Daily Briefing, 11/10/2009

Good morning everyone!  Here is today's Daily Briefing.

There are a couple of pieces of Easton related news today - first, Easton will now be the home of the High School Sports Hall of Fame Museum.  The Museum will be build on Third Street, next to a bus depot, parking garage and additional offices, shops and restaurants.  Easton has also agreed to pay the widow of Jesse Sollman $5 million in a wrongful death suit.  Solomon was a police officer who was killed in an accidental shooting at Easton Police Headquarters.   In Northampton County, a report by Controller Steve Barron shows that overtime costs are costing the County $1.5 million a year, an excessive amount according to the report.  In Valley wide news, home sales have increased 30% - but the average price dropped more than 10%, while the median price dropped nearly 5%.  Meanwhile, municipal budget numbers are starting to come out - in Bangor, the proposed budget would increase taxes 15%.

In Harrisburg, a bill is being introduced that would ban texting while driving.  In national news, its no secret that the House and Senate each have proposed very different versions of health care reform, and WFMZ runs a story on the differences between the two versions.  Meanwhile, 41 House Democrats have vowed to vote against any health care bill that has prohibitions against abortions.

We have a busy day ahead of us today, with three Chamber events - a mixer with the Northampton Area Chamber of Commerce, a Grand Opening at And The Sign Says and a General Membership Meeting of the new Business and Commerce Association of Forks. 

Lastly, Business Matters aired yesterday, featuring an interview with Senators Argall, Boscola and Mensch.  You can watch the show online and visit the Business Matters blog to learn more.

That's it for now!  Have a great day and we'll catch you later.