If you haven't noticed yet, Google maps now has "street view" available on major roads in York County.
This feature is pretty neat. And it means the Google car was in York some time recently. I wish I could have seen it.
Recently in Online records Category
A Lebanon County woman who drew national attention last year for carrying a loaded handgun to her child's soccer game was shot dead Wednesday in what police are calling a murder suicide. Each year the state police put out a report on firearm trends in the state.
Here's some local info:
Handgun sales
- In York County, where about 420,000 people live, there were more than 17,000 guns sold in 2008. About 45 percent were handguns.
- In Lebanon County, which has about 128,934 residents, there were about 9,100 guns sold, with about 47 percent being handguns.
License to carry
- York County had 5,777 of these permits issued in 2008. As a percent of the county's total population, about 1.4 percent got one of these permits that year.
- Lebanon County had 1,651. That's about 1.3 percent of the population.
(Photo credit: Meleanie Hain sports a holstered Glock at her daughter's soccer practice in September 2008. Lebanon Daily News)
Education administrators love numbers. And I don't mean 1+2=3. I mean NUMBERS.
The drive to measure every possible kind of academic performance -- as well as the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act -- means that the state education department compiles stacks of data on our schoolchildren and our schools.
That's cool. We know a lot of you like to dive into those numbers. That's why we're regularly creating searchable forms of things like test results and putting them on our web site so you can go through them whenever you want.
Education reporter Nickie Dobo has, on her Education Today site, searchable forms where you can find:
One thing we've learned in reporting on these numbers is there are always stories behind them -- why some are high, why some are low, and so on. (See Nickie's stories on the countywide SAT scores, for example).
It pays not to take the numbers as a final measure, but as a tool toward understanding how your school (or your student) is doing. If you look through the numbers and have questions you want us to answer, by all means get in touch.
The drive to measure every possible kind of academic performance -- as well as the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act -- means that the state education department compiles stacks of data on our schoolchildren and our schools.
That's cool. We know a lot of you like to dive into those numbers. That's why we're regularly creating searchable forms of things like test results and putting them on our web site so you can go through them whenever you want.
Education reporter Nickie Dobo has, on her Education Today site, searchable forms where you can find:
- Your school's average SAT scores for the past five years. This is the first time we've been able to look at SAT scores over time.
- Your school's PSSA scores.
- Your school's scores on the PSSA science test.
- Your school's scores on the PSSA writing test.
- And even your school district's property tax rates from 2006-2010.
One thing we've learned in reporting on these numbers is there are always stories behind them -- why some are high, why some are low, and so on. (See Nickie's stories on the countywide SAT scores, for example).
It pays not to take the numbers as a final measure, but as a tool toward understanding how your school (or your student) is doing. If you look through the numbers and have questions you want us to answer, by all means get in touch.
An independent nuclear experts has recommended that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission approve Three Mile Island's bid to run for an additional 20 years.
Since no one has contested TMI's application for license renewal, the NRC will not hold a hearing and instead expects to issue a decision by early November.
The sole concern that the independent board had with the application had to do with a corroding metal liner that prevents vapor from leaving the containment building.
TMI has since replaced the barrier and launched a program to monitor the rate of corrosion.
Click on this link to read the independent board's report:
We had a reader ask where he could find municipal meeting listings.
You could go to every municipality, authority, board or school district Web site. Or you can do some one-stop shopping. Check this out.
I've been using this site for years. It's great. You can search key words, newspapers or dates. I've found some good story ideas there, too. Click on "search tips" on the main page under the search button for some pointers.
Normally, I prefer reading things on paper. The Pennsylvania Public Notices Web site is better, in my opinion, for two reasons. First, I have a very hard time reading the tiny type used in printed legal ads. Secondly, it's a time saver because I can filter out legal ads that don't interest me.
There's also a online feature that will e-mail you items of interest. It costs money, so I haven't used it. If you have, leave a comment.
You could go to every municipality, authority, board or school district Web site. Or you can do some one-stop shopping. Check this out.
I've been using this site for years. It's great. You can search key words, newspapers or dates. I've found some good story ideas there, too. Click on "search tips" on the main page under the search button for some pointers.
Normally, I prefer reading things on paper. The Pennsylvania Public Notices Web site is better, in my opinion, for two reasons. First, I have a very hard time reading the tiny type used in printed legal ads. Secondly, it's a time saver because I can filter out legal ads that don't interest me.
There's also a online feature that will e-mail you items of interest. It costs money, so I haven't used it. If you have, leave a comment.
I noticed google is making an effort to engage government Web sites to become more user-friendly.
Interesting.
There is a way to use google to only search government sites. It's www.google.com/unclesam. It's a quick and easy way of filtering out stuff you don't want.
Interesting.
There is a way to use google to only search government sites. It's www.google.com/unclesam. It's a quick and easy way of filtering out stuff you don't want.
Is there such a thing as too much information before you eat?The state health inspector was at the York Fair on Friday. Before you get worried (and/or nauseous), it appears everything that was checked out passed.
To do the search, go to the state's online inspection database. Then, search for the phrase York Fair (do not use quote marks around it). If you'd like to whittle it down, you can use the drop-down box to select "York County." *(Note: This works to search for any restaurant or food-serving establishment that's inspected. Just type the name you're looking for into the 'facility name' bar.)
If you are doing a search, it's worth noting that some violations are less serious than others and it's not uncommon for the inspector to find something wrong.
From my experiences with the state's database, look for places with repeat violations. Read the paperwork associated with each inspection -- maybe one place had 12 little things, but another place had one big insect infestation.
State police in Gettysburg said today that a registered sex offender wasn't living at the 
Littlestown address he'd given authorities, so police charged him with failing to meet sexual offender registration requirements.
That hits on a problem area with Megan's Law that we've written about:
For example, in today's news release, state police said that 27-year-old Christopher Lee Coleman (pictured above), whose registered address was 145 W. King St. in Littlestown, wasn't living there. How long was he living elsewhere? The news release doesn't say. But the point is, for some period of time, he wasn't where the Web site said he was, or where police thought he was.
The question is what to do about it. Some have suggested GPS monitoring, or that police should physically verify every offender's registered address. But GPS might not work perfectly, and there's a question about whether police have the manpower to check each address.
Meanwhile, authorities urge people to be vigilant in their own neighborhoods. Even with the problems in Pennsylvania, at least people have some information to go on. In Canada earlier this year, there was a movement to open sex offender information to the public instead of making it available only to police.
*Update to original post: @regularguy on Twitter wondered whether the Jaycee Dugard case would make agencies take a closer at such laws. We'll look into what might be happening here. Meanwhile, here are the Google News search results for "Dugard Megan's law" if you're interested.
Littlestown address he'd given authorities, so police charged him with failing to meet sexual offender registration requirements.That hits on a problem area with Megan's Law that we've written about:
- Offenders are required to tell authorities where they live, but the state police have said they usually investigate only if they get a tip or if an offender doesn't register on the anniversary of the conviction date. A 2007 story by staffer Rick Lee reported that up to 10 percent of convicted sex offenders don't follow registration guidelines.
- And, a recent court ruling held that homeless sex offenders can't be convicted if they don't register an address with police. In July, a three-judge panel from the Pennsylvania Superior Court suggested the legislature ought to look at that loophole.
For example, in today's news release, state police said that 27-year-old Christopher Lee Coleman (pictured above), whose registered address was 145 W. King St. in Littlestown, wasn't living there. How long was he living elsewhere? The news release doesn't say. But the point is, for some period of time, he wasn't where the Web site said he was, or where police thought he was.
The question is what to do about it. Some have suggested GPS monitoring, or that police should physically verify every offender's registered address. But GPS might not work perfectly, and there's a question about whether police have the manpower to check each address.
Meanwhile, authorities urge people to be vigilant in their own neighborhoods. Even with the problems in Pennsylvania, at least people have some information to go on. In Canada earlier this year, there was a movement to open sex offender information to the public instead of making it available only to police.
*Update to original post: @regularguy on Twitter wondered whether the Jaycee Dugard case would make agencies take a closer at such laws. We'll look into what might be happening here. Meanwhile, here are the Google News search results for "Dugard Megan's law" if you're interested.
Original documents from state and federal governments, courts, schools and other agencies have a new home on the York Daily Record/Sunday News' Web site. Instead of residing on the Full Disclosure open records page, they now have their own page.
You can get to them one of two ways:
The 'Reading Room' link on the Full Disclosure page
or
go directly to the 'Reading Room' page.
The documents are now organized by topic, so they're easier for you to look through and find what you want. If you have suggestions on how to make the page even easier to navigate, let me know. I plan to add dates to each entry soon.
If you have documents you'd like to share online, let me know and we can get them on 'Reading Room' -- and we'll give you credit for digging them out. If you have ideas for documents you think we should get from an agency and put online, let me know. And feel free to link to the page for quick access.
You can get to them one of two ways:
The 'Reading Room' link on the Full Disclosure page
or
go directly to the 'Reading Room' page.
The documents are now organized by topic, so they're easier for you to look through and find what you want. If you have suggestions on how to make the page even easier to navigate, let me know. I plan to add dates to each entry soon.
If you have documents you'd like to share online, let me know and we can get them on 'Reading Room' -- and we'll give you credit for digging them out. If you have ideas for documents you think we should get from an agency and put online, let me know. And feel free to link to the page for quick access.
On Sunday, we published a story that tracked school district taxes over time.
Here's a database to search your school district or to compare tax rates. If you are a homeowner, it's worth noting that simply looking at the rates isn't the best predictor of your bill.
For example, any homeowner can sign up for the Homestead Tax Relief program, which gives you a break on the bill. In York City, it knocks off about $500. In other districts it's about $100.
Also, tax bills are based on your property's assessment. To figure out your tax bill take your assessment times the rate and then divide that number by 1,000.
Here's a database to search your school district or to compare tax rates. If you are a homeowner, it's worth noting that simply looking at the rates isn't the best predictor of your bill.
For example, any homeowner can sign up for the Homestead Tax Relief program, which gives you a break on the bill. In York City, it knocks off about $500. In other districts it's about $100.
Also, tax bills are based on your property's assessment. To figure out your tax bill take your assessment times the rate and then divide that number by 1,000.
