Allegany County’s Commissioners are continuing to consider applications for the vacant position on the Board of Education. The seat came open in December following the death of board president Bob Farrell.  Meanwhile, there is also a new county school superintendent to be found following the announcement that Jeff Blank would be retiring.  Blank told WCBC recently that he is not involved in finding his replacement…      “Uh, that’s not really my place. I think that the process needs to be clean and I’ll assist the system in any way, shape, or form but I think that process is up…

The theme that the Moore Administration is putting forth with its proposed 2026 budget is economic growth in Maryland.  Governor Wes Moore says this budget lays out a growth strategy playing to the state’s economic strengths, including a growing technology sector.  The budget includes $128 million dollars of targeted investment in 14 projects…     “The strategic investments in our budget will drive $515 million dollars in economic activity in Maryland and support, create, or retain 2,600 jobs.”

Bishop Walsh School is holding its annual Spaghetti Dinner and Dance fundraiser this Saturday, January 25.  The event includes dinner and a dance with music provided by Surrender Dorothy.  Tickets are available through Bishop Walsh or at Caporale’s Bakery, according to Jeannie Seifarth of the Alumni Association…    “It’s forty dollars a ticket, and that includes your dinner and drinks, alcohol and wine and dancing. It starts at six-thirty which is wine and cheese, and that will be in the lobby of the school when you come in.  And then dinner and the dance will be in the cafeteria.”

Potomac Edison and Convergent Energy and Power have completed a 1.75 MW / 8.4 MWh battery storage system in Little Orleans, Maryland to enhance grid reliability for over 600 Potomac Edison customers. The system supports Potomac Edison customers served by a line in a rural part of Allegany and Washington counties, where tree-related outages frequently occur during severe weather. The battery will provide backup power to customers on that line, reducing the duration of outages experienced, until crews are able to make repairs and restore service.

Bishop Walsh and JDJECC will be on a two hour delay tomorrow, Wednesday, January 22 due to cold temperatures. 

United States Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania has been criticized by fellow Democrats for traveling to Florida to visit with President Trump prior to Inauguration Day.  Fetterman says that does not mean he is switching parties.  He added that he understands the reasoning behind many of President Trump’s pardons which were issued on Monday.

All schools in Mineral County will be non-traditional learning on Wed. Jan. 22, 2025.

Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced Tuesday that he and 18 other states are challenging an executive order ending birthright citizenship, which violates the constitutional rights to which all children born in the U.S. are entitled by the 14th amendment.  An executive order was issued Monday to end birthright citizenship, in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Section 1401 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

On Monday, January 20th, 2025, the Cumberland Police Department served a Criminal Summons on Zachary Daniel Miller, 26, of Cumberland MD. The summons was in reference to an incident reported to the Cumberland Police on January 14th. In the incident, it is alleged that Miller stole a debit card and used it to withdraw unauthorized funds from the victim’s account. On this date, Miller was served the summons and released, pending trial in District Court Name:    Zachary Daniel Miller                                 Age:   26 Charges:    Theft $100 to under $1500 x3, Credit Card:Steal Another’s, Theft Scheme: $100 to less than $1500.

Low-wage workers in Pennsylvania are missing out on pay hikes seen in twenty-three other states. Neighboring states such as Ohio are starting the New Year with higher minimum wages. Gillian Kratzer from Better Pennsylvania says House Democrats are concerned about raising the minimum wage, which has been $7.25 per hour since 2009. She adds that a better economy requires people to have money to spend…     "When you are living not just at minimum wage but even within some distance above it, you do not have money to spend, you are living paycheck to paycheck. Last year in the…