Debate in the state House on legislation to overhaul benefits in Pennsylvania’s large public-sector pension plans is on hold. Republican floor leader Dave Reed abruptly stopped the session yesterday after Representative Gene DiGirolamo sought to have the Senate-passed bill moved to a committee for further study.

Federal authorities say a 19-year-old pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group, used Twitter to spread its propaganda and had a backpack with ammunition that suggests he might have been plotting an attack. Harrisburg resident Jalil Ibn Ameer Aziz was arrested yesterday and charged with two counts of attempting to provide material support to terrorists.

Beaver County Commission Chairwoman Sandy Egley appeared on Teleforum with Mike Romigh Thursday morning and talked about how it felt to win a Republican majority and what Beaver County residents can expect from the new board.

Some new developments in the investigation regarding the unidentified embalmed head that was found in the woods of Economy borough more than a year ago. The head was discovered on December 12th, 2014. Despite numerous tests since that time, investigators still don’t know who it belongs to, or how it got there. However, Economy Police Chief Mike O’Brien held a news conference this morning to release additional information. First, forensic scientists have confirmed that she is a white female over the age of 50….and contrary to earlier reports, investigators now believe the woman is from this region. And most recently, they’ve discovered that the eyes had been removed and replaced by red rubber balls. They also believe the head was embalmed by a non-professional. Also attending today’s press conference was Beaver County District Attorney Anthony Berosh and Beaver County Coroner Teri Tatalovich Rossi. The embalmed head was laid to rest on Saturday, one year after her discovery. Anyone with information is urged to call the Economy borough police department at (724) 876-0380.

State police say an accident involving a bus in Washington County has sent more than two dozen people to hospitals, but no passengers have been seriously injured. State police in Canton say an SUV heading west on Interstate 70 veered into the lane occupied by the bus early yesterday. The bus was sideswiped by the SUV, went into the median and hit a guardrail and a light post before rolling over on to the driver’s side.

Authorities say the third man aboard a small plane that crashed shortly after takeoff at a posh resort in Fayette County has died. 27-year-old Erick Carlson died on Saturday evening. The other two occupants of the plane were pronounced dead after the plane crashed on Friday about a half-mile from the airfield at the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Farmington.

Lawmakers are preparing for a new, contentious round over how to end Pennsylvania state government’s five-month-old budget stalemate. Some are wondering if it’ll stretch into 2016. Last night’s brief session in the House of Representatives produced several changes to the hundreds of pages of legislation passed in a flurry last week by the Senate, with much work yet to be done. The chamber is returning today.