Luzerne County won’t renew lobbyist contract in 2021 budget

A controversial $60,000-a-year lobbyist contract was eliminated in the Luzerne County administration’s proposed 2021 budget, officials said during Tuesday’s virtual budget work session.

County Manager C. David Pedri said he made the “difficult decision” as part of his determination to come up with a no-tax-hike budget for next year. The lobbyist — Harrisburg-based Maverick Strategies — was instrumental in securing a $1 million state grant for the county’s new 911 emergency radio system and boosting other grant receipts, he said.

“They did a great job for Luzerne County,” Pedri told council. “This was solely for financial reasons and had nothing to do with their performance.”

The lobbyist contract expires the end of this year, and Pedri said there’s always the option of retaining the company on an hourly basis for “specific tasks.”

Councilman Walter Griffith said he was “delighted” with the lobbyist removal. He was among critics who argued the county should not have to pay someone to lobby the government.

The lobbyist expense was in the law division budget presented Tuesday.

This division, which includes the conflict counsel department, is budgeted at a proposed $2.174 million next year — a decrease of $125,258.

Also contributing to this reduction is a $75,000 reduction for special legal services, which largely covers insurance deductibles for litigation filed against the county. Chief Solicitor Romilda Crocamo said she expects most, if not all, of this year’s $590,000 allocation will be spent, but she believes the county can get by with $515,000 next year due to the settlement of some older cases and management efforts to prevent new litigation.

Tax breaks

During Tuesday’s other presentation by the budget/finance division, the administration released a list of five properties with tax breaks that have expired or will run out by the end of this year.

These properties have been participating in the Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance (LERTA) program, which provides real estate exemption for 10 years on new construction but not the land in deteriorated areas. The structures added to the tax rolls have a combined assessment of $42.7 million.

Three are affiliated with Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services, according to county records. Their ownership, location and structure assessments: 660 Baltimore LLC, 660 Baltimore Drive in Plains Township, $1.15 million; Mericle 100 Capital LLC, Capital Road in Jenkins Township, $5.2 million; and Mericle 160 Research LLC, 160 Research Drive, Jenkins Township, $12.1 million.

The other two properties:

• Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center’s outpatient specialty center at 675 Baltimore Drive, Plains Township, $2.19 million

• A structure at 545 Oak Hill Road in Wright Township owned by Conshohocken, Pennsylvania-based 545 Oak Hill LLC, $22 million

New construction

A $2 million revenue increase from the expired breaks and new construction was a major reason the administration was able to avoid a tax hike in the proposed $154.65 million spending plan, Pedri has said. The county added $82.2 million in new construction — mainly in industrial parks, he said.

But Budget/Finance Division Head Brian Swetz also noted Tuesday some of the growth is stemming from an unexpected increase in residential property additions and in-ground swimming pools during the coronavirus pandemic. Forced to cancel vacations, some property owners opted to spend those funds on home improvements, Swetz said.

County Assessment Director Kristin Montgomery requested $21,600 for mileage reimbursement, a $3,600 increase, saying it was important to have “boots on the ground” for field work to value additions.

On the revenue side, she expects to bring in an additional $38,000 in revenue by charging major companies from out of the area more for county assessment data that they then resell as part of real estate information packages. The price of the assessment database report will increase from $500 to $8,400 next year, she said.

In all, the budget/finance division has a proposed budget of $3.38 million in 2021, or $131,271 more.

Some of this increase comes from a request to increase the allocation for assessment appeal refunds from $525,000 to $600,000 based on a lengthy list of pending challenges and the expectation that some or all properties with expired breaks will contest their values, the administration said.

The county spent nearly $441,000 on appeal refunds through Oct. 12 this year.

Election inquiry

Council Chairman Tim McGinley announced the appointment of council members to a four-member inquiry committee that will review election office procedures and protocols, largely in response to the premature unsealing and discarding of nine overseas military ballots by a temporary worker.

The county denied a Times Leader Right-to-Know request for the name of the worker Tuesday, citing the ongoing federal investigation as the reason.

Councilwoman Linda McClosky Houck will serve as inquiry committee chair, and Councilman Harry Haas will be vice chairman, McGinley said. The other council committee members: Sheila Saidman and Stephen J. Urban.

Committee meetings will be publicly advertised when they are scheduled, McGinley said.

McGinley also dedicated the session’s moment of silence to absent Councilman Chris Perry, saying he has been struggling with a health issue for more than two weeks.