Bradford Era reporters are working on these stories and more for Wednesday morning’s edition. A local movie house says it’s gauging community interest in “The Interview,” before considering becoming the first in the area to screen the controversial film. Lauren Marshall, marketing and sales manager at Bradford’s Main Street Movie House, said on Tuesday night the theater is considering “one or two” days of showings and has turned to Facebook to gauge consumer interest. A post on the Bradford Main Street Movie House’s Facebook page, asking customers if they would come to a showing, had received 31 “Likes” by Tuesday evening. Some of those “Likes” are accompanied by enthusiastic support and calls for additional showings. “We did get a good response,” Marshall said. “The film’s controversial release drummed up quite a bit of public interest everywhere.” That controversy centers around the film’s plot, in which the host and producer of a tabloid TV show, played by James Franco and Seth Rogen, are tasked with assassinating North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un during an exclusive sit-down. A new state law inspired by the Jerry Sandusky scandal and requiring more background checks for school employees and volunteers is being viewed with trepidation by local school officials, who call it both onerous and overdue. The law, or Act 153, is part of a legislative package largely lauded by advocates as an update to the state’s outmoded child protection statutes. In it, anyone in direct contact with children or responsible for their welfare will now be required to submit to, or update, their criminal background checks and child abuse clearances. The changes take effect today. At the Ridgway Area School District, Superintendent Robert Rocco said employees were previously only required to re-do checks if there was a break in employment, or change in positions. Volunteers, he added, were largely free of the requirement. That is all about to change, with Rocco counting up to 137 full-time Ridgway school employees that stand to be affected. “We’re talking about a huge backlog of employees,” Rocco said. “The theory is good, but the practicality is going to be a little difficult.” At the Bradford Area School District, Assistant Superintendent Sam Johnson said teacher unions have already been contacted and notified of the change. The district plans to have all new clearances for current employees submitted before the start of the 2015-16 school year in hopes of more easily scheduling renewals. The plan, however, still awaits clarification from the state. While describing it as an unfunded mandate, Johnson calls the law “absolutely necessary,” saying, “individuals working with children should have background checks at least every few years.” There was very little change to unemployment rates for the month of November locally. According to the state Department of Labor and Industry Center for Workforce Information and Analysis, the rates for McKean and Cameron counties dropped slightly — one tenth of a percentage point — from the October rate, while Elk County’s rate stayed the same and Potter County’s rose one tenth of a percentage point. All local rates were similar to the state and national averages, of 5.1 percent and 5.8 percent, respectively. The Elk County rate was 4.2 percent, the lowest in the region and ranked 10th in the state for unemployment rates. McKean County’s rate was 5.0 percent, tying with Berks, Jefferson, Mifflin and Wayne counties for 33rd place. Potter County’s rate was 6.1 percent, tying for 60th percent with Forest County. Cameron County’s rate was 6.6 percent, ranking at 65th in the state. Philadelphia and Pike counties were tied for last place. The Center also listed the top 50 employers for each county, as of the first quarter of 2014. Be sure to fill up the tank today — 2015 is expected to bring higher prices at the pump across the four-county region. New state taxes of 9.8 cents for gasoline and 13 cents per gallon for diesel take effect on New Year’s Day, a move some area residents unsurprisingly feel is an added burden to already high gasoline costs. “I don’t know how anyone can afford (gas) the way it is right now,” said James Poe of Bradford. He purchased gasoline at the Uni-Mart in Bradford on Tuesday. Poe said he wishes the prices dropped even lower — to $1.50, in fact. According to AAA East Central, this week’s western Pennsylvania average gas price is $2.636, with the average price of Bradford is $2.654. “We cannot really tell the direct impact of the increase of Pennsylvania’s gas tax as there are a number of factors which contribute why we pay more for gasoline, and it’s hard to tell where the price of gas will go moving forward,” AAA East Central spokeswoman Chelsea Pompeani said. “In Pennsylvania as a whole and with different cities within the state. AAA has not received any complaints from consumers thus far.” The Mount Jewett borough council finally adopted their 2015 budget during a special session on Monday evening. The motion to adopt the budget carried with a unanimous vote. Borough council president Chuck Paar stated last month that the new budget would “hold the line on taxes” and would mean borough residents would not see a tax hike in 2015. Earlier this month, the borough council met to discuss the new budget, which calls for the elimination of their one full-time officer in favor of two part-time officers. The borough council voted to advertise the budget for a period of 10 days at the regular monthly meeting on Dec. 8. According to borough councilman Brett Morgan, the personnel committee wrote a new policy which would allow for two part-time officers to cover the borough for 50 hours per week. The current policy calls for one full-time officer to cover 40 hours per week. The current Mount Jewett Police Department chief is Steven Hale. The motion to advertise the budget was originally made in November, but was defeated 2 – 5 when several residents of Mount Jewett expressed their displeasure about not having a full-time police officer in the borough. Morgan and Linda Berry cast the sole votes for advertising the budget for display in November. For additional information on these stories and more, pick up a copy of Wednesday’s edition of The Era at newsstands across the region, or visit The Era’s website at bradfordera. Also check for updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 04:36:28 +0000
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