Clearing the field

WILKES-BARRE – Luzerne County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak has chosen Controller Maryanne Petrilla as his Democratic running mate, according to a local source.

As predicted Skrep and Petrilla will run as a team. I think the early announcement is meant to discourage any other potential candidates.

So Skrep made a decision on his running mate but doesn't want to decide if the commissioners and row officers deserve a pay raise. He wants a referendum to decide the issue saying doesn’t want to vote to increase his own salary. Last I checked the commissioners were elected to make financial decisions. If you think a pay raise is deserved vote for it and defend your decision. People will disagree but will respect you for it instead of playing games with referendums that will never happen. The other hot potato of reassessment has been delayed until after the election showing another lack of leadership and management skill. The Bond Brothers had no problem deciding to give a sweetheart deal in the form of a 20-year contract to some pals that built a juvenile detention facility in Pittston. Or borrowing money to finance a golden parachute scheme called "the life transition plan" to allegedly reduce the number of county employees then hiring a bunch of them back through a temp service. Not to mention all the other borrowing and juggling the books to give the appearance of a balanced budget.