PROTECTING CHILDREN IN PENNSYLVANIA
Pennsylvania is closing the book on 2013 and the Jerry Sandusky scandal with 10 new laws to protect children.
The laws, among other things, make it easier for caseworkers to report abuse.
And they lower the threshold of physical abuse from "serious" bodily harm, to any harm.
NEW JERSEY'S MINIMUM WAGE
In New Jersey, minimum wage workers get a pay hike starting today.
The new minimum wage is $8.25, a dollar more than the federal minimum.
Small business owners like Augustine Riginos are struggling to adjust.
Riginos has 15 employees at his restaurant, Bistro at Haddonfield in Haddonfield, N.J. He says the pay hike for them may be a wash: earning more, but working less.
PROTECTING SHARKS IN DELAWARE
Shark fin soup is not on the menu at Riginos' restaurant. And, by law, it is permanently off the menu in Delaware.
It is now illegal to possess or sell shark fins in Delaware. It's a move to protect sharks form a brutal harvest that is depleting their numbers worldwide.
GAS PRICES IN PENNSYLVANIA
And get ready to pay more at the pump in 2014. In Pennsylvania you may pay as much as 9.5 cents a gallon more thanks to a fee imposed on wholesalers.
It's short term pain for long term gain. The new fee will pay for $2.3 billion in improvements to the state's transportation infrastructure.
ENERGY-EFFICIENT BULBS FOR ALL
And don't get any bright ideas about wasting energy in 2014. This one affects all of us.
Say goodbye to the incandescent light bulb.
Stores will not be able to restock them after the current supply runs out. Your only choice now is the new breed of more expensive, longer lasting, energy efficient bulbs.
Say good night, Mr. Edison.
