County News

Northampton County officials are doubling the cap on loans to first-time homebuyers, in an effort to help residents afford rising down payments and closing costs.

Judge Abraham Kassis heard more on the case during an April court hearing. As of Tuesday, Kassis declared the ordinance was adopted in absence of compliance.

Tuesday, May 9, 2023 is the last day to apply for a mail-in or absentee ballot, in order to vote in the upcoming Pennsylvania primary.

Mattel has marketed a Barbie doll that represents those with Down syndrome.

Two shad ladders in the Lehigh Valley, at the Easton and Chain dams, haven't been working as intended. Efforts to restore this migrating fish system have stalled.

Incumbents Maury G. Robert and Ron R. Beitler are joined on the ballot by challenger Gregory S. Chaputa, all noting land preservation and managing development as a priority.

The township election is on May 16. The candidates are hoping to make a splash with voters come Election Day.

The $25,000 fund, offered by Lehigh and Northampton counties, will be used to support the schools' Aevidum program.

Democrat Terry Houck is attempting to secure the Republican nomination for Northampton County district attorney with a write-in campaign. The effort is opposed by Northampton County Republican Committee Chair Glenn Geissinger.

There are seven candidates on the primary ballot for one open supervisor's seat in Palmer Township. Here's why candidates said they're running.

Northampton Area School Board directors twice failed to fill a vacancy. They have asked Northampton County Court to fill it for them, instead.

Essentially a scholastic scrimmage for environmental science, the annual Envirothon combines classroom learning and outdoor activities to engage students in the environment. The state competition was held Wednesday at Camp Mt. Luther in Mifflinburg.

County Executive Lamont McClure said the closings mark the end of a significant chapter in the county’s COVID-19 response. More than 3.5 million cases and 50,000 deaths in Pennsylvania have been attributed to COVID since 2020.

State revenue generated by Wind Creek Bethlehem and Mount Airy Casino will help Bangor renovate a fire hall, Lower Nazareth Township purchase a new police vehicle and improve seating at a Freemansburg amphitheater.

The Diocese of Allentown announced several moves among priests in its 78 parishes — part of an annual process led by an advisory board of priests and approved by Bishop Alfred Schlert.

Inspired by battery fires in the Lehigh Valley and across the state, the bill would put the onus on manufacturers to provide safe recycling options for lithium ion batteries, as well as launch an education campaign for residents.

Rose Josephine Hnath, 78, was found dead in her North Whitehall Township home in January 1989. She had been repeatedly stabbed and beaten, Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan said.

U.S. Rep. Susan Wild said plans to consolidate the Lehigh Valley's mail processing center appear to have been pushed back. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy backed off a controversial cost-savings effort after receiving pushback from a bipartisan contingent of the U.S. Senate.

In the April update for Lehigh Valley Breathes, a regionwide effort to monitor air quality amid emissions from trucking and warehousing, officials explained new EPA soot standards and how they could impact the project.

The Democratic-controlled House passed legislation that would let counties get a head start counting mail-in ballots. But Senate Republicans are unlikely to pass it without an unlikely compromise on voter ID provisions.

Carbon County officials on Thursday will sign on to a partnership with Northampton, officials announced. Their goal is to bolster farmland preservation efforts.

Ryan Mackenzie pulled off a comfortable win in the Republican primary for the PA-7 congressional race. He credited an army of campaign volunteers, but his 12 years in the state House and at least $419,000 of support from a super PAC helped, too.