ALLENTOWN MAYOR ED PAWLOWSKI HS TURNED OVER HIS BUDGET PROPOSAL TO CITY COUNCIL.  IT'S A BUDGET THAT CALLS FOR NO INCREASES IN REAL ESTATE TAXES, FEES OR CHARGES NEXT YEAR, BUT THE MAYOR SAYS THAT WOULD ALL GO OUT THE WINDOW IS COUNCIL DOESN'T APPROVE HIS PLANS TO LEASE THE CITY'S WATER AND SEWER SYSTEMS.  "WE WILL HAVE TO COME BACK AND REVISE THIS BUDGET AND THERE DEFINITELY BE AN INCREASE IN TAXES.  THERE'S NO WAY AROUND THAT SCENARIO," PAWLOWSKI SAY.  IT'S THE NINTH YEAR IN A ROW WITHOUT A TAX INCREASE IN ALLENTOWN.

  A MAN'S BODY HAS BEEN FOUND IN THE LEHIGH RIVER UNDERNEATH THE MINSI TRAIL BRIDGE IN BETHLEHEM.  POLICE HAVEN'T IDENTIFIED THE VICTIM, BUT SAY THE MAN WAS REPORTED MISSING BY HIS FAMILY ON TUESDAY.  THE BODY WAS FOUND AROUND 12:30 WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON.  AN AUTOPSY IS PLANNED FOR TODAY.

  FIVE PEOPLE FACE CHARGES OF OPERATING A METHAMPHETAMINE LAB IN BATH.  POLICE RAIDED AN OLD FORGE DRIVE HOME TUESDAY MORNING AND FOUND WHAT THEY SAY WAS A METH LAB INSIDE A BEDROOM.  FRANCISCO DITARANTO, JAMIE LYNN KINGHORN AND ALAN WOODSON, ALL OF BATH ARE CHARGED AS ARE A PHILADELPHIA MAN AND A NEW JERSEY WOMAN.

  NOT ALL LOCAL RACES ARE SETTLED QUITE YET.  STATE REP. JUSTIN SIMMONS HAS A 167-VOTE ADVANTAGE OVER DEMOCRATIC CHALLENGER KEVIN DEELY IN THE 131ST DISTRICT STATE HOUSE RACE.  ELECTIONS OFFICIALS SAY THEY ARE STILL COUNTING ABSENTEE BALLOTS TODAY AND HAVE TO REVIEW 133 PROVISIONAL BALLOTS.

  THE LOCAL AMERICAN RED CROSS CHAPTER IS LOOKING FOR A NEW C.E.O..  JOHN HUGHES, WHO HAS BEEN IN CHARGE OF THE LOCAL RED CROSS CHAPTER SINCE 1997 IS LEAVING FOR A POSITION WITH THE RED CROSS IN GREENSBORO.  IT'LL BE A BIT OF A HOMECOMING FOR HUGHES, WHO IS A NORTH CAROLINA NATIVE.  THE LOCAL RED CROSS SAYS A SEARCH COMMITTEE WILL BE FORMED TO FIND HUGHES' SUCCESSOR.  HUGHES BEGINS HIS NEW JOB NOVEMBER 26.

  REPUBLICAN STATE HOUSE SPEAKER SAM SMITH IS SUGGESTING THE ELECTION IN PHILADELPHIA WAS RIGGED, BUT DEMOCRATIC SEN. VINCENT HUGHES SAYS SMITH IS SOUR BECAUSE REPUBLICANS LOST BADLY IN PENNSYLVANIA.  SMITH SAYS IT IS "QUESTIONABLE" BECAUSE HE HEARD THAT MORE THAN 90 PERCENT OF VOTERS CAST BALLOTS IN 90 PERCENT OF PHILADELPHIA'S PRECINCTS.  SMITH SAYS HE HAS NO EVIDENCE OF FRAUD AND HIS MATH DOESN'T ADD UP.  TURNOUT IN PHILADELPHIA WAS JUST 60 PERCENT WITH 97 PERCENT OF PRECINCTS REPORTING.  THAT'S BELOW THE STATEWIDE AVERAGE OF 65 PERCENT AND DOWN FROM NEARLY 64 PERCENT IN 2008.  PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA WON PHILADELPHIA ON HIS WAY TO BEATING REPUBLICAN MITT ROMNEY IN PENNSYLVANIA.  A DEMOCRATIC BASTION, THE STATE'S LARGEST CITY IS A FREQUENT TARGET OF REPUBLICANS WHO ACCUSE IT OF VOTER FRAUD.

  FORMER PENN STATE PRESIDENT GRAHAM SPANIER IS FREE ON $125,000 UNSECURED BAIL AFTER BEING ARRAIGNED ON CHARGES RELATED TO THE CHILD SEX ABUSE CASE OF FORMER ASSISTANT FOOTBALL COACH JERRY SANDUSKY.  SPANIER WAS ARRAIGNED WEDNESDAY MORNING BY A HARRISBURG DISTRICT JUSTICE ON CHARGES INCLUDING PERJURY, OBSTRUCTION AND CONSPIRACY.  HE HAS DENIED THE ALLEGATIONS AND CLAIMED HE IS BEING FRAMED FOR POLITICAL PURPOSES.  THE 64-YEAR-OLD SPANIER LED PENN STATE FOR 16 YEARS BEFORE BEING FORCED OUT A YEAR AGO WHEN SANDUSKY WAS CHARGED ALONG WITH TWO OF SPANIER'S TOP UNDERLINGS.  SPANIER IS A FACULTY MEMBER ON PAID LEAVE.  PROSECUTORS CHARGED SPANIER AND ADDED COUNTS AGAINST TIM CURLEY AND GARY SCHULTZ.  THEY WERE PREVIOUSLY WERE CHARGED WITH FAILURE TO REPORT SUSPECTED ABUSE AND PERJURY.  SANDUSKY IS SERVING PRISON TIME FOR CHILD MOLESTATION.

  CONDEMNED MURDERER HUBERT MICHAEL JR. IS RUNNING OUT OF OPTIONS IN THE FINAL HOURS UNTIL HIS SCHEDULED EXECUTION TONIGHT.  MICHAEL'S LAWYERS HOPE THE 3RD U.S. CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS IN PHILADELPHIA WILL REVERSE AT LEAST ONE OF TWO REQUESTS FOR STAYS OF EXECUTION REJECTED BY FEDERAL JUDGES IN HARRISBURG. AND THERE'S A POSSIBILITY, HOWEVER SLIM, THAT THEY COULD TURN AROUND WEDNESDAY'S 4-0 DECISION BY THE STATE PARDONS BOARD NOT TO RECOMMEND CLEMENCY FOR MICHAEL.  IF HIS LAWYERS ARE UNSUCCESSFUL, MICHAEL WILL BE PUT TO DEATH BY LETHAL INJECTION IN A CONVERTED FIELD HOSPITAL AT ROCKVIEW STATE PRISON IN BELLEFONTE FOR THE SHOOTING DEATH OF 16-YEAR-OLD TRISTA ELIZABETH ENG IN SOUTH-CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA IN 1993.  THE EXECUTION IS SCHEDULED TO TAKE PLACE AT 7 P.M.

  WE DODGED THE NOR'EASTER, BUT ACCU-WEATHER METEOROLOGIST DEAN DEVORE SAYS IT WAS A CLOSE CALL.  "IF YOU LOOK AT THE LINE, PHILLY HAD A TRACE OF SNOW.  VOORHEES HAD FOUR AND PARTS OF CENTRAL JERSEY HAD SIX TO 10 INCHES OF SNOW," DEVORE SAYS.  DEVORE SAYS THE STORM SHIFTED ABOUT 20 to 50 MILES EAST OF WHAT WAS FORECAST WEDNESDAY MORNING AND THAT SPARED THE LEHIGH VALLEY SEVERAL INCHES OF SNOW.

  UTILITY CREWS WORKING TO RESTORE POWER TO PARTS OF NEW JERSEY BATTERED BY SUPERSTORM SANDY ARE DEALING WITH THOUSANDS OF NEW OUTAGES CAUSED BY A NOR'EASTER THAT'S DROPPED HEAVY RAINS, SLEET AND SNOW ON THE STATE.  MORE THAN 457,000 HOMES AND BUSINESSES WERE WITHOUT SERVICE WEDNESDAY NIGHT.  THAT INCLUDES PEOPLE WHO LOST THEIR POWER WHEN SANDY HIT WEEK AND A HALF AGO.  PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC & GAS HAS ROUGHLY 241,000 OUTAGES, INCLUDING 60,000 CAUSED BY THE NOR'EASTER.  JERSEY CENTRAL POWER & LIGHT HAS 197,560 CUSTOMERS WITHOUT POWER, MAINLY IN MONMOUTH, MORRIS AND OCEAN COUNTIES, WHILE ORANGE & ROCKLAND HAS 8,300 HOUSEHOLDS.  ATLANTIC CITY ELECTRIC IS REPORTING NEARLY 9,000 CUSTOMERS WITHOUT POWER. 

  NEW JERSEY HEALTH OFFICIALS SAY 25 CASES OF FUNGAL MENINGITIS HAVE NOW BEEN REPORTED IN THE STATE.  THE CASES, TWO CONFIRMED AND 23 CONSIDERED PROBABLE, ARE LINKED TO A RECALLED, POTENTIALLY TAINTED STEROID PRODUCED BY A SPECIALTY PHARMACY IN MASSACHUSETTS.  NATIONALLY, MORE THAN 400 CASES HAVE BEEN REPORTED IN 19 STATES, INCLUDING 31 DEATHS.  STATE HEALTH OFFICIALS SAY NO ONE IN NEW JERSEY HAS DIED FROM THE ILLNESS, AND ALL OF THOSE SICKENED CONTINUE TO RECOVER.  FOUR MORE CASES WERE ANNOUNCED IN NEW JERSEY THIS WEEK.

  EAGLES RIGHT TACKLE TODD HERREMANS WAS PLACED ON THE SEASON-ENDING INJURED RESERVE LIST ON WEDNESDAY.  HERREMANS SUFFERED A DISLOCATED BONE AND LIGAMENT DAMAGE IN HIS RIGHT FOOT IN MONDAY'S LOSS TO NEW ORLEANS.  HERREMANS WILL WEAR A BOOT FOR AT LEAST EIGHT WEEKS.  PHILADELPHIA'S MAKESHIFT LINE IS NOW WITHOUT HERREMANS, LEFT TACKLE JASON PETERS, CENTER JASON KELCE AND RIGHT GUARD DANNY WATKINS.