Township Proposes Amusement Tax

Officials with Hanover Township in Pennsylvania are meeting with area venue reps about implementing an amusement tax to help cover the cost of reinstating its police force to patrol at concerts and other events.

Last year supervisors voted to add a 5 percent tax on tickets for events held at the 23,085-capacity, Live Nation-run First Niagara Pavilion and 1,016-capacity Pepsi-Cola Roadhouse in Burgettstown. The resulting revenue would restore the eight-officer police force and its liability insurance.

The eight-person police department was reportedly shut down after the 1,500-population township was sued by several concertgoers who claimed officers roughed them up during arrests at the shed previously known as the Post-Gazette Pavilion.

In the meantime, state police are available on-call only and not for tasks such as event traffic control.

If the tax is approved, supervisors hope to bring in about $468,000.

A final vote on the plan is scheduled for March 30.