Investigators are working to determine if the owner of Ellwood City Medical Center has committed any financial crimes. Lawrence County District Attorney Joshua Lamancusa is looking into bank records for a pair of open-ended mortgages taken out a few months ago totaling six-point-five million dollars. Despite that influx of cash, the medical center has had nine issues with its payroll since August, including last Friday when employees were paid minimum wage for the hours they worked.

Big Beaver Falls Area schools are getting a big grant. The 110-thousand-dollars is coming from Chevron Appalachia and their Project Lead The Way non-profit, which supports learning experiences and development in biomedical, computer, and engineering sciences. The district will split the funds between their schools to create more STEM opportunities for its students.

Crews are working to repair one of Monaca’s four water wells. The borough’s manager tells the Beaver County Times one of the wells will be down until repairs are completed next week. Some residents may notice a stronger smell of chlorine as the other wells take on the extra processing. Borough officials do say the water is safe.

PennDOT District 11 is announcing a single-lane restriction on southbound Route 65 in Baden will occur today, weather permitting. A single-lane restriction will occur from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. today on southbound Route 65 between Johnson Avenue and Logan Lane. Crews will conduct inspection and cleaning activities of the sanitary sewers.

President Donald Trump has done something remarkable in the government shutdown: He’s unified House Democrats behind Speaker Nancy Pelosi. It’s not even about the wall anymore. Democrats are sticking together to strengthen Pelosi’s hand and set a tone in the new Congress. They say if they give in to Trump’s demand for $5.7 billion to build the border wall with Mexico, what will he ask for next? The White House believes Democrats will begin feeling pressure to give in to Trump’s demand.

Robots aren’t replacing everyone, but a quarter of U.S. jobs will be severely disrupted as artificial intelligence accelerates the automation of today’s work. Among those most likely to be affected: Chefs and others in food services, short-haul truck drivers and clerical office workers. That’s according to a Brookings Institution report that says about 36 million Americans hold jobs with tasks that can be mostly performed by machines using current technology.

A full year before the first round of presidential primary voting finds diversity already a hallmark of the field of possible Democratic contenders. Four of those who have either moved toward a campaign or declared their candidacy are women, and one of them is African-American. Another White House hopeful is Latino, and one is gay. The diversity is likely to expand in the coming weeks as other Democrats enter the race.

Two bills in the Senate would reopen federal agencies and pay 800,000 federal workers who are set to miss another paycheck in the partial government shutdown, but the bills are likely to fail Thursday. Democrats are offering to open agency doors for three weeks while bargainers seek a budget agreement. Republicans are offering to end the 34-day shutdown with $5.7 billion for President Donald Trump’s U.S.-Mexico border wall and a revamping of immigration laws.

President Donald Trump says he’ll postpone his State of the Union address until the partial government shutdown ends. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi served notice Wednesday that Trump wouldn’t be allowed to deliver the address to a joint session of Congress next week. Later, Trump tweeted that there’s, “no venue that can compete with the history, tradition and importance of the House Chamber.”

WEATHER FORECAST FOR THURSDAY, JAN. 24TH, 2019

 

TODAY – SNOW THIS MORNING WILL TAPER OFF AND GIVE
WAY TO CLOUDY SKIES THIS AFTERNOON. SNOW
ACCUMULATIONS LESS THAN ONE INCH. HIGH – 34.

TONIGHT – CLOUDY. A FEW FLURRIES OR SNOW SHOWERS
POSSIBLE. LOW – 17.

FRIDAY – MORNING CLOUDS. AFTERNOON SUNSHINE. A
FEW FLURRIES OR SNOW SHOWERS POSSIBLE.
HIGH – 21.

SATURDAY – CLOUDY. A FEW FLURRIES OR SNOW SHOWERS
POSSIBLE. HIGH – 26.

SUNDAY – CLOUDY WITH SNOW SHOWERS BECOMING A
STEADY ACCUMULATING SNOW LATER ON.
ABOUT ONE INCH OF SNOW EXPECTED. HIGH
NEAR 30.