Author: rpnadmin

Twenty-six state and local governments will raise their minimum wage on July 1 — a flurry of legislative action that supporters say is long overdue and critics insist will worsen the nation’s affordability crisis. The conservative Employment Policies Institute reported that the increases include seven California cities hiking hospitality industry compensation. Amusement and hotel workers in San Diego will start at $17.25 an hour, while Long Beach hotel and concession workers will earn $26.50 an hour. California will raise pay for healthcare facility workers statewide to $25 an hour. Alaska will increase the wage floor to $14 for all hourly…

The Justice Department said it intends to intervene in a lawsuit filed by an order of Catholic nuns fighting a New York law requiring nursing homes to house biological males who identify as female with women. The department threw its support Thursday behind the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, a 125-year-old nonprofit institution that runs the Rosary Hill Home, in its challenge to the state’s 2024 law banning discrimination based on “actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or HIV status.” The department’s Complaint-in-Intervention alleges that the law violates the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause by “requiring religious facilities…

A teenager’s death after being thrown from a horse carriage in Central Park has prompted the age-old New York City attraction to shut down temporarily. The union representing the carriage drivers, TWU Local 100, suspended operations after Romanch Mahajan, an 18-year-old tourist from India, was killed by blunt force trauma after jumping from a runaway carriage on Wednesday. TWU Local 100 Administrative Vice President Alexander Kemp said the carriage group is “gutted and stunned by this tragedy” and has “never had a fatal accident like this before.” “We have shuttered the stables and ceased operations today while we have extensive…

Customs and Border Protection officials said Thursday that agents in the Houston area seized fake World Cup goods worth over $6 million. The shipments included 69 packages of fake Apple watches and earbuds, 12,000 Adidas soccer jerseys, 4,500 Adidas soccer balls, 4,400 pairs of athletic shoes, and an assortment of perfume and toys, customs officials said. Customs officials said the goods were seized by agents at the ports of Houston and Galveston for violations of intellectual property rights, including use of the FIFA and 2026 World Cup logos. A Customs and Border Protection account on X posted pictures of some…

The Obama Presidential Center opened its doors to the public in Chicago’s Jackson Park on Thursday, drawing thousands of visitors to the 19-acre South Side campus, even as critics renewed complaints about its photo-ID requirement for free admission and mounting taxpayer-funded infrastructure costs tied to the $850 million project. The dedication ceremony, held Wednesday on the eve of opening day, drew former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Joe Biden, along with performances by Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Bono and the Edge of U2, and John Legend. Former President Barack Obama grew visibly emotional during former first lady Michelle…

Bad Bunny has become the first Latin music artist to surpass $1 billion in career touring revenue, multiple news outlets report.  The milestone was achieved through his Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour, which notably did not include any U.S. dates, making it the highest-grossing tour in Billboard Boxscore history to never play a show in the U.S. In the star’s first 41 shows — spanning South America, Australia, Japan, and Europe — the tour grossed $360 million and sold 2.4 million tickets, surpassing the British pop group Take That’s 2011 tour “Progress Live” as the top-earning non-U.S. tour on…

Netflix has canceled the sci-fi TV series “The Boroughs,” less than one month after all eight episodes of season one dropped on May 21. The show centers on a group of senior citizens living in a retirement community who discover a supernatural mystery. It stars Geena Davis, Alfred Molina, Alfre Woodard, Clarke Peters, Denis O’Hare and Bill Pullman. Ms. Davis told The Hollywood Reporter that Netflix gave her no explanation for declining to renew the show. But two sources close to production told magazine the show was canceled because of its expensive budget.  Ms. Davis expressed confusion over the move,…

RICHMOND, Va. – From 1830 to 1860, tens of thousands of enslaved people disembarked ships at Richmond’s Manchester Docks, an entry point into a bondage system that built Virginia’s wealth and shaped the city’s history. Shackled together, the enslaved people trudged along a muddy trail connecting the docks to the city’s auction house, where they were sold and bought as property. Today, the path, known as the “slave trail,” is part of a citywide walking tour exploring Richmond’s role as a major hub of the domestic slave trade. As about 20 Virginians marched in line, in silence, over the muddy…

Waymo is recalling 3,871 of its robotaxis due to an issue that led the vehicles to drive into construction zones on freeways. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in its report submitted Wednesday that Waymo decided to initiate the recall on June 8 because the vehicles “may enter and drive at speed in freeway construction zones due to inappropriately prioritizing the avoidance of other freeway hazards and/or failing to recognize the construction zone.” In the Phoenix area, Waymo robotaxis drove past signs advising about ramp closures and into construction zones once on April 11 and five separate times on…

Millions of bees were unleashed after a tractor-trailer carrying beehives overturned on a highway near Yellowstone National Park in Montana. The truck full of beehives tipped over on Tuesday on U.S. Route 191 near the western edge of the national park. Park officials implemented traffic control measures as the scene was cleaned up from the spill, according to the East Idaho News. About 250 million bees got loose as a result of the crash. Local law enforcement, firefighters and Montana state personnel responded to the scene. A Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office deputy was stung nine times while directing traffic, according…