Briefly... CITY/REGION

A Bucks County husband and wife were sentenced yesterday to 30 and 24 months in federal prison, respectively, in connection with a scheme to provide out-of-state residents with Pennsylvania driver's licenses and commercial driver's licenses.

Authorities said that Vitaliy Kroshnev, 49, and his wife, Tatyana, 46, of Richboro, operated the International Training Academy, arranging for hundreds of non-residents to fraudulently obtain Pennsylvania commercial driver's licenses between 2007 and 2010. The Kroshnevs also had interpreters who helped clients cheat on the written portion of the commercial-driver's tests, authorities said.

U.S. District Judge Norma Shapiro also ordered the Kroshnevs to forfeit $445,450.

The city's residential Christmas-tree recycling program will run from Jan. 3 through Jan. 14, Streets Commissioner Clarena I.W. Tolson said yesterday.

The 24-year old program was developed by the Streets Department's sanitation division to provide an environmentally safe alternative for disposal of used trees.

Residents may drop off trees for recycling from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at any of three locations: 3033 S. 63rd Street; Domino Lane and Umbria Street; and State Road and Ashburner Street.

Trees to be recycled should be untied and without decorations. Trees should not be in plastic bags.

Trees left at the curb will be considered as trash and will be picked up on regularly scheduled trash days.

For more information, call 215-686-5560, or go to www.philadelphiastreets.com.

Representatives from the Ryan Howard Family Foundation will be in Hunting Park from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. today to distribute 225 coats, gloves and hats, as well as 100 turkeys for holiday meals.

The gathering, featuring holiday music, will take place at the Hunting Park Recreation Center, 9th Street and Hunting Park Avenue. More than 25 children from Hunting Park sports teams and dozens of residents are expected. Representatives from the Fairmount Park Conservancy and Hunting Park United will help distribute the clothes and turkeys.

All city offices will be closed and city services curtailed Sunday and Monday for the Christmas holiday.

Closed will be district health centers all branch offices of the Department of Licenses and Inspections, the north and northeast municipal service centers, the Marriage License Bureau, Recreation Department facilities, the Free Library and all branches, Parking Authority executive offices and the violations branch at 9th and Filbert Streets.

Trash and recycling will be collected one day behind schedule next week.

- Staff and wire reports