September 11, 2019 3:43 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump says his administration will propose banning thousands of flavors used in e-cigarettes amid an outbreak of breathing problems tied to vaping. State and federal health authorities are investigating hundreds of breathing illnesses reported in people who have used e-cigarettes and other vaping devices. No single device, ingredient or additive has been identified. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar says the Food and Drug Administration will develop guidelines to remove all e-cigarette flavors from the market, especially those favored by children. The FDA regulates e-cigarettes and has authority to ban vaping flavors, but has resisted calls to take that step. Instead, the agency has said it is studying the role of flavors in vaping products, including whether they help adult smokers quit traditional cigarettes.
September 11, 2019 3:39 pm
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – T. Boone Pickens, who amassed a fortune as an oil tycoon and corporate raider and gave much of it away as a philanthropist, has died. He was 91. Spokesman Jay Rosser confirmed Pickens’ death Wednesday to The Associated Press. Pickens made his first millions in oil, burnishing an image as a maverick, unafraid to take on giants in the oil patch. Even his name seemed to fit, like central casting’s idea of what an oilman should be named. Starting in the 1980s, he became known for launching hostile corporate takeover bids that often resulted in a huge payoff. His fortune soared into the billions. Pickens flirted with the idea of marketing water from West Texas to the state’s metropolitan areas. In a break from his past, he also developed wind farms. (Photo: CNN)
September 11, 2019 1:39 pm
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) – A suspect was in custody after multiple stabbings in an industrial area of Florida’s capital city, authorities said Wednesday. The Tallahassee Police Department said in an online news release that they were called to an industrial area in the city for a stabbing Wednesday morning. When they arrived, they found multiple people with stab wounds. The stabbing victims required immediate medical attention, according to police. No further details were immediately given. The stabbing took place at Dyke Industries, according to the police. The business distributes residential and commercial building supplies, such as doors and windows, according to the company’s website. A company representative didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
September 11, 2019 9:18 am
The State Police Fire Marshall is investigating after a pair of fires broke out at the same Canonsburg home. Canonsburg Volunteer Fire Chief Tim Solobay tells WJPA News that firefighters were called to 240 Lincoln Avenue just after 8:30 p.m Tuesday night. He says the home was heavily involved when they arrived but crews were able to knock it down quickly. An initial investigation determined that wiring in the home likely caused the blaze. The occupant was not home at the time and no injuries resulted. Crews then taped off the scene and left. Solobay, however, says the occupant then returned to retrieve belongings from the home around 2 a.m. A second fire then broke out just after 4 a.m. about an hour after the occupant had left. Solobay calls that suspicious especially given how intense the second fire was. He also points out that power to the home had been turned off. The Fire Marshall is, again, investigating. The identity of the occupant has not been released.
September 11, 2019 4:23 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Income for the median U.S. household last year finally matched its previous peak set in 1999 after growing at the slowest annual pace since 2014. Government figures show that after more than a decade of economic growth – the longest expansion on record – Americans are earning no more than they did two decades ago once inflation is taken into account.
The Census Bureau says that median household income rose 0.9% in 2018 to an inflation-adjustedá$63,179 from $62,626 in 2017. The poverty rate fell to 11.8%, the lowest annual level since 2001. That improvement reflects increased income over the past several years for many workers in low-wage jobs. At the same time, the proportion of Americans with health insurance fell to 91.5% from 92.15 in 2017.
September 11, 2019 4:21 am
BEIJING (AP) – China has announced some U.S. industrial chemicals will be exempt from tariff hikes imposed in a trade war with Washington but maintained penalties on soybeans, pork and other farm goods. The Ministry of Finance’s announcement Wednesday came ahead of October talks aimed at ending the fight over trade and technology that threatens global economic growth.
The ministry’s first list of goods exempted from tariff hikes imposed in response to President Donald Trump’s penalty duties on Chinese imports includes industrial grease and some other chemicals. But penalties of up to 25% stayed in place on soybeans and hundreds of other goods.
September 11, 2019 4:20 am
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (AP) – Conservative Republican Dan Bishop has won a special election for an open House seat in North Carolina, averting a demoralizing Democratic capture of a district the GOP has held for nearly six decades. But Bishop’s narrow victory over centrist Democrat Dan McCready didn’t erase questions about whether President Donald Trump and his party’s congressional candidates face troubling headwinds approaching 2020. Bishop is a state senator best known for a North Carolina law dictating which public bathrooms transgender people can use. He tied himself tightly to Trump, who staged an election-eve rally for him, and Tuesday’s voting seemed no less than a referendum on the president. Trump quickly took credit for the triumph, proclaiming a “BIG NIGHT FOR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY” on Twitter.
September 11, 2019 4:14 am
North Franklin Township Supervisors have not been sitting on their hands this summer. Township officials are in early talks about possible renewed interest in housing development around the former Pennsylvania American Water lakes. Supervisors are also trying to contact owners of the Washington Crown Center to see how they may be able to advise mall owners about their ideas to help them to better target new tenants for the mall. The mall has been losing tenants, most recently Sears, and supervisors feel that input from the township is vital in keeping what could be the township’s largest employer in business. Tax savings were also announced. The Township will save approximately $200,000 on the 2020 Minimum Municipal Obligation for pensions because of an overpayment to the police force funds. Supervisors also are advertising a new ordinance called “The Quality of Life” ordinance. Director of Planning, Erin Dinch described the ticketing process as one that will significantly streamline the current nuisance property maintenance ordinance. Currently, offending properties could go all summer without addressing the maintenance concern. Dinch hopes that the new ordinance could have problems rectified in 30 days. Supervisors will vote on the new ordinance at a future meeting.
September 11, 2019 4:12 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is cutting its ranks after 63 legislative employees jumped on the chance to be paid a bonus to quit their jobs. Pennlive.com reported that 31 Republican staffers, 21 Democratic staffers and 11 who work under the House chief clerk and comptroller’s offices took the offer for $1,000 payments for each year of service, up to 25 years. The offer was open to those with at least five years’ experience. It expired at the end of August. Those who took the voluntary buyout can’t return to House employment for a decade but are free to find work elsewhere in state government. The goal is to replace senior workers with lower-paid employees, and to reap savings by eliminating an unspecified number of positions.
September 11, 2019 4:11 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A proposal to allow limited hunting in Pennsylvania on Sundays is running into opposition that could prevent its final passage in the state House. Game and Fisheries Committee Chairman Keith Gillespie said Tuesday after a contentious informational hearing in the Capitol that supporters will need to engage in some “damage control” if they hope to see the bill enacted. The state Senate voted 36 to 14 in June to permit hunting on one Sunday during deer rifle season, one during deer archery season, and on a third Sunday. It’s touted as a way to make it easier for younger people and those who work during the week to hunt. Pennsylvania has long banned Sunday hunting, although there are exceptions for crows, foxes and coyotes.
