Results tagged “pennsylvaniasenate”

• Arlene Ackerman laid out changes that must come to Philadelphia schools. Ackerman said that the school day must lengthen and the method for filling teaching vacancies and paying teachers must also change.
• The Pennsylvania Legislature is mulling over details of the state's annual budget. The fiscal year ends in less than a week. Here are some reasons why they should pass the budget on time.
• The tough times of the economy have reached Metrocorp, publisher of Philadelphia Magazine. An advertising employee was laid off and all employees must take a mandatory one-week, unpaid furlough.

The Philadelphia Business Journal is reporting that, because the ten-day timeline for a veto from Mayor Nutter has passed, the unanimously-approved City Council bill banning the use of handheld cell phones while operating a vehicle is now officially enforceable. The bill applies to cars, bicycles, skateboards, in-line skates and even scooters (but does "scooter" include Rascals?). Moreover, state legislation that has gone from the PA House to the Senate chimes in on the distracted drivers issue. Pennsylvania would consider distracted driving offenses like those regulated by Philly's law 'secondary', meaning that cops couldn't pull you over just because you're screaming into your handset while you're screaming down the highway. The state law also penalizes local governments for having their own take on it. In Philadelphia's case, that may mean over $250M in lost infrastructure funding over the next three years.