Whitehall Township has 90 candidates who filled out applications for a position as an officer with the township's police force. In a report to the Whitehall Board of Commissioners March 10, township Mayor Edward D. Hozza Jr. said testing for the entry-level position will be given in April at the Whitehall High School cafeteria.

Written examinations for sergeant and lieutenant with the police department were recently held.

"[April] will see the oral exams for the lieutenant and sergeant and the written exam for corporal," Hozza related to the commissioners.

A marked improvement in the township's police pension fund was reported.

Filed with the Pennsylvania Public Employment Retirement System, the report shows a slight loss in the plan for the audit years, 2010-2012, due to the lower investment returns after the great recession, according to the mayor.

Since then major gains have now been realized. In 2013, the police pension plan, now under the management of Cornerstone Advisors Asset Management, Inc., had a 23.77-percent aggregate return.

"Since Cornerstone Management, the inception annualized return is 19.81 percent and market value since inception increased by $5,584,431. As of Dec. 31, 2013, the police pension fund had a market value of $24 million," Hozza said.

Interviews and hiring of seasonal employees for the summer is now under way by the township's human resource officer.