Pennsylvania
Ditch your ID for digital? Pennsylvania considers digital driver’s licenses
Carrying a physical driver’s license could become a thing of the past — for most applications.
The House Transportation Committee is considering a bill that would give drivers the option to obtain a digital ID card while still requiring them to have a physical one.
Rep. Dan Miller, D-Allegheny, said this will keep Pennsylvania up to date in the digital age.
“As technology keeps changing, more Pennsylvanians want to go paperless and are interested in digital products,” the bill’s sponsor said.
Under this bill, people could, for instance, go to a nightclub and use their phone as their identification to get in. There might also be ways to toggle certain information so only relevant things, such as date of birth, could be seen.
Pennsylvania State Police Major Robert J. Krol Jr. said this could help prevent identity theft.
“By allowing an individual to control how much personal information they share, their identity can be confirmed without compromising other information on the physical product,” he said.
While Krol was supportive of the legislation, he said it should still be required for drivers to carry their ID card on them for reasons such as poor reception in parts of the state.
Rodrigo Diaz, executive director of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, said the liquor code does not mention digital IDs as an acceptable form of ID to purchase alcohol. He asked the committee to clarify that point in legislation.
Tuesday’s committee hearing marks an early step in what could be a long effort to launch digital ID’s.
John Corson, director of business development at IDEMIA public security, recommended the state develop its own app and decide later if IDs could be accessed through third party digital wallets, such as Google Wallet and Apple Pay.
Pennsylvania
Update: Freeze warning for part of Pennsylvania until Sunday morning – temperatures to drop to 28
Pennsylvania
Could a gas tax holiday be imposed in Pennsylvania as prices at the pump continue to rise?
PENNSYLVANIA (WJAC) — Discussion continues about potentially suspending the Pennsylvania gas tax, one of the highest state gas taxes in the country, as prices at the pump continue to jump.
Lawmakers in both chambers are considering a gas tax holiday that would remove Pennsylvania’s gas tax for a limited period. The Senate proposal would last 60 days, while the House version would run for six months. Supporters say the move would provide needed help for people across the state, while opponents argue it is not sustainable.
The proposals would save drivers about 57 cents per gallon on gasoline and about 75 cents per gallon on diesel from the state gas tax.
Representatives of the Democratic senator Lisa Boscola, who proposed the Senate bill and is from the Lehigh area, said they will continue pushing the measure they believe is needed by families around the state and are optimistic it will pass.
In the House, the effort is mostly being pushed by Republicans, though local Republican Rep. Jim Rigby said he does not support it because it is “not a real solution.”
Democratic Rep. Paul Takac agrees, saying state police and PennDOT road work are funded through the gas tax, and that suspending it would essentially defund both, and they would have to find money to fill those voids. Takac added that he has not heard any serious intention to move the bill forward.
Democratic Rep. Frank Burns said he believes that if the proposal came to a vote, a gas tax holiday would pass with bipartisan support and would provide at least a small break to struggling families.
The debate continues as gas prices continue rising, with another jump in the last week.
Chief economist Gbenga Ajilore of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says prices are unlikely to fall soon.
“It seems like gas prices are going to go up, and even if there’s some sort of resolution in say the next couple weeks, it’s going to be difficult to see prices go down anytime soon,” Ajilore said.
The Senate is back in session on Monday and for the next few days after that, but not again until June. If the gas tax holiday is going to move forward anytime soon, that is when it would likely happen.
In the House, the proposal would need to clear the Democratic-led Transportation Committee before it could go to a vote.
PENNSYLVANIA (WTAJ) — Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate remained steady at 4.2% for March, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) announced in its preliminary report Friday.
According to L&I, the rate in Pennsylvania was one-tenth of a percentage point below the country’s unemployment rate, which fell to 4.3% compared to February.
The civilian labor force, consisting of residents working or looking for work, increased by 6,000 to 6,593,000, and employment increased by 9,000 while unemployment decreased by 3,000 from February.
Nonfarm jobs also rose in March, to 6,189,600, while jobs in six industry supersectors increased. Trade, transportation, and utilities were up 5,100 during March.
For more information about L&I, visit its website here.
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