00:00A bill to ban cell phones in Pennsylvania schools is headed to the governor for his signature.
00:06NewsRadio KDKA's David Bollorato has the story.
00:08By a vote of 47 to 3, the state senate passed the bell-to-bell cell phone ban Wednesday afternoon
00:13and now it's headed to Governor Shapiro who has been pushing for such a ban.
00:16Welcome news to PAN Plug's advocacy lead, Kelly Marsh.
00:20It's not the social media per se, it's the algorithms that are driving the content
00:24that is harmful and addictive that we are going up against.
00:28It's the same with these AI chatbots that are now not just going after our kids' attention
00:34but going after our kids' attachment.
00:36Pennsylvania will become the 25th state in the nation to adopt a bell-to-bell ban
00:40if the governor signs the bill, which is widely expected to happen.
00:43David Bollorato, NewsRadio KDKA.
00:45State lawmakers also unanimously approved a bill recognizing 9-1-1 dispatchers as emergency responders.
00:52And to tell us what that means, here's NewsRadio KDKA's Tamara Rush in the newsroom.
00:57Paul, before this bill, 9-1-1 telecommunicators were excluded from certain state protections
01:02available to emergency responders, including expanded mental health support for job-related trauma.
01:09House Bill 453 would formally recognize dispatchers as emergency responders,
01:14expanding access to wellness and stress management resources.
01:18The bill passed both chambers and now awaits Governor Josh Shapiro's signature.
01:22In the newsroom, Tamara Rush, NewsRadio KDKA.
01:25Allegheny County Executive Sarah Inamorato will sign the paid parental leave legislation into law this afternoon,
01:31but she's doing it without the support of an influential nonprofit.
01:35Here's NewsRadio KDKA's Paul Alexander.
01:38This will be the first county in the country to adopt a policy like this without a state mandate.
01:42Matt Smith with the Allegheny Conference says it doesn't make sense economically.
01:46We believe it puts Allegheny County at a competitive disadvantage relative to other markets, relative to other regions.
01:56We think it'll make it tougher to recruit businesses here.
02:00We also think it'll make it tougher to convince businesses here right now to expand.
02:05Allegheny County businesses with 15 or more employees must pay regular base pay for 12 weeks
02:10for employees that have a baby, foster, or adopt a child.
02:14Paul Alexander, NewsRadio KDKA.
02:17McCandless Crossing Shopping Center on McKnight Road is on the market.
02:21The prime retail location features Trader Joe's, a 12-screen Cinemark Theater,
02:26and popular restaurants like Burgatory, BJ's, Hello Bistro, Bonefish Grill, Texas Roadhouse, and First Watch.
02:32The Pittsburgh Business Times reports JLL is marketing the complex that draws an estimated 5.7 million annual visitors.
02:42Upper Burrell's Board of Supervisors is hosting a public hearing tonight about a proposed data center off of Route 780.
02:48The proposal has the approval of the township's planning commission, but the supervisors must give final zoning approval.
02:55The public hearing begins at 6 p.m. at the Upper Burrell Municipal Building,
02:59and the supervisors, by the way, are expected to vote after tonight's hearing.
03:04The family of Hall of Fame basketball coach Bob Huggins says he has a progressive cognitive condition
03:09impacting his memory and aspects of daily life.
03:12The statement on Huggins' health was released in coordination with the University of Cincinnati
03:17ahead of the 73-year-old's induction into that school's Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday night.
03:24KDKA sports the Steelers flying to Paris later today after practice on the south side.
03:29After 10 tackles and 2 sacks in Sunday's overtime win,
03:33Jalen Ramsey was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week.
