News – Page 23 – SEDA Council of Governments

SEDA-COG Offers Two Programs at No Cost for Home Heating Assistance

Posted on January 3, 2022 by

With colder weather upon us, SEDA-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG) is continuing to offer Crisis program to residents who qualify for fuel assistance, the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP.) This program repairs malfunctioning heating units at no cost.

Additionally, American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) stimulus funds are being used to offer a new service, the LIHEAP Clean and Tune Pilot program for residents. Clean & Tune is a benefit available to assist homeowners and residents in cleaning and tuning their primary heating equipment and avoiding interruptions to their heating service. It will provide general service with the goal of preventing crisis calls due to loss of heating. Homeowners and residents must qualify for fuel assistance.

Residents should contact their local county assistance office to see if they qualify for these programs. It is not guaranteed that this clean and tune service will be offered next year, so it is highly encouraged to take advantage of the program while it’s available. The application period is open now through May 6, 2022.

Mandy Fox, chief of SEDA-COG’s Weatherization program, said, “With the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on employment, people who normally wouldn’t qualify for the Crisis program might this year. We encourage people to contact their local county assistance office to see if they qualify.”

SEDA-COG’s Weatherization program serves a seven-county area: Columbia, Juniata, Mifflin, Montour, Perry, Snyder, and Union.

If residents don’t qualify for LIHEAP or Crisis assistance, they may still qualify for SEDA-COG’s Weatherization services. SEDA-COG’s Weatherization services may provide furnace repair, although it is not immediate help, as it would be through Crisis. SEDA-COG’s Weatherization program can be reached at 570-522-7219.

Crisis Income Eligibility Guidelines

Family size: 1 – $19,320; 2 – $26,130; 3 – $32,940; 4 – $39,750; 5 – $46,560; 6 – $53,370; 7 – $60,180; 8 – $66,990.

County Assistance Offices
Columbia: 570-387-4232
Juniata: 717-436-2158
Mifflin: 717-242-6095
Montour: 1-866-410-2093
Perry: 717-582-5038
Snyder: 570-372-1721
Union: 570-524-2201

SEDA-COG is a community and economic development agency in Lewisburg and is one of seven Local Development Districts in Pennsylvania. SEDA-COG enhances the quality of life and economic advantage for residents and businesses in the 11 central Pennsylvania counties through its vital partnerships and initiatives.

For more information, please contact Elaine Stauder, communications coordinator, SEDA-Council of Governments, at 570-522-7429 or estauder@seda-cog.org.

SEDA-COG… Building Strong Economies & Strong Communities www.seda-cog.org

Snyder County Market Opens with SEDA-COG and Mifflinburg Bank & Trust Partnership

Posted on December 29, 2021 by

SEDA-COG Local Development Corporation recently assisted Beaver Valley Country Store, LLC with an SBA 504 loan for the purchase of Saylor’s Market on Route 522 in Beaver Springs, Snyder County. The proud new owners of the store are Steve Witmer, Aaron Witmer, Rick Maloyed, and John Anthony.

SEDA-COG Local Development Corporation partnered with Mifflinburg Bank & Trust Company on this project. The SBA 504 loan program offered the borrower a 25-year low interest fixed rate loan for 35% of the total financing need.
John Reichard, SEDA-COG Business Relationship Manager and Tina Showers, SEDA-COG Principal Program Analyst worked with the four partners and Amber Gabrielson, Commercial Lender at the Selinsgrove Branch of Mifflinburg Bank and Trust Company, to bring this financing package to fruition.

Rick Maloyed said they couldn’t have done this without Mifflinburg Bank & Trust and SEDA-COG. “We felt like we had a great team going into the project and both Mifflinburg Bank & Trust and SEDA-COG were very helpful in guiding us through this process.”

Beaver Valley Country Store will be offering new products in the future. They now have a bakery, which offers donuts, pies, full, half, and quarter sheet cakes as well as round cakes and cupcakes that can be custom made for any occasion. They also offer fresh produce, meats, frozen foods, a deli, and other various items. You can like and check out their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/beavervalleycountrystore for weekly flyers and events at the store.
For more information about SEDA-COG’s loans, please contact John Reichard at jreichard@seda-cog.org or Mike Morrison at mmorrison@seda-cog.org.

As a community and economic development agency, SEDA-COG enhances the quality of life and economic advantage for residents and businesses in 11 central Pennsylvania counties through its vital partnerships and initiatives. SEDA-COG also is an advocate for the interests of its communities at the state and federal levels. For more information, visit www.seda-cog.org.

Mifflinburg Bank & Trust Company is a full-service commercial bank servicing customers from eight locations in Mifflinburg, New Berlin, Lewisburg, Selinsgrove, Shamokin Dam, Millheim and Milton. The bank has 15 ATMs in Union, Snyder, Northumberland and Centre counties, and, as a member of Moneypass®, customers have access to over 37,000 ATMs nationwide. For more information on Mifflinburg Bank & Trust, visit mbtc.com.

Unemployment, Labor Force Participation and Poverty Update

Posted on December 21, 2021 by

Unemployment Rate (February 2020 to October 2021):

SEDA-COG Region, Pennsylvania, and U.S.A.
In April 2020, at the peak levels of unemployment caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic, the SEDA-COG Region’s unemployment rate was nearly equal to the United States’ rate of 14.4% and was lower than the Pennsylvania rate of 15.9%. From April 2020 until December 2020, the SEDA-COG Region’s unemployment rate was on average below both the Pennsylvania and the national unemployment rate. However, in more recent months, SEDA-COG Region’s unemployment rate has been above both the state and national rate by a fraction of a percentage.
Source: Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS)

Labor Force Participation Rate by Age Groups:

SEDA-COG Region, Pennsylvania, and U.S.A.
Labor force participation includes working-age adults who are either working or looking for work. During 2015-2019 American Community Survey, the labor force participation rate for the population of the SEDA-COG region (16 years and over) was 58.2%. This is lower than both Pennsylvania (62.8%) and the United States (63.4%). The graph illustrates labor force participation by age groups, comparing the SEDA-COG Region, the state, and the national rate. For the age groups between 45 years and over, the SEDA-COG Region’s participation rate is equivalent to the state and national rate. However, in the age groups between 20 years and 44 years, the SEDA-COG Region is below Pennsylvania and the United States. The 20 to 24 years age group is the most drastic, as the SEDA-COG Region’s participation rate is 60.7%, versus Pennsylvania at 73.8% and the U.S. at 75%. This is possibly a result of the proportionately large population of university students in the SEDA-COG Region, primarily in Centre and Columbia counties.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2019: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

Poverty Status in the Past 12 Months (2019):

SEDA-COG Region, Pennsylvania, and U.S.A.
During 2019, 14% of the SEDA-COG’s Region was below the poverty rate. This is higher than both the state (12.4%) and the United States’ poverty level (13.4%). Six counties in the SEDA-COG region exceeded the state rate: Centre (18.2%), Clinton (15.5%), Columbia (15.0%), Lycoming (13.6%), Mifflin (13.5%), and Northumberland (13.2%). Of these six counties, Northumberland and Mifflin do not have large universities. Counties with large universities and students living off-campus, can statistically impact poverty rates. This is especially true for Centre (Penn State University) and Columbia (Bloomsburg University) and can be inferred to impact Lycoming (Pennsylvania College of Technology and Lycoming University) and Clinton (Lock Haven University).
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2019: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority Awarded $1.5 Million

Posted on December 20, 2021December 20, 2021 by

The SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority (JRA) will receive 1.5 million dollars through the PennDOT Rail Transportation Assistance Program (RTAP). The funds will be used to rehabilitate nine railroad bridges on four of the JRA’s railroads operated by the North Shore Railroad group.

The bridges to be rehabilitated are:

• Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad (NBER) Bellefonte Branch: Benner Township, Centre County

• NBER Mainline Bridge: Worth Township, Centre County

• NBER Mainline Bridge: Union Township, Centre County

• Lycoming Valley Railroad (LVRR) AVIS IT Bridge: Woodward Township, Lycoming County

• LVRR IT Bridge: Muncy Township, Lycoming County

• Juniata Valley Railroad (JVRR) Burnham Branch: Burnham Borough, Mifflin County

• JVRR Maitland I.T: Derry Township, Mifflin County

• JVRR Maitland I.T.: Derry Township, Mifflin County

• North Shore Railroad (NSHR) Mainline: Rupert, Columbia County

*A map of where the rehabilitated bridges are located.*

Gov. Tom Wolf announced the approval of the grant along with 24 other rail freight improvement projects that will enhance freight mobility while creating or sustaining more than 200 jobs across Pennsylvania.

“Keeping goods moving efficiently has proven to be more important now than ever,” said Governor Wolf. “These investments in Pennsylvania’s rail system create jobs, support efficient freight travel and help keep the business community connected to the global economy.”

The SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority (JRA) is an eight-county joint municipal authority formed in 1983 to preserve essential rail service in central PA. The JRA owns the railroad properties in public trust, which are privately operated by the North Shore Railroad group. For the past 38 years, the JRA has become an engine for high value industrial development.

For more information, please contact Elaine Stauder, communications coordinator, SEDA-Council of Governments, at 570-522-7429 or estauder@seda-cog.org.

SEDA-COG… Building Strong Economies & Strong Communities