Chester County announces layoffs of 30 employees

County hopes to save $2 million; declining tax revenue, cuts in state aid force slashing Updated: adds additional comment, 8 p.m. EDT By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times WEST CHESTER — Chester County announced Wednesday that it would lay off some 30 county employees, what county officials referred to as a “streamlining” of county services. The cuts come in three departments, Facilities & Parks,...

Will commissioners’ 9-1-1 fee plan flatline?

Municipal officials balk at sharing costs for county-controlled services By Kathleen Brady Shea, Managing Editor, The CoatesvilleTimes.com WEST CHESTER — A proposal to apply a tourniquet of sorts to the county’s hemorrhaging 9-1-1 costs has generated cries of anguish from some municipal officials, prompting the Chester County commissioners to delay a vote. In an effort to defray about $2.6 million...

County poised to assess towns for emergency services

Local officials object to timing, costs of the $5.20 per person fee By Mike McGann, Editor, The CoatesvilleTimes.com Chester County appears poised to impose a per-capita tax on the county’s 73 municipalities — $5.20 per person — for emergency services starting with the 2013 fiscal year, but municipal officials are blasting the move as little more than an excuse to shift a tax hike. The Chester...