HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s 2023-24 Legislative Session closed Dec. 1 and the next session, while officially underway, doesn’t fully begin until lawmakers are sworn into office Jan. 7. Looking back, members of the state House and Senate introduced 3,862 bills and 924 resolutions across the two-year session. There were 77 bills adopted into law in 2023 and 162 adopted in 2024. The combined total of 239 was far fewer than the previous six legislative sessions. There hasn’t been a lower total since 2009-10 when 226 bills advanced into law — the last time the Pennsylvania General Assembly had a partisan divide. Democrats controlled the House while Republicans led the Senate. Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, often cites the challenge of advancing legislation with a split government. That dynamic won’t change in 2025-26. Though there are 20 new members joining the Legislature — 16 in the House, four in the Senate — the respective parties defended their majorities. Republicans have a 28-22 advantage in the Senate while Democrats maintained a 102-101 margin in the House. This week, The Daily Item will offer looks back at the outcome of legislation proposed last session by area lawmakers, beginning with Joanne Stehr, a Republican from the 107th Legislative District. Republican Rep. Joanne Stehr ran unopposed for re-election this year, securing a second term as the 107th Legislative District’s representative in the Pennsylvania House. Her district consists of southern Northumberland and western Schuylkill counties. Stehr served on the following committees during the 2023-24 Legislative Session: Aging & Older Adult Services, Health, Liquor Control and Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness. She was also the Republican chair for the Subcommittee on Programs & Benefits. Last session, Stehr co-sponsored 109 bills and resolutions and introduced one as a prime sponsor. A longtime home health care and hospice nurse, Stehr proposed through her House Bill 418 that Children & Youth agencies across Pennsylvania hire a nurse for their respective staffs. The bill also proposed that the agencies and their respective nurse hires have access to a physician for case consultation. Children & Youth agencies maintain constant caseloads of children who’ve been neglected or abused. Stehr believes a nurse on staff would help social workers better understand a child’s medical records as they’re investigating claims. The bill was referred to the House committee on Children & Youth but it didn’t receive consideration. Stehr joined a group of Republican representatives to propose a package of three bills intended to build out the long-term care workforce in Pennsylvania. Companion legislation was introduced in the Senate, too. Citing federal data that showed Pennsylvania’s long-term care workforce shrunk by 14% from 2019 to 2022, the respective legislative packages looked to allow nursing students and graduates to more quickly take the Certified Nurse Aide exam, pursue skills competency exams in lieu of a high school diploma or GED, and allow high school juniors and seniors to earn up to two credits toward graduation if they work in a congregate health care setting. The House package didn’t gain traction. Two of the three Senate bills advanced to the House but lost momentum. With her experience as a hospice nurse, Stehr joined a collective of House Republicans and Democrats in proposing a bill to allow licensed practical nurses to make death pronouncements in hospice settings. Again, companion legislation was introduced in the Senate, too, with Sen. Lynda Schlegel Culver, R-Northumberland/Snyder/Montour/Columbia/Luzerne, as a prime sponsor. Culver’s and Stehr’s districts overlap. The Senate bill was the legislative vehicle lawmakers chose to advance and it moved into law as Act 137 of 2024 with almost no opposition. Though introduced too late last session to receive consideration, Stehr joined fellow Schuylkill County Republican Rep. Tim Twardzik in introducing a measure intended to further empower the Department of Health to determine which physicians should be included in Pennsylvania’s physician registry for its Medical Marijuana Program. They cited a Spotlight PA investigation that found that the Department of Health rarely prevents practitioners from inclusion on the registry despite past disciplinary action. Given the bill’s timing, it’s likely to be reintroduced in the 2025-26 session.Epic Games says a recent change to Fortnite Save the World that drastically cut back on the XP players could earn was in fact a bug, and the issue is being fixed. The trouble came to light yesterday when players discovered that Epic had apparently made a change to the XP cap on Save the World, the original Fortnite PvE experience. Fortnite Save the World is pretty much an afterthought at this point, long ago left in the dust of Fortnite Battle Royale, but players can still use it to earn progress in Fortnite overall. As Forbes explains, players could previously earn multiple levels per day from playing Save the World, but with the start of Chapter 6 Season 1, it was cut to a total of nine levels per week, a drastic reduction. This did not go over well with the Fortnite community. Multiple threads on the Fortnite subreddit were highly critical of the change, complaining that the tighter cap unfairly impinges upon their progress. Many felt the change was part of a more forceful push to monetize the Fortnite battle pass, and there was also considerable upset that all of this happened without any warning: Epic said nothing at all about the new XP cap prior to pushing it live. Now it has said something, and it turns out the Save the World XP issue is a bug. "We're aware of an issue where after a certain threshold is reached, Save The World players earn less XP than intended," Epic posted on X. "We're working to resolve this now and will let you know when a fix is live." It looks like this might have been part of a broader problem with Fortnite, as XP awards in Lego Fortnite were also disabled because of a problem with how it was being handed out. The Lego Fortnite Status account said all XP that would have been earned during the period that awards are disabled will be granted at some point before the current Lego pass ends. All of this may have emerged from a change to Fortnite's overall XP reward system that was announced in October . Rather than having separate daily quests for each mode, as of December 1 the regular battle pass, the music pass, and the Lego pass all share reward tracks and advance with XP earned from any Fortnite mode except Save the World. This hasn't proven entirely popular either, as some players say the merging of daily rewards has cut back on the amount of XP they can earn and forced them to play game modes they're not interested in, but at least it's not a bug. The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
Is Enron back? If it’s a joke, some former employees aren’t laughingThe successful development of this Chinese BCI device has paved the way for its transition from laboratory testing to clinical trials. This crucial step will involve evaluating the device's safety, efficacy, and usability in real-world scenarios, bringing researchers closer to the ultimate goal of making BCI technology widely accessible for clinical applications.
Earlier this year, Tottenham Hotspur's former manager, Jose Mourinho, famously announced that he was leaving his post due to exhaustion. Affectionately dubbed "Limping Uncle" by some fans, Mourinho's departure highlighted the immense pressure and demands that come with managing a top Premier League club. His candid admission that he had run out of energy resonated with many in the football world, sparking discussions about the toll that the league can take on its participants.
Microchip Technology Updates December 2024 Quarter Revenue Guidance, and Announces Manufacturing Restructuring Plans
Qatar rejects any attempts to terminate, reduce UNRWA roleThe Supreme People's Court of China has recently exposed a shocking case of corruption titled "Mosquitoes and Ants: Petty Corruption and Bribery," involving a primary school principal who has been found guilty of accepting nearly ten million yuan in bribes.South Florida beats San Jose State in 5 OTs at Hawaii Bowl
MINNEAPOLIS, Dec. 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SPS Commerce, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPSC), a leader in retail supply chain cloud services, today announced that management will present at the Nasdaq 51st Investor Conference on Tuesday, December 10, 2024, at 3:00 PM GMT. A webcast of the presentation will be available on the company’s investor relations website at http://investors.spscommerce.com/events.cfm . About SPS Commerce SPS Commerce is the world’s leading retail network, connecting trading partners around the globe to optimize supply chain operations for all retail partners. We support data-driven partnerships with innovative cloud technology, customer-obsessed service and accessible experts so our customers can focus on what they do best. To date, more than 120,000 companies in retail, grocery, distribution, supply, and logistics have chosen SPS as their retail network. SPS has achieved 95 consecutive quarters of revenue growth and is headquartered in Minneapolis. For additional information, contact SPS at 866-245-8100 or visit www.spscommerce.com. SPS COMMERCE, SPS, SPS logo and INFINITE RETAIL POWER are marks of SPS Commerce, Inc. and registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, along with other SPS marks. Such marks may also be registered or otherwise protected in other countries. Contact: Investor Relations The Blueshirt Group Irmina Blaszczyk Lisa Laukkanen SPSC@blueshirtgroup.com 415-217-4962 SPS-F
Losers:The Kimberley Curling Club (KCC) hosted the 2025 Safetek Profire BC U18 Curling Championships from Dec. 19 to 23. "We were thrilled with how everything went," said KCC general manager Blair Jarvis. "We knew that most teams were travelling a long way to get here and unfortunately they had to deal with some adventures with the snow we had last Wednesday. "We wanted to make sure that we gave them an experience that they would remember, so we spent a lot of time on the ice, we wanted to give them a great social experience off the ice as well and we heard from a number of curlers that it was the most U18 event that they’ve attended and so we’re really proud of that fact." The event had 12 teams competing on the Boys' side and seven Girls teams. On the Boys side of the competition, Team Jaeger out of Kelowna beat out Team Hrynew in the finals and for the Girls, Team Arndt from Vernon beat out Team Rempel to win the gold. With these wins, Team Jaeger has earned a spot at the Canadian Under-18 Curling Championships, which will be held at the Nutana Curling Club in Saskatoon, Sask. from Feb. 16-22, 2025. Teams Arndt and Rempel will both be headed to the Nationals. Team Jaeger was made up of coaches Tyler Jaeger and Travis Wielgosz, Lead Brendan Hruschak, Second Noel Wielgosz, Third Spencer Rempel and Skip Owen Jaeger. "We really worked hard this year, this year we really wanted to win," said Skip Owen Jaeger. "We put in a lot of work and it just feels really, really good to win and for all that hard work to pay off. We’re really, really excited, it’s our first National event, first U18 provincial win so we’re really excited." Team Arndt is Coach David Arndt, Lead Alicia Evans, Second Ivy Jensen, Third Bethany Evans and Skip Ava Arndt. "We’re just super excited," said Skip Ava Arndt. "It took us a couple years to get here, but the hard work payed off and we can’t believe it, I don’t think it’s sunk in yet. It’s been a lot of hard work from us and the coaches and the parents. It’s been amazing." Jarvis coached Kimberley's Team Reynolds, who went on to win bronze. "We had set a target of making the playoffs and really happy with how the boys came together," Jarvis said. "They had a couple of games with a tough start and battled back and so the resilience they showed and how they stayed positive, there were a lot of great things we can take away from that. And the bronze medal, we were just thrilled to do that. "We saw Team Jaeger on the boys side and Team Arndt on the girls side as well — if we want to get to that level next year, we have some things to work on and it’s great to see the high level of curling in this province and so I think we’ve come away very motivated as well about what we need to do to get better if we want to be a little higher on the podium next year." Jarvis extended his gratitude to the over 50 volunteers who helped out before, during and after the event, including members of the Cranbrook Curling Club. "We’ll take some of the learnings from this event and apply them to the High School Provincials at the end of February, but we’re really happy with how everything went," he said. "And this is an event for the kids, we want to make sure that they’re going to have an experience that they’ll remember, the teams that had success will obviously remember the things that happened on the ice, but for most kids it will be the experiences they had off the ice. "We had karaoke here on the one night and a bunch of teams were intermingling together and having a great time and those are the experiences that I’m going to take away from this event." Patti Caldwell was head official for the event and Jarvis said she and Ian Milligan worked tirelessly throughout the week. "Patti’s attitude is this is all for the kids and making sure that they have fun and sure it’s a competition, but it’s meant to be fun and we’re going to enjoy this," Jarvis said. "This is a sport that we can enjoy for life and so you want to make sure you’re building positive memories in every aspect." Lindsay Shannon, administrative and event manager at Curl BC, was also on hand for the event, and presented all the awards. "We would just like to thank the Kimberley Curling Club and the City of Kimberley who put on an amazing event here and welcomed all of our athletes who have performed so well," Shannon said. "We're really looking forward to cheering our winners on at the Nationals." The Kimberley Curling Club's next big event is the High School Provincials from Feb. 26 to March 1.None
In second place on the chance creation table is Liverpool's young striker, Rhian Brewster. Despite his relatively young age, Brewster has shown remarkable composure and skill in creating chances for his teammates. His intelligent movement off the ball and his understanding of the game have helped him to excel in this aspect of his game. With 30 chances created, Brewster has proven himself to be a valuable asset for his team.
The acquisition of the former Barcelona millionaire by the Reds raised eyebrows and generated mixed reactions from fans and pundits alike. While some viewed it as a bold and calculated move by the club, others expressed skepticism about the player's ability to make a successful comeback. Nevertheless, the Reds remained unfazed by the doubters, emphasizing their belief in the player's potential to shine once again on the pitch.The second half saw Liverpool turn up the heat even further, with Sadio Mane and Diogo Jota getting on the scoresheet to make it 3-0 in favor of the Reds. The quick interchanges and incisive passing between Liverpool's front three were a joy to watch, as they tore apart the Girona defense time and time again.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Penn State players have watched Ashton Jeanty make opponents look silly all season. They don't want to be the next defenders Boise State’s star posterizes with jukes, spin moves, stiff arms and heavy shoulders. But they also know that slowing down Jeanty, who finished second in Heisman Trophy voting , will be their toughest task yet when the two teams meet in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31. “In any other year, I think the guy wins the Heisman,” Penn State coach James Franklin said. “You could make the argument that he should have won it this year. He is hard to tackle. He is compact, 5-(foot)-10, he has the ability to run away from you. He has the ability to make you miss.” Jeanty led the nation with 2,497 rushing yards on 344 carries this season. He scored more touchdowns (30) than any player since Najee Harris scored 30 times with Alabama in 2020. Additionally, Jeanty’s yards after contact (1,889) exceed every FBS running backs’ rushing total since Oklahoma State’s Chuba Hubbard led the NCAA with 2,094 total rushing yards in 2019. Jeanty also forced an NCAA-record 143 missed tackles this season. The junior did it all behind an offensive line that has been forced to shuffle its parts in the wake of numerous injuries. Only left tackle Kage Casey and left guard Ben Dooley have started every game up front for the Broncos this season. “He’s a beast in terms of his production on the field, but then also his durability,” Franklin said. “There’s not too many people that are able to get clean shots on him. All of it is super impressive. But I think the stat that I mentioned earlier, the most impressive stat is the yards after contact.” This could be Jeanty’s biggest challenge to date, too. Although he’s helped Boise State churn out 250 rushing yards per game, good for fifth among FBS programs, the Nittany Lions are well stocked to defend the run. Their defense is seventh nationally allowing just 100 rushing yards per game and has tightened up down the stretch. In its last six games, Penn State is allowing just 2.7 yards per rush and has only given up three rushing touchdowns, two coming in the Big Ten championship game against No. 1 Oregon. “They’ve had our backs throughout the whole year,” Penn State quarterback Drew Allar said. “They have made me a lot better throughout the year, just going against the best defense in America and just glad I got to go against them every day in practice and not against them out on the field in a game setting.” In the opening round of the CFP, Penn State held SMU to just 58 rushing yards on 36 carries. Meanwhile, the Nittany Lions notched 11 of their 50 tackles for loss over the last six games against the Mustangs. Most of those came from a defensive line that regularly rotates run-stuffing tackles Zane Durant, Dvon J-Thomas and Coziah Izzard between dynamic ends Abdul Carter and Dani Dennis-Sutton. Carter alone has 21 1/2 of his team’s 102 stops behind the line of scrimmage this year. He's hoping to add a few against Jeanty and stay off the star back's own long-running highlight reel. “I’m living in my dreams,” Carter said. “I’m having the most fun I ever had playing football and I’ve been playing since I was 8 years old. I’m very blessed. I’m just very humbled to have this opportunity. I just want to keep taking advantage of all the opportunities that I have.” Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-footballAlbany scores 24 4th-quarter points to overtake Hampton 41-34Meanwhile, his twin brother Fabio, the left-back, also decided to call time on his playing career at the age of 31. Fabio joined Manchester United alongside his brother in 2008 and showed promise as a young defender with a bright future ahead. Despite struggling to secure a regular first-team spot at the club, Fabio's talent and dedication were evident to all who saw him play. After leaving United and embarking on loan spells at various clubs, including Cardiff City and Middlesbrough, Fabio eventually found a new home at Nantes in France, where he continued to showcase his skill and passion for the game.