Pa. jobless rate, payrolls shrinkHARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate dropped in December for the second straight month. But it remained well above the national rate as the labor force contracted and payrolls shrank.The state Department of Labor and Industry said Friday that Pennsylvania’s jobless rate was 5.6 percent in December. That’s down one-tenth of a percentage point from November. The national rate was 4.7 percent in December.Hiring remained stagnant, with a survey of employers finding that seasonally adjusted non-farm payrolls shrank by 1,200 in December. That’s slightly below a record high of 5.9 million set earlier this year.A household survey found that the civilian labor force shrank by 19,000. Employment dropped by 12,000 to remain above 6.1 million while unemployment dropped by 7,000 to 366,000.

Court grants time to fix casino lawHARRISBURG — Pennsylvania lawmakers are getting more time to replace a law requiring casinos to pay more than $140 million to local governments before it is wiped off the books.The state Supreme Court on Friday granted a request by Senate leaders for four more months, until May 26.The court ruled in September that the “local share assessment” was unconstitutional because it treated the state’s 12 casinos unequally, but it delayed the effect by 120 days. Senate leaders argued in a court filing last week that 120 days was insufficient.Most casinos have agreed or pledged to continue paying the money. A key date is mid-April, when the first quarterly payment is due to local governments.

717 area code to start 10-digit dialingHARRISBURG — Mandatory 10-digit dialing will begin later this year in 16 counties in south-central Pennsylvania that are getting a new area code to overlay its existing 717 area code.The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission said that 10-digit dialing will start Aug. 26. It’ll require all calls in the 717 service area to be made using the area code.The new 223 area code is being created for new telephone numbers to overlay existing phone numbers in the 717 area code. The commission’s order says numbers with the 223 area code can be released starting Sept. 26, and that requests for numbers with a 717 area code will be honored as long as numbers are available.

Court: No penalty for blood test refusalHARRISBURG — A state appeals court’s recent ruling has set a precedent that Pennsylvania judges cannot penalize drunken driving suspects for refusing to submit to blood testing.The Philadelphia Inquirer reports a three-judge Pennsylvania Superior Court panel found earlier this month that a Chester County man was wrongfully disciplined during sentencing for declining the test.Citing the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2016 ruling in Birchfield v. North Dakota, Senior Judge John Musmanno wrote that warrantless blood tests are an unconstitutional invasion of privacy.The decision stems from the case of Hemant Kohli, who twice refused to have his blood drawn for blood-alcohol level testing after he was arrested for driving under the influence in Caln Township in 2013.Prosecutors are now advising police to only use Breathalyzer tests on DUI suspects.

Applications ready for medical potHARRISBURG — Pennsylvania will soon be accepting applications from those who want to grow and process medical marijuana as well as those who want to establish and run dispensaries.The Health Department said it made the applications available on its website. They can be submitted between Feb. 20 and March 20. The agency is fielding questions about the application process through Feb. 8.The goal is to have the system up and running by the middle of 2018.The first phase involves as many as 27 dispensary licenses, with up to three locations each, and up to 12 grower-processor permits.Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana law was enacted last year. It permits patients to take the medicine in several forms, but not in a way that can be smoked.