Will Smith, right, hits presenter Chris Rock on stage while presenting the award for best documentary feature at the Oscars on Sunday, March 27, 2022, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Taylor Swift was up. Elon Musk was in, out, in and maybe out again. Tom Cruise was back. BTS stepped aside, and so did Serena Williams, and Tom Brady too — oops, scratch that. But the slap? The slap was everywhere — that moment Will Smith smacked Chris Rock at the Oscars and a global audience said, “Wait, did that just happen?” That’s The Associated Press’ top pop culture moment of 2022, but there were so many more. Swift had a big year that kept getting bigger. In movies there were big comebacks: Wakanda and Avatar sequels, and of course Cruise, who turned 60 and had his biggest movie with “Top Gun: Maverick.”

FILE – Pennsylvania Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa., on April 4, 2022. Pennsylvania voters on Tuesday, Nov. 8, will send dozens of new representatives and senators to the Legislature, thanks to a slew of retirements and new district maps that were revamped by the state’s redistricting commission. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania’s top elections official is fully certifying results from the November vote after recount petitions in some counties delayed the process. The Department of State said Tuesday that acting Secretary of State Leigh Chapman completed certification of all races in the 2022 midterm election on Thursday. The final tally comes less than two weeks before members of Congress and state lawmakers are due to be sworn in on Jan. 3. The state’s next governor, Democratic Attorney General Josh Shapiro, will be inaugurated on Jan. 17. Recount petitions in at least 27 of the state’s 67 counties caused delays in the certification process.

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Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published December 27, 2022 9:03 A.M.

(New Brighton, PA) New Brighton Police were called to a head-on accident at 2078 Mercer Road Monday afternoon at 4:55 p.m, according to 9-1-1. No injuries were reported when the vehicle struck a telephone pole. No information has been released by New Brighton Police this morning.

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Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio

(Washington D.C.) The Lymphedema Advocacy Group received notification last Friday that the act was passed by the Senate., The House already passed the bill prior to the senate,  which officially means it was passed by Congress. . President Joe Biden is expected to sign the bill into law as soon as it reaches his desk.

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(WASHINGTON, DC) – Today, Representative Conor Lamb (PA-17) announced that he has secured more than $15.2 million to fund 15 Community Project Funding requests through the federal Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) Appropriations process.  The $1.7 trillion spending plan has passed the House and Senate and will now head to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law.

“Once again, the people of PA-17 have had a say in how their federal tax dollars are spent.  As a community, we have prioritized jobs, infrastructure, children, and police.  The people of our district are already working hard on these issues and this federal money is a well-deserved investment in them,” said Lamb.

Lamb championed funding for 15 projects that will directly benefit PA-17, including:

• $1,400,000 for the Allegheny Health Network for the First Steps and Beyond – Fourth Trimester Support program
• $995,000 for the Beaver County CTC Welding Lab Expansion and Upgrade
• $720,000 for Bellevue Borough for Straw Avenue Sanitary Sewer Improvements
• $400,000 for the Bidwell Training Center for the Bidwell Training Center Urban Food Production Training Program
• $991,758 for Crafton Borough for the Broadhead Avenue Sewer Separation Project
• $750,000 for McKees Rocks for Critical Parking for Downtown
• $1,000,000 for PennDOT for the Kittanning Pike Flood Control project
• $3,500,000 for the Moon Transportation Authority Market Place District Transportation Improvements
• $170,000 for the Northern Regional Police Department Police K9 Program
• $800,000 for the Municipality of Penn Hills Rodi Road Streetscape Phase 1
• $999,999 for Scott Township for the Sanitary Sewer Repair Project
• $500,000 for Aliquippa School District for a Student Athletic and Educational Flexible Field House
• $577,000 for the Beaver County District Attorney for the Ten-County SW-PA Rapid DNA Law Enforcement Initiative
• $1,800,000 for the Beaver County Office of Planning and Redevelopment Brodhead Road Corridor Upgrade
• $600,000 for the Early Excellence Project for the Child Care Stabilization project in Allegheny County

In addition to Lamb’s Community Project Funding awards, the $1.7 trillion spending bill includes $772.5 billion for non-defense discretionary programs and $858 billion in defense funding.  Highlights in the bill includes $44.9 billion in emergency assistance to Ukraine and $1.8 billion in new funding to implement the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act.

The bill also provides $30 million to the U.S. Department of Energy to assist in the discovery, identification, and characterization of undocumented orphan oil and gas wells, an issue that Congressman Lamb has worked to prioritize for federal funding, given its enormous impact on Pennsylvania.  There are close to nine thousand (8,840) documented orphan wells in Pennsylvania, primarily concentrated in the western part of the commonwealth – and many more undocumented wells are estimated to exist.

The bill also includes language to reform the Electoral Count Act of 1887 to reaffirm that the Vice President has only a ministerial role at the joint session of Congress where electoral college votes are counted.  The measure also would raise the threshold necessary for members of Congress to object to a state’s electors.

(Beaver County, PA) It’s not too late to join the Beaver Valley Choral Society as they rehearse forthe 2023 Lenten concert, “God So Loved the World,” that will be presented
on the weekends of March 25-26, and April 1-2. Venues and times will be
announced soon.

The BVCS Principal Choir and Treble Youth Chorale are meeting at 7pm
every Monday evening beginning January 9 in New Brighton United
Methodist Church, 1033 Sixth Avenue, New Brighton PA. They will be
joined by the BVCS Orchestra later in the season.

Sharon R. Burchill is BVCS Artistic Director and Principal Conductor.
Deborah Silverstein directs the BVCS Treble Youth Chorale.

Miah Siriani, the Society’s first choral conducting scholar, makes her choral
conducting debut by directing two a capella selections – “Surely He Hath
Bourne Our Grief” (Lyndon Salathiel) and “’Tis Finished” (arranged by Alice
Parker and Robert Shaw). Miah is a Duquesne University junior, majoring
in music education.

The Lenten concert, “God So Loved the World,” relates the glorious Easter
story through music. Among the other works are two movements from
John Rutter’s “Requiem;” Pepper Choplin’s “Worthy is the Lamb;” and John
Stainer’s title score, “God So Loved the World.”

BVCS is an all-volunteer musical organization whose members range in age
from eight through adult — the entire family can join. Auditioning is not a
requirement, just a love to make music. Singers should be able to sing
tunefully and instrumentalists must be proficient on their instrument and
be able to read music.

(Pittsburgh, PA) A Pittsburgh Bicycle Museum has been forced to temporarily close its doors after a water break. Bicycle Heaven features over 6,000 bikes including rare and collectors bikes. A pipe burst on Christmas Eve and with the already low temperatures, numerous items in the musuem were destroyed. It is reported however, that some of the most important upstairs pieces were unharmed.

Travelers wait at a Southwest Airlines baggage counter to retrieve their bags after canceled flights at Los Angeles International Airport, Monday, Dec. 26, 2022, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Eugene Garcia)

(AP) – The U.S. Department of Transportation says it will look into flight cancellations by Southwest Airlines that have left travelers stranded at airports across the country amid an intense winter storm that has killed dozens of people. Many airlines were forced to cancel flights due to the weather, but Southwest was by far the most affected. About 4,000 domestic U.S. flights were cancelled Monday, according to the tracking website FlightAware. About 2,900 of those were Southwest’s. A Southwest spokesman says cancellations snowballed as the storm moved from the eastern to the western U.S., leaving flight crews and planes out of place.

Greg Scott, a newly-elected Democratic member of Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives, speaks with a person outside the Hospitality Center which helps people experiencing homelessness and poverty, in Norristown, Pa., Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022. Scott is part of what House Democrats say is the most diverse incoming class of lawmakers in state history. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — When mapdrawers reimagined the boundaries of Pennsylvania’s 253 legislative districts, they did it with an eye on the state’s growing racial and ethnic minorities. A year later, Pennsylvania has what lawmakers say is the most diverse incoming class of lawmakers in state history, and the number of state lawmakers who are Black, Latino or of South Asian descent each will rise. Sharif Street, who chairs the state Democratic Party, says “having a fair map made it possible for a more fair expression of the will of the people.” Rep. Donna Bullock says the Legislative Black Caucus will have more members than ever, rising from 31 to 37.

(Conway Borough, PA) A local child care facility is looking for answers after the property was damaged. Joanne’s Child Care in Conway found tire tracks and a destroyed light pole at the business on Christmas. It was reported that this is not the first time vehicles have went off the road at the location. Anyone with information is asked to contact Conway Police.