A plan to redraw lines for Pennsylvania's congressional districts passed the state House on Wednesday on a nearly party line vote. Every Democrat and two Republicans voted against the proposal that would reshuffle the state to take into account 2020 census results where Pennsylvania lost a congressional seat. Republican St. Rep. Barb Gleim likes the map. "They tweaked a fair amount of districts to make them a little more fair where they had some pushback," Gleim says. Brendan Welch, with the state's Democratic Party, says the map remains biased. "Analysts say that this map is going to have a 10-7 split that favors the GOP. How in the world does that happen in a state like Pennsylvania?" Welch says. St. Rep. Seth Grove, the Republican chair of the State Government Committee, says the map would likely result in eight Democratic districts, eight Republican districts and one toss-up. The map now heads to the state Senate.
RCN is getting a new name. A private equity firm has acquire five companies including RCN and is renaming all five Astound Broadband. The company will be called "Astound Broadband powered by RCN." Expect to see the name change reflected on signs, the company website and social media within the next couple of weeks.
The Boys and Girls Club of Easton will start offering free COVID tests to anyone who needs one starting Sunday. Club Executive Director Dean Young says they realized the need for testing in underserved communities and will continue offering free testing until the demand decreases. The first round of tests will be offered from 10 to 11 a.m. Sunday at the club at 210 Jones Houston Way in Easton.
Easton Area School District's athletic department has presented a plan to charge $5 for livestreaming sports events. The livestreaming option might start with football this fall and could see the 2022-23 boys and girls basketball seasons also be streamed. A single automated camera that follows motion will provide pictures and sound, though there will be no commentary.
A 95-year-old woman died after a Tuesday night house fire in Warren County, New Jersey State Police said. Crews were called at 5:48 p.m. for the fire at the home on Sunset Court in the Country View Village development, which sits off Route 519 in White Township. Mary Tino was located inside the home and removed by fire crews. During EMS transport to a local hospital, Tino was pronounced dead, troopers said. The fire is under investigation.
Investigators believe that the helicopter crash earlier this week in Delaware County was a pure accident. The National Transportation Safety Board says the chopper had no issues until it got around the area of the crash. However, the NTSB's Brian Rayner says the investigation won't move all that quickly since the chopper's pilot isn't quite able to talk. "His medical condition precludes him from speaking to us anytime in the immediate future," Rayner says. That pilot is the only one of the four people aboard that helicopter to have been seriously injured. The chopper was on its way to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia when it crashed.
Drivers on the Pennsylvania Turnpike are close to being able to use mobile apps to pay for tolls. St. Sen. Marty Flynn has spoken about his plans to introduce legislation to add Paypal, Venmo, Cash App, and Zelle as turnpike payment methods. Flynn said people are frustrated by the toll by plate system and expanding options would improve collection rates.
Penn State football has a revised schedule for 2022 after the Big Ten announced multiple changes Wednesday. The biggest adjustments are switching a scheduled game against Illinois in favor of a matchup with Northwestern. Penn State's bye week has been moved up by two weeks, the Michigan State game has been shifted to the final game of the season and the Ohio State game will be the last weekend in October rather than the first week of that month. For the second straight year, Penn State will begin the season on the road against a Big Ten opponent, this time it's Purdue on Sept. 3.