skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

PA Lawmakers Consider Bills to Keep Parks Programming Afloat

play audio
Play

Friday, November 12, 2021   

HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Bills making their way through the Pennsylvania General Assembly would provide more resources to people who keep parks and recreational activities up and running.

House Bill 764 would allow all employees working directly with children to be hired on the same 45-day provisional basis as licensed daycare facilities, so long as they've completed state-related background checks and have applied for an FBI background check.

Rep. Brett Miller, R-Lancaster, the bill's prime sponsor, said after a recent camp worker shortage, it would help speed up the hiring process to meet the needs for youth programs.

"People want to get back into the activities," Miller observed. "The young people want to be able to participate in sports camps, and camping and the like. So, having this bill proceed with a provisional component will allow these programs to continue, youth to be served."

The bill previously passed out of the House unanimously, and got through the Senate Health and Human Services Committee at the end of October. This week, it was referred once again to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

House Bill 1694 would legally protect volunteer groups that maintain parks from lawsuits related to incidents on park grounds.

Maura McCarthy, executive director of the Fairmount Park Conservancy in Philadelphia, said the groups are integral to the care and management of outdoor public recreation spaces.

She pointed out at least one volunteer group dissolved due to high insurance costs from liability claims, and the bill would ensure the work they do can continue.

"It explicitly includes them in a protected group of folks who cannot be sued," McCarthy explained. "And this bill actually calls out that volunteer groups do not have a 'duty of care.' They do not have an obligation to ensure the safety of folks using that space for recreation."

More than 100 Park Friends groups help with upkeep on Philadelphia's 10,000 acres of park land. The bill passed the House Tourism and Recreational Development committee in late October.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …


Organizations fighting wage theft said it harms affected workers and surrounding communities because the money withheld is not being circulated through the local economy. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Environment

play sound

A farm group is helping Iowa agriculture producers find ways to reduce the amount of nitrogen they use on their crops. Excess nitrates can wind up …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021