Thursday, December 10, 2009

Home Rule on the way

Luzerne County’s Government Study Commission unanimously voted Wednesday to take the next step and draft a proposed home rule charter.

I liked the last plan.



Panel unanimously votes for home rule

The challenge is to get a new charter on the ballot in 2010.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

No surprise in that action.

Anonymous said...

No surprise. I am so glad Walter kept his word and stepped down after he won.

Austin said...

Sweet. Seriously if they do not separate administrative and policy making powers I am going to be disappointed and support another ballot measure to do it.

I don't know why they wouldn't comment on whether or not they thought the county needed a new form of government or what they have learned. I've read all but a couple weeks of their minutes and not much was relevant.

Anonymous said...

Austin, just wondering. Can you give an example of what administrative and policy powers are? Is it possible that the more complicated they make government, the more difficult it will be to run government?

What if the Policy side (what ever that is) creates a policy that the administrative side (what ever that is) refuses to fund that policy? What then? Who breaks the stalemate?

Anonymous said...

Hello Austin, I too would like to hear your answer to 2:23 AM. If you can't give an example, you should not have posted it.

Anonymous said...

I am so happy that the GSC decided to move forward with a HR charter to be put on the ballot. What they really need to do is have the young people that originally pushed for this the first time to get back on the trail and push harder for the adoption. Mike Sestak, Pj Best, Jess Andes, Sabrina and all others, we need you now to get back into the scene and use your smarts, and youthful energy to get this passed by the voters. You did the County a great job when you moved this forward, we need you now to continue moving it. The GSC under Haggerty and Ciaruffulo and Morelli's guidance did the job and need your help. Mike, PJ , Jess, and Sabrina step up again.

Austin said...

No prob anonz. An example of the separation of policy and administrative powers would be our Federal government. There we have an executive and a legislative branch.

I call it policy and administrative because anonz on here always jump all over me claiming that you cannot legislate inside a county government.

Much like the Federal or State governments the administrator would have to sign off on anything that passes the policy sides.

Another example would be the 2001-3 charter that the previous HR group suggested.

It would certainly help to make government more difficult to manipulate if you had decentralization of power.