ALLENTOWN, Pa. \u2013 Lehigh County officials said Tuesday they’re looking to recoup some of the funds they lost during the state’s 135-day budget impasse.<\/p>\n
The budget has now passed. However, if the state hadn’t released the funds, Chief Fiscal Officer Tim Reeves said the county would have taken out a $40 million to $60 million loan on Jan. 2, 2026, to fund services until spring tax revenues replenished county coffers.<\/p>\n
Unlike many counties, Lehigh never needed a loan during the impasse, but it did lose what it believes to be interest on state-held funds. Now, officials want that money back.<\/p>\n
The effort could help replenish a portion of what the county believes it’s owed, Lehigh County Board of Commissioners Chair Geoff Brace said. The finance department is currently calculating the full impact.<\/p>\n
Other counties have considered similar actions. Westmoreland County reportedly sent the state a $500,000 bill for financial losses tied to the impasse.<\/p>\n
Property tax reassessment<\/p>\n
Commissioners also discussed a possible countywide property tax reassessment, a topic raised at a recent state commissioners conference.<\/p>\n
A reassessment formally reviews the taxable value of real estate to ensure taxes reflect current fair market values. Lehigh County last conducted one in 2012; officials noted some Pennsylvania counties haven’t done so since the 1950s or ’60s.<\/p>\n
“It does sound like the taxpayers wouldn’t be too happy,” Commissioner Sheila Alvarado said of a potential reassessment.<\/p>\n
She also noted the long-term value a reassessment could bring. Commissioner Antonio Pineda said many counties run into problems when they wait too long, risking court challenges.<\/p>\n
Brace added that the county has helpful tools for a reassessment, including its new GIS department.<\/p>\n
2026 job classification<\/p>\n
Commissioners held the first reading of a bill amending the 2026 job classification and pay plan, restructuring staffing and pay grades at the 911 Communications Center.<\/p>\n
The county executive and Department of General Services requested the changes to address staffing shortages, labor needs and workload distribution, according to county documents.<\/p>\n
The legislation divides the telecommunications operator classification into levels I through IV and raises pay grades across most positions. Several supervisory roles, which include the 911 coordinator, quality assurance\/improvement coordinator and shift supervisor, would also receive grade increases.<\/p>\n
The new classifications take effect with the pay period beginning Jan. 3, 2026.<\/p>\n
Grant request for Da Vinci Science Center<\/p>\n
In other news, commissioners adopted a measure allowing the county to apply for a $175,000 Local Share Account grant on behalf of the Da Vinci Science Center. The grants use gambling revenue to support programs that enhance community and economic well-being and “mitigate the impact of gaming and related activities,” according to county documents.<\/p>\n
Da Vinci plans to use the funds to expand educational outreach by purchasing an SUV, a mobile planetarium and virtual reality equipment.<\/p>\n
The project aims to “engage K-12 students in exploring new technologies and design thinking, incorporating career exposure and skills development to ignite curiosity and build science capital and individual agency in STEAM.”<\/p>\n
The center’s virtual reality career exploration systems will offer training in high-demand fields aligned with industry certifications, and the project will bring hands-on experiences that meet PA STEELS and Career Education and Workforce Standards to classrooms across northeastern Pennsylvania, county documents state.<\/p>\n
Agricultural conservation easements<\/p>\n
Commissioners also approved conveying agricultural conservation easements on two tracts of land in Upper and Lower Milford townships to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: 25.27 acres in Upper Milford valued at $151,620, and 53.89 acres spanning both townships valued at $323,340. Together, the tracts total roughly 79 acres.<\/p>\n
“This is a win, win, win,” Commissioner Ron Beitler said.<\/p>\n
Funds from the transaction will be reinvested into the program.<\/p>\n
“All positive, no negative,” Pineda said.<\/p>\n
Other business<\/p>\n
Commissioners also voted to apply for nearly $800,000 in state gaming funds to replace the aging backup generator system at the 911 Communications Center. The $798,105 Local Share Account grant would pay for two new natural gas generators. Officials say the current system has exceeded its service life and no longer meets reliability standards.<\/p>\n
Lehigh County commissioners approved a professional services agreement with the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission for three regional planning initiatives. The funds were originally intended for a passenger rail study, but Northampton County, who expected to match the funding, ended up voting down its portion.<\/p>\n
“We’re finding some good uses,” Pineda said.<\/p>\n
Brace said he has confidence in the planning commission but is “disappointed we can’t follow through with our original plans.”<\/p>\n
The LVPC will inventory trail infrastructure, develop a comprehensive economic development strategy and update stormwater management plans and related ordinances. The projects total about $170,000 and run through 2027, with public engagement, municipal review and mapping components.<\/p>\n
Commissioners also approved a professional services agreement with Lehigh Carbon Community College to provide educational programs for county jail inmates.<\/p>\n
“This is a great program; I’m happy to see it going again,” Commissioner Zach Cole-Borghi said.<\/p>\n
They also approved an update to the Lehigh County Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance requiring electronic plan submission.<\/p>\n
Beitler said some paper submissions will still be allowed, but the change will save substantial amounts of paper.<\/p>\n
Pineda said the move is “way more efficient and brings the county into the 21st century.”<\/p>\n
“Good for record retention,” he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ALLENTOWN, Pa. \u2013 Lehigh County officials said Tuesday they’re looking to recoup some of the funds they lost…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":46204,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[119,121,120,20633,27299,9579,16583,2149,2022,9571,27298,27300,9574,5910,1222],"class_list":{"0":"post-46203","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-allentown","8":"tag-allentown","9":"tag-allentown-headlines","10":"tag-allentown-news","11":"tag-antonio-pineda","12":"tag-da-vinci-science-center","13":"tag-geoff-brace","14":"tag-lehigh-carbon-community-college","15":"tag-lehigh-county-board-of-commissioners","16":"tag-lehigh-valley-planning-commission","17":"tag-ron-beitler","18":"tag-sheila-alvarado","19":"tag-telecommunications-operator-classification","20":"tag-tim-reeves","21":"tag-westmoreland-county","22":"tag-zach-cole-borghi"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46203","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46203"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46203\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46204"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46203"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46203"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}