Mullery hits Arnold on taxes

State Rep Jerry Mullery (D) asked if Rick Arnold (R)  can’t pay his property taxes, how can voters elect him to represent them in Harrisburg?

Arnold is behind on the taxes on 3 properties he owns totaling $16,579 according to the TL. They are not up for Sheriff's sale and he made a payment plan. He blames it on the bad economy and reassessment. I hear him on reassessment since my property taxes tripled on our home and rental properties. His home building business is down after the Republicans crashed the economy impacting his business and cash flow.

“Many of (Mullery’s) constituents are having the same problems,” he said. “I’m a constituent too. Why isn’t he concerned about me? Instead he attacks me.”

Mullery gave a condescending answer.

Mullery said Arnold has never contacted his office for help, noting that he has answered many requests for assistance from constituents in similar circumstances to Arnold, referring them to financial planning agencies that could help individuals reassess their spending habits or assist in mortgage refinancing.

Arnold has a radio spot airing on WILK that I haven't heard and is not available on his website, FB, etc.

He also had this LTE published a few days ago:


For too long, homeowners in Luzerne County and across Pennsylvania have been burdened with crushing property taxes.

Seniors on fixed incomes find themselves in the difficult position of losing their homes because they can no longer afford their property taxes. Small business owners, who already are struggling in a weak economy, find themselves struggling to pay their mortgages and bills, let alone expand and grow.

Over the years, usually in an election year, politicians in Harrisburg have promised relief. The passage of gambling in the commonwealth was the last broken promise, when lawmakers failed to dedicate 100 percent of the revenue generated toward real property tax relief.

As a small business owner who builds homes, I know how difficult it is to afford high property taxes. Like many people, I struggle every year to pay my property tax bills. While my family and I always have managed to meet those obligations, sometimes paying penalties, there are many people who unfortunately continue to lose their homes.

We need someone in office who will side with our interests, not “special interests.”

That’s why I’m running for state representative in the 119th District. I am a real blue-collar worker who understands and has struggled the same way many residents in the district have. I promise to do everything in my power to eliminate sky-rocketing property taxes and finally give back control to local taxpayers.

The transition

I've been on bit of hiatus for the last week or so and it may continue into the future as I decide if I want to continue to do this solo blog or sign on to another platform. Maybe I just might throw in the towel altogether. Mrs G points out that I get in this funk after my sports team or political party comes up short in the latest contest. Double whammy from the Phillies and the Dems this time.

Looking forward the Luzerne County government has been changed and we will now be electing 11 council members next year but not have elections for row officers. It's a new world in the land of the Wyoming Indians. In the near future (5 years) the new charter can be amended so the county executive can be elected and the council can be elected by districts if that is what the people want but we have to deal what is in front of us. The May 2011 primary election will have dozens of candidates running on both tickets then in the fall we may see a few Libertarians, Greens and independents in the mix.

Right now the transition committee of 5 home rule commission members and the sitting commissioners have to pick 3 people to help them out. 47 people applied for the 3 unpaid spots.

Some of the applicants from the TL that caught my eye.

The Yonk!


David Yonki, Wilkes-Barre, has a bachelor’s degree in government, politics, communications and marketing. David has written 3 books and is our local political historian. He writes one of the best blogs in Luzerne County.

Peter Gagliardi, Wilkes-Barre, has a master’s degree in government and politics. He has 17 years of experience with the federal government, 20 years as a freelance writer and has held various customer-service and sales positions in private industry.

Robert D. Seeley, Jackson Township, has a Ph.D. in economics and has been an associate professor of economics at Wilkes University since 1989. He was a member of the commission that drafted the proposed 2003 home rule charter.

• Betsy Summers, Wilkes-Barre, has an associate’s degree in animal science and has worked as territory manager for Midwest Veterinary Supply since 2005 and as manager of three rental properties since 1985. She was also a member of the commission that drafted the 2003 charter.

• Edward Chesnovitch, Jackson Township, has been an outspoken watchdog and served as treasurer of the Friends of Home Rule organization. He served on the township planning commission for 15 years and the Board of Auditors for four years.

• Susan Shoval, Kingston, has a bachelor’s degree in economics and was co-founder of GUARD Insurance Group. She is co-chair of the Luzerne County Diversity Commission and serves on other boards.

• Casey Evans, Lehman Township, studied political science, is second district chairman for the Luzerne County Democratic Committee, was a staffer for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and has worked on others.

• Charles Hatchko, Jenkins Township, worked as a correctional officer in the Luzerne County Correctional Facility for more than 16 years before retiring in 2006. He also has experience in union negotiations and in the trucking industry.

• Barry P. Finn, Swoyersville, worked as a television meteorologist for almost 25 years and later worked as a career school admissions director for seven years.

Victor Kopko, Hanover Township, has a doctorate in business administration and currently teaches college courses in communications, business and management part-time. He has owned and operated several businesses and has a pending lawsuit attempting to throw out the county’s 2009 reassessment.

• William M. Gagliardi, Ashley, has a bachelor’s degree in biology and has management experience, most recently as a supervisor with the U.S. Postal Service until December 2009. He recently passed a national certification exam for massage therapy.

• Raymond P. Gustave, West Wyoming, has a bachelor’s degree in biology and retired from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2007, after 37 years of employment with the federal government.

No more borrowing

County may face cuts and tax hikes

I have some mixed emotions about Luzerne County Commissioner Chair Maryanne Petrilla.

On the one hand I will always hold a grudge because she was recuited to take out the most effective Controller we ever had, Steve Flood, who sounded the alarm bells about the 20 year/$58 million lease with PA Child Care. The place was owned at the time by Greg Zappala and Robert Powell. Since then we have learned that Powell and multi party developer Robert Mericle were paying off the Juvie Brothers to put kids in their private prison.


On the other hand she has been upfront about limits of borrowing to balance the county budget since she became a commissioner and teamed up with Republican Commissioner Steve Urban to restore some sanity. The county is tapped out so borrowing more money for a new prison or anything else is out of the question. There is only so much you can cut so we can expect a big tax increase next year on top of the reassessment that doubled or tripled taxes on some people.

“Raising taxes is a very tough decision that one has to take very, very seriously. But at the same time, I said many times that I can’t make decisions today and tomorrow based on hoping to get re-elected in four years."-Maryanne Petrilla

Reassessment

TL: The company hired to reassess Luzerne County property values had argued in court that the county has a contractual obligation to pay the company to manage and defend the county against Hanover Township resident Vic Kopko’s property assessment court challenge.

But the county's newly hired legal guns say not so fast. Philadelphia based Elliott Greenleaf & Dean is getting $300+ per hour to defend the county in the lawsuit. Why in-house lawyers can't handle this is puzzling. Staff Solicitor David Schwager, who represents the assessment appeals board, doesn’t have time to devote to the Kopko case because he’s busy processing mediations, commissioners said. Every county department, board and agency has a solicitor which may or may not be mandated by state law. It seems like there are hundreds of them. The GSC should look at creating a solicitors office with a staff of attorneys that would handle all county legal business. Rosenn Jenkins & Greenwald was originally hired but pulled out because of a claimed conflict that Dr. Kopko called bullshit. “I believe they’re smelling a case that they can’t win,” Kopko said.

Some more fun with reassessment include The Luzerne County Assessor’s Office has failed to fully value and tax a Rice Township residential property that’s on the market for an asking price of $649,000. The home is owned by Angelo Terrana. Terrana sits on the county Board of Assessment Appeals, which oversees the assessor’s office. Plus there is Participant 2's multi-party Bob Mericle's dance over a Wilkes-Barre property that he owns. We own a rental double block and one side is valued $8000 more than the other but for the most part the houses are the same. 21st Century may have got a few things wrong.

And I got this in the inbox:


Gort:


Would love to give you an update on reassessment. The law has been violated and the county knows it! Apparently the rats are turning on each other as 21st Century (who will be held responsible along with the commissioners and others) filed a brief indicating, and you guessed it, that reassessment is now illegal based on county actions and the settling, or tanking, based on your perspective, has reduced the equalized values.


Oh, by the way, mediation is absolutely illegal, appears nowhere in the 3rd Class County Reassessment Law, and was signed into "law" by none other than Mark "I'm gonna do time" Ciavarella. The process does not address the sweetheart deals for politician's and their family/friends/political contributors which it will when we file for removal in a few weeks. My attorneys and I are confident that we will prevail. We have to ..for the people! For as many on the ridiculously high side values, their are the ridiculously low values.


Please keep in mind that I met with the commissioners to head this off. I asked them for three things; 1) correct the overs and unders on reassessment (Urban indicated that he knew of at least 5 municipalities "grossly undervalued". He said he would not address those and each municipality should file an appeal in 2010. Not happening since the politicians in those municipalities need their constituents votes to get re-elected. 2) Guarantee no more tax increases since the base has been adjusted (Petrilla answered, "No way, can't do it" Could you blame her with the corruption and mismanagement of funds that have gone on? She is a party to it! 3) Return the windfall fees to taxpayers since their is evidence that 95% of individuals did not receive their Pa certified appraisal amounts and were beaten down because they could not afford anymore attorney fees or associated costs. (Can anyone say, collusion?)


It goes on and on. There will be 25 items that clearly has violated the law, let alone adding the county corruption issues in. I would enjoy to fill you in more. By the way, keep calling the Sue Henry Show.

Dr. Victor P. Kopko

Keystone Opportunity Zones

It sounds like a good idea. Forgo taxes for a period of time on a piece of blighted land with the hope of enticing somebody to build something on it that will create jobs and eventually the parcel will be put back on the tax rolls. If only it worked that way.

I would like to see an accounting of the program to judge if it is worth it. I'm sure that there are some success stories like Schiel's Supermarket but what about the dead weight?


In 2005 The Times -Leader did a series on the program that questioned it's effectiveness. I can't link to the articles now because the local papers want to be paid for reading old news but I dug into my archives to give you some highlights.


I did some math using the TL numbers for Wilkes-Barre. I may be wrong but I come up with $3.7 million in tax breaks since 1999 that has produced a net 640 jobs.

These items caught my attention:

Half of the KOZ properties in the city are owned by the city itself or government-related agencies. Many are dilapidated or abandoned properties that haven't attracted investors, even with their tax-free status. Others such as City Hall, Public Square Park and police headquarters make little sense as targets for developers.

Thirteen property owners who were granted KOZ status, and have enjoyed about $37,000 in relief from municipal property taxes, have reported no new investment or jobs since joining the program, according to applications filed with the state.


Some of the other gems that were included in the original KOZ were Coughlin High School and Hollenback Park. Lowe's Restaurant on W. Market St was also designated a KOZ and at the time everyone involved said that it had nothing to do with the political connections of the owner but that is another story. I wondered about including a high school and public square on a list that would never be developed and I got my answer.


"If a property is already designated as a Keystone Opportunity Zone but cannot be developed due to developing restrictions or environmental issues or other issues, the state is providing an opportunity for that property to be decertified as a Keystone Opportunity Zone property and for an equivalent or lesser amount of acreage to be swapped into the program in the same municipality."


It sounds like bait and switch.

Some members of the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board objected to being told that they had to approve the swap with little time to consider it.


Lynn Evans asked why they waited until the last minute to present the district with the resolution. Board member Theresa McGuire told city officials they almost always come to the school board at the last minute for approval. While the resolutions are typically items the board would agree with, she doesn't appreciate being handed a resolution and told to act immediately.


The Scranton City Council has had enough.


Scranton KOZ issue is about to boil over


"The last thing we need is more people not paying taxes in our city," school Director Chris Phillips said....Almost a third of the KOZ requests on council's agenda belong to companies of businessman Louis DeNaples.


In Luzerne County


“What was supposed to be a 10-year program for blighted land is now permanent,” Drew Magill said the program’s expansions and extensions have snowballed.


Wilkes-Barre property owner Walter Griffith said KOZ properties rely on police and other government services without paying for them.

Extension requests include:
• 100 parcels in Wilkes-Barre.
• About 150 acres by the Hazleton Municipal Airport owned by Hazleton.
• 135.12 acres in Nanticoke and Hanover Township.


KOZ's are not the only "revitalization" tool out there. A program called Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance (LERTA) actually makes more sense because a project has to be a going concern.

Then there is just writing off the past due taxes owed.

This is also from 2005


Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tom Leighton said his desk is stacked with developers willing to revitalize the former Old River Road Bakery, Radnor Building on South Washington Street, Academy Street Market and First National Bank building on Public Square. Outstanding taxes are the only obstacle, he said.


So what is happening with those properties?


Many people in Luzerne County have seen their property taxes go through the roof because of the recent reassessment and ask "is this fair?"

Bob Reilly is a used car salesman

This is both funny and infuriating.

From The Lu Lac Political Letter:

For weeks WILK's Steve Corbett had heard rumors that long time Clerk of Courts Robert Reilly was selling cars as a side job at a Wilkes Barre Twp car dealership. Nothing wrong with supplementing your income. We’ve all done that at one time or another. But apparently Reilly was selling cars during the hours he was supposed to be administering the Clerk of Courts office. The intrepid Corbett called the auto lot at 10:26AM and got Reilly on the blower. After a brief conversation, Reilly told the radio host he’d call him on the air at 5:06PM later that afternoon and explain what was going on. Needless to say, the call never came.

He is spending his/our time at Nationwide Car Sales on Mundy St. behind the Mall next to the defunct Ground Round. Go say Hello.

A few year ago I would stop by a local beer distributor on a weekday afternoon to pick up a few adult beverages and spotted Reilly working there.


The subject of work hours has been a hot topic in the Luzerne County Controller race.

At the recent LWV forum at Wilkes University the only Democrat in the race, Bob Morgan, was noncommittal on spending 8 hours a day in the office. “I think we sometimes get too focused on the idea that we’re there from a certain time to a certain time. The reality is: Can you do the job? Do you have the ability to do the job?”

Republican Edd Brominski said he was retired so he had nothing else to do and cited his experience as a Democratic County Commissioner claiming he would be in the office 7Am until 11PM if necessary.

Nanda Palissery said he finds the question about whether or not he will be a full-time controller “offensive” and said he will be in the office when needed.


Water Griffith said he wasn't offended by the question and committed to being in the office 8:30M-4:30PM and later every day. “For $38,000 a year, which is probably double what a normal citizen of this county makes, if I can’t commit to you to be in that office every single hour that you would be in your job, then shame on me.”


Bob Sypniewski also said he will show up for work saying; "You put me there to serve. How dare me then on your time do my business?”

CPA Alice Coffman also wouldn't commit; “Will that mean I’m in that office everyday eight hours? I’m not going to sit here and promise that to you, because I don’t think that that is likely.

Walter sent along this guest post on the subject.






Dear Gort42,



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I would like to write in regarding the story about Bob Reilly " Luzerne County Clerk of Courts" and his ability to have a job as a Automobile salesman in addition to his County Row Office.
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Mr. Reilly is a disgrace to the County Row Officers and the taxpayers for his behavior and he should immediately quit his job as a salesman or County Row Officer. This is the same person that has stated "on the record" that his job requires more money from the taxpayers and he has demonstrated that he isn't even on the job "Full Time". This is the same person that used the County Taxpayers money to fund a lawsuit against the taxpayers to stop the Clerk of Courts budget because it was not enough funds for his office.
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The Luzerne County Courthouse has had its time in the sun for to long for all the wrong reasons, and this is just another case of the abilities of a few, that tarnish the entire beauty of the wonderful building that will be celebrating its 150.year's of existence.
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My time has been spent the past 3 years trying to hold the elected officials of this County accountable to the taxpayers, by attending County Commissioner meetings, and asking for accountability and transparency in government, when all the rest of the candidates that have now come on the scene have been silent.
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The County Commissioners have never held anyone accountable for their abuse of power in government in the past, and I as a taxpayer advocate, have been trying to have them do this since attending the first meeting regarding the issue of the Debit Card abuser's in which I call the "magnificent seven".


The taxpayers of Luzerne County should and must have elected officials that are "Full Time" and should not accept anything less, and this can be accomplished by instituting a policy in personnel that requires everyone to "Log In" and "Log Out" and show mileage for all travel to designate their time out of the office.


I have been asking for the use of a " Badge Scanner" or "time Clock" to verify the attendance of all County Employee's and I feel with the abuse of this type with Mr. Reilly it is long over due for the taxpayers.


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I, as a taxpayer advocate, the past three years in the County, and the past 7 years in the City of Wilkes Barre, have taught me several lessons about our government regarding our Elected Officials like Mr. Reilly and Ms. Moran, as well as a few others, that feel they are above the same rules of employment as the people they supervise, and that is that we, as taxpayers, are always being taken advantage of by a few people in government that can get away with it, and we need people to always be there asking questions and holding our government accountable.
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I, as your taxpayer advocate, have attended the meetings at my own cost, and have been a taxpayer advocate for the taxpayers of Luzerne County on many issues that concern abuse of power by the elected officials. I spoke out for the taxpayers regarding the "Debit Cards" and tried to have the "Abuser's" fired for their actions, however the Commissioners chose to turn their heads and wink and nod at this type of corruption.
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I, as a your taxpayer advocate, represented everyone in the County. at my own cost, regarding the court case to borrow over 16 million dollars because of the Commissioners reckless spending and was successful in having the courts rule in the taxpayers favor to lower that to 5 million.
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The reason for my bringing this to light is because at election time, we always seem to see candidate ask for the taxpayers confidence and vote, and then we never hear from them again after the election. I have demonstrated that I will always be there for the taxpayers "AT MY OWN EXPENSE" because I truly care about them and its not about myself or the money.
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I vow to all the taxpayers that I will be a " FULL TIME" Controller, and that means that I will be in the office at the same times that I expect my staff to be there, and I will lead by example. I will not abuse the taxpayers like Mr. Reilly or Ms. Moran or the others that are pledging to be "FULL TIME" just to get elected and then "Thumb their noses" at the taxpayers once they are elected. I will be the right person for the job and will not pay a vendor for work if they don't follow the contract like what happened with 21st Century and our botched reassessment for the profit of our corrupt officials.
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I would like to conclude by saying that there are several people that are professionals running for public office, and are asking for your support to get the votes required to win the election on May 19th.I would suggest that each taxpayer ask this one very important question on election day and that is " Where were these people that are asking for our vote when we needed them when our elected officials were abusing their power and our money" ?


Walter L Griffith Jr
Candidate for Luzerne County Controller

Bob Sypniewski for Controller-the interview

I met with Luzerne County GOP Controller candidate Bob Sypniewski last Sunday. Bob was born and raised in Wilkes-Barre. He graduated fron GAR High School and attended LCCC. He's another Yankees fan which now seems to be a requirement for the position. He likes the Eagles in the NFL and defying the logic of my world he somehow roots for the Miami Hurricanes in college football.

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Why should you be the next Luzerne County Controller?

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I believe the background that I come from being the 15th of 16 kids and my dad being a Wilkes-Barre police officer for 40 years taught me that hard work and honesty will get you somewhere in life. Today with the corruption going on in Luzerne County I have no ties to anyone and everything I have in life I’ve gotten because of hard work. I believe the qualities I possess and the leadership I possess will change and help the foundation of Luzerne County to head in the right direction. My financial background is 10 plus years running my own business on my own. I believe what I’ve done to help people to buy homes will help to fix the county. The biggest thing is sitting on the county board and seeing the corruption that I saw with this assessment. I fought hard to get on this board to help people lower their taxes, not because I felt sorry for them but it was the right thing to do. One thing I want to talk about is a property being assessed at $125,000 that is right next to the Susquehanna River and our county hired a company that assessed it at $125,000 and we knocked it down to $7,000 because that was were it belonged because the property flooded six months out of the year. I believe my time on the board showed what I can do. I can also bring it to the county as the Controller.

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You mentioned that the last time I heard you speak. Why didn’t you go public with it sooner?

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The reason why I didn’t go public was this. I knew the corruption that was going on in the courthouse and if I went there and said listen, this is what I’m seeing, I know that would have done to me. They would have got me off the board and replaced me with somebody else. You saw when the formal appeals first started, the cries in the newspaper of foul, there weren’t a lot of people on that board that I believe that were really out there helping the people. They made some changes and I sat there quietly and made reductions where I could. And I knew this, if I went to Skrep or Petrilla they would have got me out of there.

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Will you be a full time Controller?

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I will be a full time Controller. Just like when I ran the assessment board, I ran that full time. I put my businesses to the side. I am the only candidate that can say that I took 2 of my business and shut them off from 8 o’clock to 6:30 at night for 4 months. I did that with my business. The proof is in the pudding and my will tell you that, I was gone. What I did for the assessment board in 4 months I can do better as a full time Controller in 4 years.

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I have a couple of questions from some of my helpers. Will you commit to serving no more than 2 terms?

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It’s going to take at least 4 years to get the county courthouse headed in the right direction. I believe 2 terms after that will be enough were I can sit back and ask do I want to further my life as a politician or do I want to sit back. That’s a tough question to answer. I learned in politics very early that you never say never. Right now I’m committed to getting elected for 4 years with the understanding that this is going to take longer than 4 years to clean up. It’s been going on for how many years? So we’re going to put 4 years into this and look into this every time you’re up for reelection.

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The Controller doesn’t have a lot of policy input. Who would you partner with in the county government to help clean things up?

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When I come to office I understand that are positions that I can change immediately. My assistant Controller is going to change immediately, my Solicitor is going to change immediately. I have a list of people from both sides of the aisle that we are going to bring in. I really respect Steve Urban for what he has done in the past, I respect Steve Flood and what he’s done. I don’t believe I’m going to partner with any of our elected officials right this second because I do not know who to trust in there. We need new faces, we need fresh faces. We need people who never worked there before to come in and clean house. At this very moment I’m not willing not commit to working with anyone in that courthouse other than the team of people we’re going to come in with to clean house there.

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So you’re saying that you won’t be a rubber stamp for what has been going on

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Most definitely, it makes sense that when that when a contract is handed to you and not a single Commissioners signature is on it that you don’t make payment on it.

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The Republican Party endorsement went to Nanda Pallisery. How do you feel about that?

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It disappoints me not about the endorsement. It disappoints me that there is 275 committee people and less than 130 even cast a vote. I believe that 29 cast it do not endorse which I believe I take credit for. I was the only candidate out there crying do not endorse, let us all run on our own merits. So if you look at it, Nanda walked away with 40 votes. I don’t know if that is a Republican endorsement or if that is the same old politics endorsement. It doesn’t affect me, what I want is the people’s endorsement. I want their vote to represent them not as a Republican, not as a Democrat Controller but as an independent voice that’s going to bring change.

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You want to add to your earlier comments about reassessment.

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I want to touch base this about this assessment. I didn’t understand as much as I thought I knew until I sat down and realized by helping people through the appeals process and adjust them adjust their home values and saw the hurt that our political people did to our people. It caused me to contact Derrick Williams from Tioga County. People may remember that Tioga County kicked out this same assessment company, Century 21 Appraisals. They got kicked out because of a breach of contract. I spoke to Derrick Williams twice and there is a new report coming out on the 28th that I believe is going to back Tioga County and this is why I stayed private with this because silently I want to put together a majority of people to one day see that we can take what Tioga County did and bring it here to Luzerne County. I believe we need to start all over with this with our own people. In the next coming days you are going to see a press release from the independent arbitrator that was assigned to Tioga’s County dealings. And I believe if you elect me as Controller I will have a bigger say when you look at that actual contract and I think that will be a big key to my race as well. There is only so much you can do as a taxpayer crying foul but there is more you can do as an elected official.

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As Controller you are going to oversee the county’s finances. What experience do you have with government accounting?

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I was a business major in high school. It’s pretty easy, when your debits outweigh your credits you have a problem. When you have a Controller that’s not monitoring statements showing all these debit card purchases coming out and not saying anything that’s a big issue. A lot of it is commonsense thinking first of all. Second of all we are going to bring a good team of people into this. You take the last 10 years of my business and I’m looking at people’s finances. Could they afford this house? Not just based on what is on their credit reports. We are looking at their grocery bills, their utility bills… and in 10 years of helping people buy a home I never had a bank call me back and say you misquoted their budget and now we’re taking this house back and we want our money back that we paid you. So I believe the common sense thinking I bring to it plus the 10 years of helping people with their finances is going to be a huge benefit to the county. But understand this too. I can’t do it on my own, I know I can’t. That’s why the team of people that I bring there is going to be an effort as a team of people that are going to come together to put this in order. It’s not humanly possible to do it alone nor could any other candidate say that. If they did, they are lying to you. I will have a CPA as my assistant Controller and I will have a Solicitor that has the minds, thoughts and interests of the taxpayers in mind. The three of us are going to look at this and get this done right.

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A little nuts and bolts about campaigning. How are you doing on money?

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We just sent out our first fundraising letter about 2 weeks ago. I actually funded most of my campaign right now. I don’t look at it as money today; I’m going door to door. I’m doing the old style politics where I go out and meet the people so they know who I am. We are going to raise some money but not a whole heck of a lot. People are asking me where is your website, where is your signs? I understand that websites and signs don’t get you elected. If people don’t know who I am they are not going to vote for me so I am making more of my efforts in getting out there. But like I said we just put together our first fundraiser and we probably raise about 10 to 20 thousands dollars. That is our expectation on that.

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Do you plan to do any media? Print, radio or TV

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Right now we’re taking advantage of the free press. We sent in a lot of letters to the editor and I will be a frequent caller into the Steve Corbett show as well as Sue Henry and Nancy and Kevin in the Morning. I plan on trying to put together a commercial. Humanly possibly there is no way I can get to the four corners of the county. Maybe a couple of commercials.

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What do you think about Home Rule?

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I’m big supporter of open government. Take Steve Flood for example. When this Juvenile Detention Center was being built wanted a public forum on this and he was chastised for it and then his own party took him out. I don’t know all the policies of Home Rule but from what I understand about it, it’s going to be more of an open government which I stand firm with.

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As far as streamlining the county do you have any ideas? I have been an advocate of getting rid of elections for things like Prothonotary, Jury Commissioner and possibly even Controller if you can up with a different way of doing it.

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I believe in what you just said there. The Controller is a position you need a leader in there and if that is changing hands because of political powers then there is a problem, same thing with Prothonotary. Down the road I believe, hopefully not right now because I’m running for it, those should be positions (not Union positions) that should be full time. Because if you are constantly doing this every 4 years you have to run for reelection so somewhere along the line in that year that you’re running for reelection you’re going to burn yourself out to the point of what’s going to come first and what are you going to walk away from? You are going to walk away from time on the job just so you can be elected again for another 4 year term. So I would agree that somewhere down the road to possibly rewriting the Controllers position, the Prothonotary and also the Jury Commissioner to make them not political seats. And make them full time position not political positions. I’m open to that.

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My observation that some people may not agree with in this economic climate is that the Row Officers and Commissioners are not paid enough.

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If you look at the size of our county and look at some smaller ones, they’re paid more. In my business I actually hired an ex-president of a bank. People say why would an ex-president of a bank work for a 28 year old broker? I paid him well. I realize this, if you pay people well they will be there full time. And you look at what the Commissioner get paid and there is a lot going on. Sometimes they have second jobs so they can actually maintain a life. I believe in time, once we get this in order there should be a pay raise for some of the county officials not because of political purposes. My philosophy is this, pay them right and the job will be done right. If you look at what has been going on in the county, look at the greed.

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Involving some very high paid people

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But the funny this is this, you had 2 Commissioners that had to allow that juvenile detention center to go. Those judges were corrupt but that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about those 2 Commissioners, Greg Skrepenak and Todd Vonderheid, they were the ones that brought this forth. If they had listened to Steve Urban and Steve Flood this would have been thrown out. So when you put people in the Commissioners area make that worth their while to make sure the county is run effectively. I believe a lot of theses deals probably would not have been made. I agree that there should be an increase but also there are some offices that shouldn’t have as much. There is too many chiefs and not enough Indians out there. There is too much manpower in some of the offices in the courthouse that could be let go, we don’t need it. I won’t harp too much on this but if the Assessor’s office had done the job that was required we wouldn’t had to need hire an outside company to reassess our county. I would take a look at the stories I hear about people going out in the field to measure properties, I want to see their work reports. I want to see where they have been. I tell you what, it doesn’t pass my test as far as getting the job done. With an increase to certain positions in the courthouse there could be a huge decrease in personnel. I know it’s not a popular statement and I know a lot of county officials won’t like that but a fact is a fact. There are too many people that work in these offices and there is not enough work to show for it..

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Closing statement

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As I worked hard on the assessment board I saw what the corruption of county politics can do to the hard working people. The people that are trying to make a living but yet our government constantly knocks us back. I worked 4 months for the county people and have been able to decrease thousands of household’s property taxes. I believe if I’m the Controller I can do even more. I could be the inside person for the people in the county courthouse. A lot of people have hammered me because I didn’t come public with this but they have to understand if I went public they would have taken me out and replaced with somebody else. I’m the 15th child out of 16 children grew up in the Wilkes-Barre Heights and I have no political ties and I have no strings attached. I’m going to run this job like I ran my own businesses, it will be full time. It will be with all my heart and soul to get this thing right. I have 3 boys that are counting on me to make this right. Here is a fact, if I don’t get this right my generation of people are moving out, they’re going. My biggest fear is getting a phone call from Harrisburg or Washington, DC saying Luzerne County we’re cutting you off until you get this right. We need to elect a fresh face, someone new with no political ties. There is a debate coming up on the 28th at Wilkes, I encourage people to get down there. I hope they broadcast it. I think this is going to be a great chance to see the differences. Who is going to run that office? Who is going to run it efficiently? Is it going to be an attorney that is running a law firm? Is it going to be the guy that runs the mechanic business? Is it going to be an accountant that already runs a business? I’m the only candidate that has shown that I can work for the county, work for the taxpayers and then do my life second. I’m done it before, give me 4 years so I can prove it.

Luzerne County finances

According to the story in the TL today Luzerne county is less messed up this year than in years past. The county has 'only' has to borrow $17.9 million to make the books balance in 2009. I won't be too hard on the Commissioners about this because it was part of this year's budget. At least they were up front about it. The county took in $1.6 million less than anticipated but spent $5.4 million less than they expected in the first 3 months of 2009. Property tax revenues are up and the the cost of locking up juvenile offenders is down. We we all know why property tax revenue increased (reassessment) and spending on juvenile placements is down (Juvie Brothers).

Luzerne County Home Rule

A crowd of about 50 people attended the Luzerne County Home Rule meeting at the NEPA Organizing Center in Wilkes-Barre tonight.

Luzerne Home Rule Chairman PJ Best (left) gave a tutorial to the candidates running for the Government Study Commission (GSC) on how to file nominating petitions and stressed the importance of electing the right people. He said the the outfit would be working to educate the public about the need for a GSC and a yes vote on the question that will be on the May primary ballot. He promised that all candidates will be given access to the website to post their qualifications and put their video presentations on YouTube. He hopes that an interactive forum can be developed. A voters guide and DVD are in the works and a big fundraiser is being planned for late March/early April.

Some of the prospective GSC candidates then were given an opportunity to address the crowd.

Phil Struzerri warned that there are some people that are running for the GSC with the intention of making sure that Home Rule is scuttled.

Courtdale Mayor James Gaughan is also a high school government teacher who said he always gave his salary back to the town much to chagrin of his wife.

Walter Griffith brought along a copy of the county code from 1955 that is still the governing document and made the obvious point that it is antiquated. To change anything it requires an act of the PA Legislature and we know how quickly those guys act.

Ed Transue is Social Studies teacher who got pissed off over the reassessment when it "made me a millionaire on paper." He stressed that "without integrity you have nothing."

CJ Kersey is a Government teacher at Wyoming Seminary and a volunteer for the Obama campaign who said he will be open minded.

Rick Morelli was a member of the Hazleton Area School Board a few years ago and pointed out that he doesn't have any relatives employed by Luzerne County. He repeated the oft heard phrase government should be run like a business.

Ray Gustove wants better internal financial controls.

Frank Sindaco, the host of the event, explained that he is not a politician but felt compelled to run for the GSC.

Paul Krumbel is a union electrician that was uncomfortable speaking in front of a crowd.

Recent W-B council candidate Pete Gagliardi gave a mercifully short pitch.

Only one woman came forward to volunteer to be a candidate for the GSC and she pointed that out. Meghan Godwin is a philosophy teacher that would give the GSC a different view.

After the program I asked PJ Best who was on the Luzerne County Home Rule Committee and he gave me a vague answer. He named the officers but I neglected to ask who elected them to their positions. I also asked the director of the NEPA Organizing Center who was paying for the place, he told me that it was coming out of his pocket.

Luzerne County Home Rule

PJ Best asked the Commissioners to put the Home Rule question on the ballot this May but Commissioner Chairwoman Maryanne Petrilla said they had to earn it by gathering signatures. “I respect what you’re trying to do. I truly do, and should the voters get the required signatures to have this on the ballot I will stand back and allow the people to speak,” Petrilla said.
“There have been a lot of things going on, and I think the people should have an opportunity to speak and let us know how they want things run because, after all, it’s their money.” Thanks Maryanne, now that you are the top dog it sounds as if you like the way things are being run.

Republican Steve Urban said he had no problem putting the question on the ballot. The last time it was put to a vote both parties opposed the plan with Democrats saying things are fine the way they are because they win most of the elections but the Republicans reason was downright funny. They were afraid they would lose the only office they are guaranteed to win, minority commissioner.

Minority Commissioner Greg Skrepenak said he opposed home rule in the past but is open to the possibility, though he needs a few days to mull the issue before Wednesday’s regular meeting. When the question was on the ballot in 2003 Skrep and his fellow Bond Brother Todd Vonderheid said it wasn't necessary because the problem wasn't the the system but the people in charge. 'Trust us' he said. That worked out well. Skrep has been playing to the gallery over reassessment and even defending the Judges in the budget dispute and every Commissioner's meeting is an exchange of insults with Petrilla. Here is his chance to turn the tables and vote with Urban to put the question on the ballot.

Plus ca change, Luzerne County 2009

Luzerne County is a place that never fully recovered from the Great Depression and the collapse of the coal industry. The "best" redevelopment project was the 1972 Agnes flood that destroyed downtown Wilkes-Barre and drove people to the mall. The way people talked for a long time made me feel like I was living in the time of Noah. Before the flood, after the flood. And the political reforms of the 1890's have yet to hit.

The Chamber of Commerce touts our work ethic which usually translates into we will do the same work for less money. Every politician that runs for office promises "good paying jobs" that never show up. Our local taxing authorities give 10 year property tax breaks to warehouses that pay $8 an hour while the rest of us are getting screwed by reassessment.

There are a myriad of investigations into the debits cards, no bid contracts, the Judges business dealings, violation of civil rights, etc. but I think nothing will become of them. I hope I'm wrong.

There will be elections for the row offices this year that the Democrats will probably sweep again. There is a rumor that Ann Lokuta is running for Prothonatary after being removed from the bench. If it is true it will be the most entertaining race of the primary and the fall if she wins the nomination. The question is what party's nomination will she seek? Incumbent Jill Moran has many things to explain like her deputy signing her name to legal documents, falsifying a tax lien for her boss and her involvement in W-Cat Inc.


The Controller's spot is the most important post up for election. Acting Controller A.J. Martinelli will not seek election. W-B activist Walter Griffith has expressed interest and just to give everybody a laugh Pittston's Wil Toole wants the job. Maybe if he get's elected he can sue the county for overtime and health benefits. Bob Sypniewski seems to be the only serious candidate for the job.


We need Home Rule

Luzerne County Controller

Acting Controller A.J. Martinelli has put 21st Century Appraisals on notice that the reassessment gravy train has limits.

TL: “Therefore, I am placing you on notice that as a supervisor of the fiscal affairs of the county, I will not pay any bills for any unauthorized and unwanted services that you force upon the county, for the reasons stated in this letter.”

Commissioner Maryanne Petrilla was the the previous Controller replacing Steve Flood who asked a lot of of uncomfortable questions about the PA Child Care lease and other things. There is no way to tell but I think the debit card scandal and the no bid contracts at the prison would have come to light earlier if Flood had a 2nd term.


Governor Rendell was supposed to appoint a new Controller with the consent of the State Senate but he punted. A couple of people applied for the job but they were ignored. Former Wyoming Valley West School District superintendent Augie Piazza wanted the post but I haven't heard if he is running next year. PittstonPolitics reports that former Pittston Area School Director Tony Rostock has been shaking the bushes and a potential rival let everybody know that he got a $30,000 no bid contract at LCCC. That potential rival is Wil Toole.

Wil Toole wanting to be a fiscal watchdog has to one of the funniest things I've ever heard. He charged thousands of hours of overtime to Pittston City and is now suing because he contends that the city should pay for his wife's health insurance indefinitely. He is good at lawsuits.

Piazza, Rostock and Toole are all Democrats.

I think we need a Controller from the other party. The Dems have been in charge for too long and have become arrogant and reckless although Petrilla and her new BFF Steve Urban is trying to right the ship.

The only Republican name that I have heard that is willing to take a stab at running for Controller is Bob Sypniewski. We have a draft Bob movement going on in the comments but he is reluctant to make the run so let's encourage him.


Update from the inbox:

Dear Gort,

I am also contemplating a run for the Luzerne County Controller Position...I am a republican that really cares about the lack of accountability of our elected officials and will work hard for the Taxpayers of Luzerne County...

Walter L Griffith JR
Luzerne County Taxpayer and Activist

Skrep is feeling lonely

“I don’t think it’s a secret that my party has abandoned me, but I still have a large following – a following that asks me every day for direction. I want to provide them with that direction.”-Luzerne County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak

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Poor Skrep. He continues sniping with fellow Democratic Commissioner Maryanne Petrilla and his pals Sam Guesto, Sam Diaz and Todd Vonderheid have moved on. And I doubt if he exchanges Christmas cards with Steve Urban. Now he says that County Democratic Chairman Mark Bufalino isn't talking to him and he's not being invited to Obama campaign events. Bufalino and the Obama camp both dispute that claim.

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I'm not sure what he means about that large following. The way he's been talking about reassessment he might be angling to be the next Mayor of Harveys Lake.

Luzerne County reassessment

Lawyers, lawyers everywhere and ...............they will make money.


Reassessment opponents to hire lawyer


Pa. court weighs state's property tax assessments


They may tie it up for a while but in the end we will pay more in property taxes and the esquires will be better off.

I paid our property taxes today and we got a $211 reduction from the slots revenue. That is good but why is only half of this money is dedicated to property tax relief? The other half is to go to "economic development projects" that the rest of us call Corporate Welfare.

Some examples:

The new hockey arena in Pittsburgh

A fantasy Airport in Hazleton

Part of the money is "EARMARKED" to help the host towns deal with the problems that arise from having one of these money pits such as traffic control, wear and tear on the roads plus the anticipated increase in crime. From what I see the Mohegan Sun Casino hasn't had many negative effects on my little hamlet of Plains Township. We have actually benefited from the place because more than 20 streets have been paved since the cash started flowing in. The best benefit for me and my neighbors is that the cost of a case of trash bags was reduced from $75 for a case of 50 to $25.


Thanks Suckers

Reassessment in Luzerne County gets ugly

Gun threat brings police

Nobody wants to pay more property taxes but you have to keep your emotions in check and not make threats. But the opposition keeps being stoked by the downtrodden people at Harveys Lake and some radio talk show hosts.

From the inbox.

Your House As Seen By:

Yourself...

Your Buyer...

Your Lender...

Your Appraiser...

Your LUZERNE County Tax Assessor...

Reassessment in Luzerne County going forward

Commissioner Greg Skrepenak has been playing to the crowd proposing the reassessment of properties in the county be stopped. Commissioners Chairwoman Maryanne Petrilla and Commissioner Stephen A. Urban want the process to play out and Skrep's motion to stop it was ignored.

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NANTICOKE -"Motion dies. Move on please," Petrilla said.

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I checked out the protest Monday at the courthouse led by Michelle Boice from Harveys Lake and I always enjoy being in the company of my fellows citizens that petition their government for the redress of grievances. There was a lot of sloganeering including chants of "One term Petrilla" and "Pack your bags Urban."

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My view is that you can't throw out a 2 year process that cost over $8 million. Fix the mistakes and move on.

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Some other locals have a similar view:

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Political Rants-Luzerne County Reassessment and a True Democrat

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Wilkes-Barre Online-Harveys Lake 1965

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The Lu Lac Political Letter

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I have more protest pics at my Facebook account.

Another deficit in Luzerne County

$10M county deficit projected

The Commissioners haven't been able to balance the budget for as long as I can remember. They always invent revenues and understate expenses. No wonder people who have seen their property values inflated by reassessment are pissed off.

Protest over Reassessment

The Pink Pig will be at the Luzerne County courthouse tomorrow along with the hoards that Michelle Boice will be bringing.

The festivities start at Noon.

Harveys Lake wants to secede

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Harveys Lake has always been a swanky address with many very nice homes. Even Dan Meuser bought a voting address there. Like many of us who have been paying less property taxes than we should have for years the residents of the borough are dealing with sticker shock resulting from the first reassessment since 1965 and they don't like it. With some exceptions I feel if that if you can afford a house at the "lake" you should be able to pay the taxes.

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From the CV: The Pennsylvania Constitution says, “The electors of any municipality shall have the right, by initiative and referendum, to consolidate, merge and change boundaries by a majority vote of those voting thereon in each municipality, without the approval of any governing body.”

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I've never heard of a town switching counties.

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TL: State Rep. Karen Boback, who serves Harveys Lake and portions of Luzerne and Wyoming counties, said Kelly asked her to look into the legalities. She said she couldn’t find anything on topic.
“That’s something the law doesn’t directly address,” she said.

Reassessment in Luzerne County

We got our notices and I just about fell over. The taxes on our home are estimated to triple and our rental properties will double. I've known for a long time that we have been paying less than we should since the value formula dates back to 1965 but that's a little hard to take.

The market values they assigned to our properties are in line with the appraisals I had done a few years ago when I was was doing one of my wrap around financing deals so I don't think I have good grounds to appeal. I did find a one mistake in that one side of the the double block we own was valued higher than the other by a few thousand dollars and they are mirror images. I may ask for an informal review but they may just say I'm right and raise the value of the lesser side.

The thing I don't understand is how they translated the values into taxes since the notice doesn't break down township, county and school taxes. Are they using the same millage? According to this story in the TL: County officials said millage rates must drop dramatically when the new assessed values take effect next year. That goes for school districts, the county and municipalities.
For example, the county millage, currently at 94.9 mills, is expected to drop to about 5 mills after the reassessment. A mill is $1 tax for every $1,000 in assessed property. That means someone with a home worth $150,000 after reassessment would pay $750 in county taxes at 5 mills.

When I did some quick math that makes a big difference and shows we may not get whacked as bad as the notice says. I haven't decided what to do about this, if anything.

The Yonk responded to my blogger call to swarm about this subject which I wasn't able to do yesterday as did Mark.

Earlier some of our local scribes sounded off on this subject:

Zen-Why hasn't anybody asked the question?

NEPALibWatch-Welcome to Luzerne County, bend over please.

Politics in Northeast Pennsylvania -Reassessment Botched?


A common theme of my fellow bloggers is that we just don't trust anything that the county does. We're willing to pay our fair share but will everyone else?