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Institute Insights: Remembering, honoring those who came before

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Their view: GOP hopes for happy holidays get Trumped

Luzerne County voters will have an opportunity to learn more about all 11 county council candidates at a Thursday night forum in Wilkes-Barre.The Wilkes-Barre Area League of Women Voters is sponsoring the forum from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church, 97 S. Franklin St.After providing an opportunity for candidates to introduce themselves and present their qualifications, a League moderator will ask questions on various issues facing the county.Council contendersSix of 11 council seats are up for grabs in the Nov. 5 general election.The Democratic contenders: Patrick Bilbow, Tim McGinley, Anup Patel, Robert Schnee, Joseph C. Sebastianelli and Jane Walsh Waitkus.The Republican candidates: Walter Griffith, LeeAnn McDermott, Kendra Radle, Stephen J. Urban and Gregory Wolovich. Schnee also received a Republican, write-in nomination.Voters are free to pick six council candidates from any political party in the general.McGinley, Schnee and Walsh Waitkus are incumbents. Bilbow also serves on council in a seat vacated by Edward Brominski.Tuesday meetingCouncil will hold a public hearing on the proposed 2020 budget at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday as part of its on-the-road meeting at the Hazle Township municipal building, 101 W. 27th Street.The budget includes a proposed 5 percent real estate tax hike.After a 6 p.m. meeting and work session, council will review the proposed budgets for two divisions &#8212; law and budget/finance.The law division, which includes solicitors and conflict counsel, is budgeted at $2.3 million, or $116,000 more, in county Manager C. David Pedri&#8217;s proposal.Budget/finance &#8212; which covers tax collection, property assessment and the treasurer&#8217;s office &#8212; is proposed at $3.28 million, or $128,650 more.The proposed budget is posted at <a href="https://pa-luzernecounty.civicplus.com/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/889" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">www.luzernecounty.org</a>.Legal settlementsOne issue debated in the law division during last year&#8217;s budget discussions was the amount of money that should be earmarked for special legal services.This budget line covers litigation settlements and outside legal counsel fees that fall within the county&#8217;s insurance deductibles.After spending $671,000 in 2018, the administration had requested $675,000 for 2019.A council majority had accepted council Chairman Tim McGinley&#8217;s suggestion to lower the allocation to $600,000, rejecting a proposal from Councilman Harry Haas to cut deeper and provide $175,000.County Manager C. David Pedri&#8217;s proposed 2020 budget seeks $590,000, or a reduction of $10,000.As of the end of September this year, $413,200 has been spent.RaisesDuring last week&#8217;s 2020 budget unveiling, Pedri said he was again seeking funding for non-union raises based on job performance.&#8220;I found this to be an excellent motivator,&#8221; he said of the raises.He is requesting $111,450 for non-union raises in the departments under his control, which would equate to 2 percent increases. However, he stressed the percentages are discretionary and that some employees will receive a &#8220;high increase&#8221; while others will receive nothing.In 2019, Pedri ended up granting increases ranging from 1 to 3 percent to 130 employees at a cost of $176,268, or $22,563 less than allocated.<style>
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<div class="neCaption">Luzerne County Courthouse </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/web1_web1_luzerne-county-courthouse-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Luzerne County Courthouse </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Jennifer Learn-Andesjandes@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</shirttailMeta></div>

Luzerne County Notebook: Council contenders to present views