The driver of a horse drawn buggy suffered minor injuries after his vehicle was rear-ended by a car Thursday morning in Mercer County. State police in Mercer County report the offending vehicle had a frost-covered windshield and that the driver was speeding at the time of the accident on Cowden Road in Wilmington Township. The horse suffered serious injuries in the accident and had to be put down.
President Biden is calling on House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to submit a Republican budget. Speaking at a Union Hall in Philadelphia Thursday, President Biden said he’s willing to meet with McCarthy anytime to compare spending priorities and see what they can agree on. In unveiling his own budget proposal, the president called for increased military spending and new investments in the social safety net. He says he also wants to protect Medicare and Social Security by promoting new taxes on corporations and the richest Americans.
For the second year in a row, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is considering raising the cost of fishing licenses. The resident annual fee of 23-50 is proposed to increase to 26-dollars and non-resident annual licenses would go from 55 to 59-dollars. Senior residents’ licenses would increase the most; from 10 to 85-dollars. In addition, a trout permit would also increase to 13-dollars.
The Evans City-Seven Fields Regional Police Department in Butler County is down around half of their staff beginning today. Chief Joe McCombs says two full-time officers and one part-timer have all resigned recently, leaving only three full-time officers including himself. The department has contacted state police to ask for extra patrols and officers from neighboring communities may help cover some shifts. McCombs says they have gotten some applicants for the open positions and plan to conduct interviews soon.
The trial of suspended Somerset County District Attorney Jeff Thomas continues. On Thursday jurors continued listening to testimony from Thomas’ accuser who says she was sexually assaulted. The victim described for the court the September 2021 night in question during which she says Thomas threw her onto a couch and assaulted her. She says she eventually broke free and ran upstairs but that, when she came back town, the defendant was still in her home and attacked her again. Thomas has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.
Norfolk Southern CEO Allan Shaw says the company plans to invest more money into the areas affected by the East Palestine train derailment and says they will stick with the communities for as long as it takes. This comes after the CEO testified to the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works Thursday morning. Shaw apologized for the derailment and said they have committed to over 21-million-dollars to East Palestine and seven and a half million-dollars to Pennsylvania for their affected communities.
Some 52 people could spend up to seven years in prison and be fined 15-thousand-dollars for public assistance fraud in Pennsylvania. The Office of the State Inspector General says they robbed the state of nearly 350-thousand-dollars in SNAP, Cash Assistance or Subsidized Day Care funds that they weren’t entitled to. All but three of the defendants have been charged with felonies in the case.
Triple A is urging motorists to adjust their sleep schedules with this weekend’s Daylight Saving Time switch. Travel club spokesperson Kara Hitchens says losing an hour of sleep with the time change can make drivers more tired than they realize. She suggests getting at least seven hours of shut-eye and travelling during times you are normally awake as some steps to avoid feeling drowsy on the road. Clocks move ahead one hour at 2:00 a.m. Sunday.
With coronavirus pandemic flexibilities ending March 31st, the Department of Human Services says beginning April 1st Medicaid and CHIP recipients must complete their annual renewal when its time to renew. However, DHS says no one will automatically lose coverage on April 1st. Right now its recommended that recipients of Medicaid and CHIP make sure their contact information with DHS is up to date.