State & Regional News

This week on Watching the Skies, WLVR's Brad Klein and Bethlehem's Backyard Astronomy Guy, Marty McGuire talk about the planet Venus and its role as the "morning star."

Ryan Mackenzie, the Lehigh Valley's freshman congressman, cast an essential vote to move President Donald Trump's signature bill through the U.S. House last week. His would-be Democratic opponents say he's sold out poor families to give billionaires a tax break.

State Treasurer Stacy Garrity said her department has returned 500 military medals and pieces of memorabilia to veterans and their families since 2021.

The state Department of Environmental Protection announced $1 million in grants to promote environmental education and stewardship across the state. Four Lehigh Valley programs received funding.

The LVPC on Thursday hosted a workshop, “Planning + Pizza: Deploying Electric Vehicle Infrastructure,” aiming to collect feedback about where best to deploy EV infrastructure throughout the region.

Overall, 31 of the region’s 35 major climate sites were wetter than normal, with 22 of them experiencing one of their 20 wettest May 1-15 periods. Allentown took the top spot, experiencing its wettest May 1-15 ever.

The Lehigh Valley's public transit system says it will have to cut service by 20 percent and boost fares by 25 percent without additional state funding — something that Gov. Josh Shapiro has called for but that lawmakers will have to approve.

Tuesday, May 20, is Primary Election Day in Pennsylvania. Several high-profile local races are on the ballot in Lehigh and Northampton counties. Check out our procrastinator's guide and Q&A.

Drivers who have been ticketed for school bus camera violations say the process to contest them needs to change. PennDOT said thousands of citations across seven Lehigh Valley school districts are still awaiting hearings.

Republicans Roger MacLean and Mike Welsh have spent less than $8,000 combined on their race. Meanwhile, their Democratic opponent Josh Siegel has amassed more than $180,000 in his war chest. The primary election is Tuesday, May 20.

The Pennsylvania Dairymen's Association is celebrating a milestone birthday with ice cream, not cake. They'll debut a new milkshake flavor at this year's PA Farm Show, but fans can get a free taste at pop-up events through December.

Voters with no religious affiliation supported Democratic candidates and abortion rights by staggering percentages in the 2022 midterm elections. And the religiously unaffiliated are growing.

Less than a month after the critical midterm election, Democratic and Republican leaders in the Pennsylvania state House are contesting which party can run the body, a dispute that could determine who has the power to call special elections to fill pending vacancies, and shape who lawmakers pick to lead the chamber on Jan. 3.

Makers of products like Children's Tylenol say they're trying to keep up with big demand as RSV, flu, and COVID spread. But medical experts note that kids' fevers don't always call for medicine.

Three weeks after the end of voting, challenges to certify midterm election results are playing out in just two states, Arizona and Pennsylvania, where Democrats won the marquee races for governor and Senate.

On World AIDS Day, three Lehigh Valley residents reflect on their role in helping fight the AIDS crisis at the height of the epidemic. One, a doctor, did not realize at the time he was treating the first patients in the Lehigh Valley with AIDS, let alone the extent of the impact the disease would have on the world.

A pattern change known as the "Greenland Block" could introduce cold air — and perhaps wintry weather — into the region by mid-December, meteorologists say. But what is the pattern and why could it bring snow?

Two seafood monitoring groups downgraded Maine lobster's sustainability ratings, prompting Whole Foods to pause purchases. Here's how environmental groups and state leaders are reacting.

"Deana's Law" will add harsh penalties for drunken and impaired drivers who repeatedly violate the law in Pennsylvania.

Cedar Crest College has recently received a $1 million state grant to upgrade the turf on the school's softball field.

Carolyn Carluccio, the president judge of Montgomery County Court, announced her candidacy Tuesday in next fall’s election for a 10-year term on the state’s highest court.

The Allentown organization helps kids with educational opportunities regardless of financial or home situation.