Unlike Bethlehem, Easton imposes an unpopular commuter tax, more technically called a non-resident wage tax, on people who work but don't live in the city. This 1.75 percent tax is a drain on the income of many of the 900 county employees who work at the courthouse. When it was imposed in 2012, Northampton County Council adopted a resolution condemning it as a form of taxation without representation.

It took no other action despite a criticism from Easton Mayor Sal Panto. "If you want to live in the lily white beautiful suburban community, you have to do something to pay for that," he said, and even encouraged the county body to leave his city. "The county can continue to threaten to leave and I say 'Go ahead,'" he taunted. The county did move out of the Governor Wolf Building, and now Panto has proposed increasing the commuter tax to 1.95 percent. This time, however, the County might do a bit more than issue a condemnation.

That's because on the day before Panto announced his tax hike, a judge determined that Scranton's commuter tax is illegal. At the suggestion of District Attorney John Morganelli, Brown has agreed to review the tax to determine whether it should be challenged.

Northampton County Council has decided to send a message, too.

At its Oct. 2 meeting, as Mayor Panto stood in the back of Courtroom #1, Northampton County Council voted unanimously to condemn the commuter tax and the proposed increase. It also requested Executive John Brown take all actions to prevent the tax's collection, including the suspension of collection and the filing of a declaratory judgment action.

"We fought wars over this," complained Controller Steve Barron, who pledged to join in any law suit filed by the county. "Stop collecting it," he suggested. "Let him sue us."

Panto had nothing to say in response to the unanimous vote. But he has previously stated that, without the tax, Easton will go bankrupt.

The resolution, proposed by Republican Peg Ferraro and Democrat Ken Kraft, is nonbinding, but is a rare sign of bipartisan unity.

In addition to legal concerns, the resolution points out that a 14-year phased reduction of the wage tax in Philadelphia has resulted in a steady increase in jobs.