Briefly... CITY/REGION

City, Mummers to meet again

A meeting between the city and the Mummers to resolve questions about the size and scope of the upcoming New Year's parade will be resumed today. Mayor Nutter's spokesman, Doug Oliver, said he and Mummers representatives discussed the parade last night, but the meeting had to be cut short because the mayor had a prescheduled town-hall meeting.

The city has offered to contribute $300,000, less than half of what it paid last year, to cover police, emergency and streets services during the parade.

VIP pup's kennel cited

The Pottstown kennel where Vice President-elect Joe Biden bought a German shepherd puppy was cited for records violations several days after he picked out the dog.

The kennel's owner said workers cleaning up the night before Biden's visit accidentally threw out records of rabies vaccinations, which carries a fine of $50 to $300 per citation.

"We went in there and cleaned everything up and I didn't even think about it," said owner Linda Brown.

"How many times does the vice president visit? Maybe once in a lifetime?"

Grants from FEMA

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency has awarded a $425,440 grant to the Philadelphia Fire Department, part of a total of $2,661,204 distributed in the Mid-Atlantic region. The grant will be used for operations and safety programs. Other grants in the region: Brookhaven, Delaware County, Fire Company, $158,140; Uwchlan Ambulance Corps, Exton, Chester County, $64,148; Boothwyn, Delaware County, Fire Company, $49,834.

PUC: More heat cutoffs

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission said yesterday that the number of homes in the state with the heat cut off has risen to more than 17,700 heading into winter, up 5 percent from last winter.

But a spokesman for the state's gas and electric utilities said the survey is inaccurate because it counts households twice where both electric and gas service is off.

Man shot in '05 dies

Robert Byrd, 45, of Camden, who was shot more than three years ago, has died and officials have ruled his death a homicide. Byrd became the city's 50th murder victim in 2008 when he died Friday.

He was shot Nov. 30, 2005, in a parking lot of the Kaighn Avenue Baptist Church, 9th Street and Kaighn Avenue. Byrd was paralyzed and had been living in a nursing home in Sewell. No charges have been brought.*

- Staff and wire reports