Budget and Finance Committee, September 30, 2026
Approves Bill 65 - Business License Fee Increase, unanimous
What happened
This Allentown Budget and Finance Committee meeting contained no land-use or zoning business. The committee reviewed the 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (unmodified audit opinion) and the August financial report, and voted to forward Bill 65 — which raises the annual b…
- Jurisdiction
- Allentown, PA
- Governing body
- Final authority
- Date
- September 30, 2026
- Decisions
- 3 zoning decisions
- Outcome
- Approved, unanimous
Free sample: decision 1 of 3
Bill 65 - Business License Fee Increase
Committee voted to forward Bill 65 to council. The bill amends Part Two, General Legislation, Chapter 196, Business License, Section 3 (fee) and removes language in Section 6 (violation penalties). The new business license fee is $50 (a $15 increase from $35, unchanged since 1992), effective with 2027 billing renewal. Staff cited rising administrative and postage costs and growth from ~6,000 to over 14,000 business renewals. Council discussed but did not adopt a tiered/temporary business license structure.
The other decisions are listed below by title. The full write-up, verbatim conditions, and the audio at each vote are in Pro.
Meeting Summary
This Allentown Budget and Finance Committee meeting contained no land-use or zoning business. The committee reviewed the 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (unmodified audit opinion) and the August financial report, and voted to forward Bill 65 — which raises the annual b…
Key Decisions (3)
Bill 65 - Business License Fee Increase
Review of 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report
August Financial Report
Market Signals (3)
Commercial Demand
Active business registrations in Allentown grew from ~6,000 to over…
Infrastructure
The city has significant unused debt capacity (can take on…
Sentiment
Councilmembers flagged that current flat business license and health/insurance fees…
Who Spoke (8)
Meeting Intelligence Preview
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