logistical shifting that could come at a cost,” said Kevin Book, managing director at Clearview Energy Partners.
But while the amount of gasoline that will be lost from the refinery is sizable, it can easily be made up by imports from Europe or elsewhere, said Jonathan Aronson, a research analyst at Cornerstone Macro.
“We’re not expecting any major shocks to retail gasoline (prices),” Aronson said. Consumers are more likely to feel gasoline prices increase due to the price of crude oil, which has been rallying in recent days, he said.
A Philadelphia Energy Solutions spokeswoman did not respond a request for comment.
Repairing the facility could be very expensive, and the cost was probably the final nail in the coffin for an already financially troubled facility, Kenney said.
“It’s a sad day,” Kenney said, “and I’m really worried about the safety of the facility, the safety of the environment and the workers.”
The company has recently struggled financially, showing a declining cash balance in the six months through March while its long-term debt grew, according to reports the company files in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.
The 150-year-old oil refining complex processes 335,000 barrels of crude oil daily, according to PES. The refinery turns the crude into gasoline, jet fuel, propane, home heating oil and other products.
It started as a bulk petroleum storage facility in 1866 and began refinery operations in 1870.
The company emerged from federal bankruptcy court last year after restructuring its debt, leaving its majority ownership in the hands of investment banking firms Credit Suisse Asset Management and Bardin Hill.
Friday’s fire at the complex broke out early in the morning, and video showed an enormous orange blast bursting into the sky.
It set off three explosions felt miles away as the fire plowed through a tangle of pipes carrying fuel across the complex, the company has said. It happened at the Girard Point refinery, one of two at the PES complex in south Philadelphia.
The fire erupted in a tank containing a mixture of butane and propane, a fire official said.
Investigators haven’t been able to go to some areas at the complex because they haven’t yet been assessed by a structural engineer, the city fire commissioner’s office said Wednesday.
United Steelworkers, which represents the refinery workers, is investigating whether the company had insurance coverage for a destroyed alkylation unit, Ryan O’Callaghan, the president of Local 10-1, told The Philadelphia Inquirer. It would push the company to rebuild the unit, he said.
“It appears they’re cashing the check and heading for the doors,” he said.
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Levy reported from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Bussewitz reported from New York.