Local legislators introduce bill intended to help people get help faster during severe storms
'I told my out-of-town people, 'get out,' my employees 'get out as fast as you can,' because it turned out to be a lot worse than we imagined,' Debbie McManus said.
McManus has owned and operated an Aspinwall business for 37 years. She and others have seen storms and flooding throughout that time, but nothing quite like this spring.
'We had three major issues with high tension wires on the ground for 10 days and nothing was done,' Aspinwall Mayor Joe Noro said.
Mayor Noro says getting information during that time was extremely difficult.
'If you can't get information from Allegheny emergency management, that's a problem,' he said.
State Rep. Abigail Salisbury (D-34) agrees, which is why she's joined forces with State Reps. Mandy Steele (D-33) and Valerie Gaydos (R-44) to take action.
'I just want to create a system where it's easier for the state reps to help our constituents and to relay that information directly to PEMA,' Salisbury said.
On Wednesday, she introduced a bill which would require PEMA to share weather emergency alerts with state legislative offices, creating a direct channel of communication before, during and after natural disasters strike.
'That would enable us to better prepare to be able to deploy and help people in the community,' she said.
Salisbury says the bill already has bipartisan support. There are several steps before this bill goes to the governor.
Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Bloomberg
26 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Democrat Jeffries Delays House Vote on Trump Tax Bill With Marathon Speech
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries is blocking a final vote on Republicans' tax and spending package with a lengthy floor speech bashing the bill. The New Yorker is using his unlimited floor speech privileges to ensure Democratic criticisms of the bill air on popular morning news shows. He began speaking before 5 a.m. in remarks that have gone well beyond a speech expected to last an hour. The longer he talks, the more attention he is likely to draw.
Associated Press
26 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Supreme Court rejects Montana's bid to revive parental consent law for minors' abortions
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court said Thursday it will not hear a case involving a push to revive a law that minors must have their parents' permission for an abortion in Montana, where voters have enshrined the right to abortion in the state's constitution. The justices rebuffed an appeal from the Republican-led state seeking to overturn a Montana Supreme Court ruling that struck down the law. The parental consent law passed in 2013 but was blocked in court and never took effect before it was invalidated last year. Montana state leaders say that decision violated parents' rights. 'The right that Montana seeks to vindicate here — parents' right to know about, and participate in, their child's medical decisions — falls well within the core of parents' fundamental rights,' state attorneys argued in court documents. Two conservative justices, Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, wrote separately to say the high court's denial to take up the case was about its technical legalities rather than rejection of the state's argument. Planned Parenthood argued that the Montana Supreme Court decision balanced the rights of parents and of minors in a state that has protected the right to abortion. Montana's highest recognized a right to abortion before the Supreme Court overturned it nationwide, and voters also enshrined it in the Montana Constitution last year. 'Petitioners seek to use the parental right as a cudgel against a minor's rights,' the group wrote. 'The broader interests of the child must be accounted for along with parental rights.' The law would require notarized, written consent for people younger than 18 to get an abortion. It would also allow minors to petition judges for permission, a process known as judicial bypass. Montana also has another law in place requiring parents be notified of minors' abortions. More than two dozen states require parents consent to abortions for minors, though the laws have also been blocked in California and New Mexico, according to data gathered by KFF, a nonprofit that researches health care issues. Twelve more states require parental notification, though three of those laws are also blocked in court.
Bloomberg
31 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Bloomberg Surveillance: Jobs and Tax Bill
Watch Tom and Paul LIVE every day on YouTube: Bloomberg Surveillance hosted by Tom Keene & Paul Sweeney July 3rd, 2025 Featuring: 1) Claudia Sahm, Chief Economist at New Century Advisors, brings us into the June jobs report and talks about the health of the labor market. Sarah Wolfe, Senior Economist and Strategist, Thematic & Macro Investing at Morgan Stanley and Kristina Campmany, Senior Portfolio Manager at Invesco, also offer their analysis of the jobs numbers. 2) Patrick McHenry, former House Speaker pro tempore and current Advisory Board Member BGR, joins to discuss President Trump's tax bill debate in the House. Despite Republicans controlling both the US House and Senate, Trump's signature legislation ran into resistance from cost-conscious conservatives as well as swing-district moderates, who worry the measure cuts too deeply into Medicaid and other safety-net programs. 3) Wendy Schiller, professor at Brown University, on President Trump aiming to push through his economic agenda early in his second term. President Trump repeatedly blasted Republican lawmakers resisting the legislation as 'grandstanders' and threatened to oppose reelection of members who block his agenda. 4) Rebecca Patterson, former Chief Investment Strategist at Bridgewater, reacts to the jobs report and markets. Investors are also closely tracking the US fiscal situation as President Trump aims to implement his economic agenda. 5) Yelena Shulyateva, Economist at the Conference Board, on JOLTS, June Jobs report, ADP, and the US economy. Concerns about mounting US deficits and the detail of Trump's bill may weigh stronger on bond investors' minds than the jobs report according to some market commentators.
