In the News

A bipartisan group of senators this week announced their hopes for an upcoming vote on a package of seven bills that address domestic violence in Pennsylvania. The bills ultimately passed the Senate Wednesday, with one of the bills headed to the governor's desk. “Now...

(Harrisburg) -- With heavy snow falling, the state Senate made it into the Capitol Wednesday to vote through a raft of bills that aim to increase protections for crime victims. One of the measures is now on its way to the governor's desk, and six others are headed to...

HARRISBURG — The state Senate Wednesday approved a package of bills aimed at better protecting victims of domestic violence, including a measure that will close a loophole in the state’s gun law that victims' advocates have said makes it too easy for abusers to access...

HARRISBURG — The Republican-controlled Pennsylvania Senate gave unanimous approval Wednesday to a bill to force people with a domestic violence ruling against them to more quickly forfeit their firearms, a bill that includes last-minute changes negotiated by the...

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) a The Pennsylvania Senate is giving its unanimous approval to a bill to force people with a domestic violence ruling against them to more quickly give up their firearms. The Senate's 50-0 vote Wednesday sends the bill to the House. Under the bill,...

HARRISBURG — A bill that is likely to become law could open the door for more judges to use risk-assessment tools — screenings aimed at determining whether someone presents a danger to others — when they set bail in domestic-violence cases. The bill, which Gov. Wolf...

HARRISBURG >> The Republican-controlled Pennsylvania Senate gave unanimous approval Wednesday to a bill to force people with a domestic violence ruling against them to more quickly forfeit their firearms, a bill that includes last-minute changes negotiated by the...

Harrisburg >> The Pennsylvania Senate this week passed several major domestic violence bills, including landmark legislation sponsored by Sens. Tom Killion, R-9, and Tom McGarrigle, R-26. The bills, which provide additional protections for victims of domestic...

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The Republican-controlled Pennsylvania Senate gave unanimous approval Wednesday to a bill to force people with a domestic violence ruling against them to more quickly forfeit their firearms, a bill that includes last-minute changes negotiated by...

A bipartisan group of senators Tuesday announced their hopes for an upcoming vote on a package of seven bills that address domestic violence in Pennsylvania. “Now I’m sure each member would have liked to get more here or there in this bill, but this is what we can...

The Senate is expected on Wednesday to vote on a package of bi-partisan backed bills to strengthen protection of victims of domestic violence including a bill that gives more teeth to Pennsylvania's protection-from-abuse system. The legislation sponsored by Sen. Tom...

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — A bipartisan group of senators stood in front of the Capitol steps on Tuesday, demanding action to protect victims of domestic abuse. A package of seven bills is being pushed. Sen. Camera Bartolotta plans to introduce Tierne’s Law that would...

PHILADELPHIA - A third of the complaints fielded by the Pennsylvania Department of Aging each year are related to staffing, the state's ombudsman said during a two-hour hearing Friday on the quality of nursing home care. "There's only one solution that can provide...

Despite years of pressure from advocates for the elderly and others, the Pennsylvania Department of Health continues to do a poor job of investigating complaints about nursing home care and fails to properly assess the significance of harm to patients, according to a...

State Sen. Vincent Hughes (D-7) has expressed serious concerns about the state Supreme Court’s new congressional map and he’s not alone. The NAACP and Common Cause of Pennsylvania have threatened to challenge the new map, drawings that Hughes bluntly said is a loss...

Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf said in his state budget address that a severance tax on natural gas drilling would be a great way to fill Pennsylvania’s coffers without having a dire effect on the finances of residents. But members of the state’s Senate Appropriations...

HARRISBURG — Gov. Tom Wolf unveiled an election-year budget Tuesday of nearly $33 billion that would boost funding for public schools, hike the minimum wage, expand the fight against opioid addiction and slap a new tax on natural gas drillers. "We have finally begun...

Weakened financial stability and growing deficits erode the essential services that government provides to people and Pennsylvania is mired in many years of financial mismanagement by the state legislature, according to state Sen. Art Haywood (D-4). Haywood counted...

The drumbeat is building for the District to release detailed environmental data about every school. All seven of Philadelphia’s state senators have joined several members of the City Council and the Healthy Schools coalition in calling for the information to be made...

A bipartisan team of three state senators has introduced legislation that would make relocation easier for victims of domestic assault within public housing. Sen. Art Haywood (D-Philadelphia and Montgomery County), Sen. Camera Bartolotta (R-Beaver, Greene and...

As part of an ongoing effort to promote discussion of local issues, State Sen. Art Haywood (District 4) will be hosting a town hall on gun violence at the Woodmere Art Museum on Thursday, Oct. 26, from 6 to 8 p.m. After hosting three town halls during the spring,...

State Lt. Gov. Mike Stack (D-5) and State Sen. Art Haywood (D-4) are working together to educate others on commutations and the process of wiping convictions off a person’s record. They spoke at an event at LaSalle University. As of January 31, 2017, the state of...

Thanks to a generous contribution from the Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church in Northwest Philadelphia and the Salem Baptist Church in Jenkintown, Black students at Cheltenham High School will get the help they need to get ready for college. Enon and Salem joined forces...

On the way back from Harrisburg Wednesday, State Sen. Art Haywood called his mother to let her know that a resolution he sponsored honoring Civil Rights pioneer Fannie Lou Hamer had been approved. “She was so happy,” said Haywood (D-Phila./Mont.). “I couldn’t be more...

NORTHWEST PHILADELPHIA >> Three area churches are challenging the Northwest Philadelphia area on the traditional concept of church. First, the new Dare to Imagine Church held its Only Imagine Gala and Sunday morning worship service the weekend of Sept. 8 to 10,...

Cyrus Mann, the Philadelphia police officer dismissed after fatally shooting an unarmed 306-pound man in 2012, got his job back last year in part because an arbitrator said no evidence or witnesses contradicted Mann’s version that he shot the man at close range as...

The Broad Street median parking lawsuit is dead. A Common Pleas Court Judge decided yesterday that the effort to get Philadelphia Police and the Parking Authority to ticket South Broad median parkers is a no-go. Political action committee 5th Square filed the lawsuit...

State Sen. Art Haywood (D – 4th Dist.) recently hosted a “Back to School” celebration at the Recreation Center in Germantown. The event the end of a successful summer camp program and the beginning of the new school year. “The main thing we wanted from this event was...

Two ideas — one from the right, one from the left — to fix Pennsylvania’s budget woes just might (if put together) get state finances back on track. It’d take some doing and compromise. So right away you figure, eh, no chance. But what passes for fiscal management in...

Pennsylvania expects to spend between $24 million and $30 million in start-up expenses to comply with federal requirements to make state-issued identification cards more secure, less than a third of what PennDot said it would cost five years ago, state transportation...