State police across the commonwealth are making their presence known more this school year, including here in the Lehigh Valley. Troop M's Nathan Branosky says having troopers inside and outside schools has been well-received. "Students love seeing state troopers. They love to see us during lunch time. They grabe a bite to eat with them in the cafeteria. It's a very rewarding experience," Branosky says. State police say they have a larger police presence during drop-off, at pickup, and also randomly throughout the school day.
The Lehigh County Coroner's Office is upgrading some of its equipment after being awarded a $100,000 state grant for new portable radios. Those radios will replace the current ones that are more than 12 years old. The portable radios are used to communicate with police, firefighters EMS and the 911 dispatch center. The mobile radios in the coroner's department vehicles will also be replaced eventually.
A portion of Brodhead Road in Bethlehem Township will remain closed through the end of the day Thursday. Brodhead Road will be closed west of Route 191 to accommodate maintenance and repairs to the Norfolk Southern railroad crossing in that area. The closure is between Nazareth Pike and Fritch Drive.
A new food bank has finally gotten to hold its opening ceremony. The Allentown Area Ecumenical Food Bank has been open for over a year, but its leaders say they had to wait for a ribbon cutting until Wednesday due to COVID. They also say they've seen the figures nearly double in that time for the number of people who need help. The food bank is at 417 North 14th Street in Allentown.
The husband of Vice-President Kamala Harris will be visiting Pennsylvania Thursday. Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff will join U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and state officials for visits to Reading, Allentown and Philadelphia. They'll be appearing as part of the federal government's Success Back to School tour, which showcases how schools are helping students recover after the pandemic, using funds from the American Rescue Plan. The leaders are also expected to comment on teacher retention.
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate John Fetterman has agreed to an October 25th debate against Republican Mehmet Oz, who had previously agreed to participate in the debate. The campaigns of the candidates are continuing to hash out the specifics of the event. Oz says by him agreeing to allowing Fetterman to use closed captioning it will slow the debate down and he's now calling for a 90 minute, rather than 60 minute debate. Fetterman's campaign says Oz is now moving the goalposts.
A CBS YouGov poll of nearly 12-hundred registered voters has revealed Democrat John Fetterman leads Republican Mehmet Oz in the Pennsylvania Senate race. Results Wednesday show 52 percent of respondents supporting Fetterman, compared to Oz's 47 percent. Of those who said they'll support Fetterman, 24 percent say said they responded in favor of him mainly because they oppose Oz.
Democrat Josh Shapiro continues to maintain a big lead over Republican Doug Mastriano in a new poll about the state governor's race. A CBS YouGov survey of nearly 12-hundred registered Pennsylvania voters found Shapiro with 55 percent support compared to Mastriano's 44 percent. Shapiro had a big lead among female voters while Mastriano had a one point lead among men.
A bill in the Pennsylvania General Assembly could change who operates and administers the Pennsylvania Lottery. House Bill 2538 would give the Secretary of State the power to operate and administer the Pennsylvania Lottery. Currently, the Pennsylvania Lottery operates as a bureau within the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue.
The deadline to apply for A marijuana pardon in PA approaching. The program is called the Pennsylvania Marijuana Pardon Project. Those convicted of either one of two marijuana-related crimes are eligible, and if pardoned by the governor, they could get the convictions expunged from their records. Eligible individuals must submit a pardon application by the end of this month.
Mazza Vineyards and the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire have settled a lawsuit against the U.S. Small Business Administration. The groups sued in December over being denied COVID relief in the SBA's grant program for live-event venues that lost business during the pandemic. The Faire asked for just under six-million-dollars because it said it lost about 40 percent of its revenue in 2020. The Faire sued in December and the SBA eventually doled out nearly four-million dollars to the company.
New Jersey officials are reminding residents to be prepared for intense storms as the state marks Hurricane Preparedness month. The New Jersey Office of Emergency Management urges residents to prepare emergency kits with food, water and medication. They also advise having a family go bag ready with clothes and to make an emergency kit. The advice comes as the ten-year anniversary of superstorm Sandy approaches.