web1_WB-fire-1943.jpg

Look back: 27 firefighters injured battling massive 1943 blaze

web1_McAlarney.cmyk_.jpg

Taking Back the Streets: Hazleton lawman recalls being shot in line of duty

<p>Wages for Luzerne County&#8217;s information technology department rose from $256,000 to $358,080 in the proposed 2019 budget, largely due to the addition of two new positions this year.</p><p>But county Information Technology Director Mauro DiMauro told council during his recent budget presentation he is confident the additional cost will be recouped through higher reimbursement and savings from performing more work in-house.</p><p>One of the additional positions focuses on technology work in human services that will be covered by outside state funding and other revenue sources, DiMauro said.</p><p>Spending on outside contractual services has been reduced $11,000, for a new total $126,000 next year, the proposed budget shows.</p><p>Overall, the department expects to bring in $325,500 in 2019, which is an increase of $71,500, while total expenses are proposed at $1.3 million, or $51,475 more, the budget shows.</p><p>With the two new positions, the department now has seven staffers.</p><p><strong>Licensing</strong></p><p>The county&#8217;s two-employee licensing department continues to generate a small net revenue, the proposed budget shows.</p><p>Receipts are budgeted at the same $78,135 in 2019, while expenses are proposed at $68,808, which is a $2,000 increase.</p><p>The revenue sources, all unchanged from this year, come from fees or commissions for issuing licenses, including the following:</p><p>&#8226; Bingo (annual and three-day): $4,125</p><p>&#8226; Small games of chance (annual and short-term) and special raffles: $29,250</p><p>&#8226; Dog: $34,000</p><p>&#8226; Hunting: $10,500</p><p><strong>New fiscal position</strong></p><p>A $38,000 fiscal supervisor position was created in the Judicial Services and Records Division this year, division head Joan Hoggarth told council during her recent budget presentation.</p><p>The position was warranted, Hoggarth said, because the division had no fiscal staff and collects an average $15 million each quarter. This money must be disbursed to the county, school districts, municipalities, the state and other entities, she said.</p><p>The division includes offices that handle deeds, wills, sheriff sales, civil and criminal court filings.</p><p>Division spending is budgeted at $4.88 million, or an increase of $230,254.</p><p>Overall, the division&#8217;s proposed revenue is $4.77 million in 2019, which is a decrease of $25,652. However, the administration plans to add more revenue from court branches to cover the cost of two new sheriff deputy positions already factored in on the spending side.</p><p><strong>Financial oversight</strong></p><p>Councilwoman Linda McClosky Houck recently proposed the county start requiring the new judicial services fiscal supervisor and all other fiscal staff throughout the county to report directly to the county&#8217;s budget/finance division.</p><p>McClosky Houck said the county&#8217;s switch to home rule government was supposed to simplify and strengthen the management of funds and prevent &#8220;separate kingdoms.&#8221; Fiscal workers could still be specialized based on their department assignment, but they may find more guidance and support by reporting to budget/finance professionals, she said.</p><p>County Manager C. David Pedri said he believes the idea is &#8220;worth looking at.&#8221; He said he instituted a similar policy by expanding a human services fiscal position to oversee financial staff in all human services departments. He noted all fiscal employees work with budget/finance, regardless of their department.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;ll talk about it internally and let you know,&#8221; Pedri told council.</p><p>In a follow-up move, McClosky Houck has proposed a resolution for discussion at council&#8217;s Nov. 27 work session that would align all financial positions under the budget/finance division.</p><style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/web1_web1_luzerne-county-courthouse-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Luzerne County Courthouse </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/web1_web1_luzerne-county-courthouse-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Luzerne County Courthouse </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Staff added in some Luzerne County departments this year