WJPA News

Washington County Commissioners will vote on a measure directing the County Solicitor to draft an amended Hotel Tax Ordinance that would change fees and distributions of tax monies collected from hotels and motels in Washington County. The initial ordinance from 2001 called for the County Treasurer to receive a 2% administration fee, The Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency (TPA) to receive 25% for salaries and administration, and the remainder to be deposited in a joint account controlled by the TPA and County Commissioners.  In 2017 the ordinance was amended to read that the County Treasurer would receive a 4% administrative fee and the remaining 96% would go to the Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency. In a statement released by the county, The County Treasurer stated that a joint account was never established to comply with the original agreement. Commissioner Chairman Nick Sherman stated that they just want to go back to the original agreement allowing input from the county on how hotel taxes are spent. One of the things that Sherman would like to see is a sports complex built in Washington County. He feels that people attending sporting events in a sports complex would spur additional spending in area restaurants, stores, and the casinos. Commissioner Larry Maggi says that he is not sure that the county has the legal authority to amend the ordinance. He wants Commissioners Sherman and Janis to be transparent on what plans they have for the tax revenue. Commissioners will vote on the measure on Thursday.

The Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency (WCTPA) is advising the Washington County Board of Commissioners that their proposed change to strip funding from the WCTPA by amending the county ordinance will violate Pennsylvania County Code if enacted. “We were disappointed that the commissioners did not contact us to discuss their intention to modify the ordinance before they presented it today at their Public Agenda Meeting.  We would have advised them that the changes they are seeking will violate state law and could end up in litigation against the county,” stated Jeff Kotula, President of the WCTPA. Mr. Kotula pointed to Pennsylvania County Code Title 16, Section 17507 which permits counties to enact a hotel tax and provides the manner it is used.  “Our legal counsel informed us that the County Code is clear on how the hotel tax is to be collected, distributed, and used.  The code states that the hotel tax is collected by the County Treasurer-who retains four percent in an administrative fee-and the remaining amount goes directly to the county tourism promotion agency to market the county to leisure and business visitors. The County Code does not permit the county commissioners to retain, redirect, or allocate those funds for other purposes.  The commissioners do not have the authority to change state law by county ordinance,” Kotula said.  “We are certain that when the county solicitor performs his legal due diligence, he will advise the commissioners that their proposed ordinance violates state law and enacting it may result in legal action,” Kotula stated.

Washington County Commissioners will be voting to adopt a resolution to establish an Opioid Advisory Committee to evaluate and recommend programs to receive funding from the nationwide Opioid Settlement Funds. Recently, Washington County was criticized by the Pennsylvania Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust and the county had 17 programs either denied funding or placed under further review for questions on the nominee’s compliance. According to Commissioner Chairman Nick Sherman, the idea of a formation of a review committee has been in place for several months. He blames the rejection of the programs on “Moving Goalposts” by the state. He said that originally the Human Services Department was sufficient to make decisions. As the fund monies grew, he said the state wanted to see a review committee to be formed. He said that some of the programs in question were approved in earlier rounds of distribution. Sherman says that they are considering a 7 member board whose make up is still to be determined. Commissioner Larry Maggi is in support of the committee’s formation saying that it will bring more transparency to the review process.

Peters Township is suing the Washington County Coroner’s office as the police department claims its investigators have not been able to review Timothy Warco’s findings after a baby died back in August. According to the Observer-Reporter, Township Solicitor John Smith filed the lawsuit December 1 seeking an injunction that would require the coroner to readily provide autopsy and toxicology reports to the police department without charging a $700 fee that has been his recent practice. The suit states that “The District Attorney, not the Coroner, is charged and entrusted with applying legal principles to deaths in order to determine whether criminal charges should be filed”. Warco previously stated that he needed police reports to help reach a conclusion. Law enforcement officials have said that the coroner is not designated a criminal justice agency and has not right to review crime scene investigative materials from police departments through the Criminal History Records Information Act. The coroner’s solicitor says the office is reviewing the suit while preparing to file preliminary objections before the deadline. In a written statement, Smith said the township is still willing to work with Warco to find a solution to the situation.

Gasoline prices have jumped four-cents this week in Western Pennsylvania to an average of $3.27 per gallon.  That’s according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.  Here in Washington this weeks average is $3.22.  The holiday season is delivering a gift for drivers as the national average dropped 4 cents since last week to $2.91.  Gas prices are the lowest they have been in four years.  As a record number of travelers prepare  to hit the road starting this weekend, they will be paying less than they were last holiday season when the national average was $3.04 to close out 2024.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Monday blamed Rob Reiner’s outspoken opposition to the president for the actor-director’s killing, delivering the unsubstantiated claim in a shocking post that seemed intent on decrying his opponents even in the face of a tragedy. The statement, even for Trump, was a shocking comment that came as police were still investigating the deaths of the director and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, as an apparent homicide. Trump has a long track record of inflammatory remarks, but his comments in a social media post were a drastic departure from the role presidents typically play in offering a message of consolation or tribute after the death of a public figure. His message drew criticism even from conservatives and his supporters and laid bare Trump’s unwillingness to rise above political grievance in moments of crisis. Trump, in a post on his social media network, said Reiner and his wife were killed “reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction with a mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME.” He said Reiner “was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump, with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and expectations of greatness.” Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, who has bucked much of his party’s lockstep agreement with the president, criticized Trump for the comment. “Regardless of how you felt about Rob Reiner, this is inappropriate and disrespectful discourse about a man who was just brutally murdered,” Massie wrote in a post on X. “I guess my elected GOP colleagues, the VP, and White House staff will just ignore it because they’re afraid? I challenge anyone to defend it.”

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The killings of Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner have left their communities in Hollywood and Democratic politics stunned. Their son, Nick Reiner, has been arrested on suspicion of killing them. Los Angeles police said they would present a case on Tuesday to prosecutors for potential charges. Rob Reiner was a celebrated actor and director known for films like “When Harry Met Sally…” and “The Princess Bride.” Michele Singer Reiner was a photographer and LGBTQ+ rights advocate. The couple was deeply involved in Hollywood and Democratic politics. The communities celebrated their contributions to film and activism while expressing their sadness Monday.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Authorities are again searching for the person seen in grainy video walking away from the Brown University shooting that killed two students and injured nine. Officials said late Sunday that they released a person of interest they had detained earlier in the day, finding no reason to keep him in custody. This setback left law enforcement without a known suspect. The shooting happened Saturday during a busy time on campus, causing chaos and a lockdown. During a news conference Monday, authorities released three new videos that showed a masked man in a dark jacket two hours before the attack. Although the footage didn’t show his face, the video provided the clearest images yet of the suspect.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia’s federal police commissioner Krissy Barrett says a mass shooting in which 15 people were killed during a Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach was “a terrorist attack inspired by Islamic State.” The suspects were a father and son, aged 50 and 24, authorities have said. The older man, whom state officials named as Sajid Akram, was shot dead, while his son was being treated at a hospital on Tuesday. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said at a news conference Tuesday that they were making their first comments about the suspects’ ideologies because of evidence they had obtained, including “the presence of Islamic State flags in the vehicle that has been seized.” 25 people are still being treated in hospitals after Sunday’s massacre, 10 of them in critical condition.