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Times Leader P.M. Update: Sunday, Dec. 20

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The Luzerne County election director opening created by Shelby Watchilla&rsquo;s recent resignation has been publicly advertised.
				Information is posted under the career openings section of the human resources department page at <a href="https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/luzernecounty?page=2" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">luzernecounty.org</a>.
				As previously communicated to county council, county Manager C. David Pedri has listed a salary range between $59,000 and $64,500.
				The position requires a high school diploma with some post-secondary education and the following: four years of proven elections management experience, two years of supervisory experience in an elections bureau environment that includes direct experience with electronic voting machines or any equivalent combination of experience and/or training, the posing says.
				Resumes are due Dec. 31.
				Watchilla is leaving the position, effective Dec. 25, because she has accepted a job in the private sector. A county employee since 2015, she had been promoted to the position at $64,500 a year ago.
				County Administrative Services Division Head David Parsnik will oversee election bureau operations until a new election executive director is hired, Pedri has said.
				Election board role
				As with other election director appointments, Pedri said he also will seek input from the entire five-member volunteer citizen county election board before he offers the job to an applicant.
				He also informed the board last week he would like a member of the board to join him on the interview panel for the top three candidates, with interviews likely to occur in early January.
				In an email exchange, election board member Joyce Dombroski-Gebhardt said the election board should meet to vote on which board member will represent the board in the interviews.
				County Councilman Walter Griffith replied to her email, asserting &ldquo;the entire board should be part of the interview process at a public meeting.&rdquo;
				No applicants for county election director (or other department-level managers) had been publicly interviewed in the past.
				Election board member Audrey Serniak weighed in, saying she is &ldquo;not convinced&rdquo; adding four more people to the interview panel would improve the process and said a public interview could turn it into a &ldquo;free-for-all&rdquo; that should be avoided.
				&ldquo;Well said Audrey!,&rdquo; replied election board Chairwoman Jeanette Tait.
				Annual forum
				Pedri will hold his annual public forum virtually at 5 p.m. Monday.
				The manager must provide the annual update and receive public feedback or questions under the home rule charter that took effect in January 2012.
				Instructions on attending are posted under the calendar on the main page at <a href="https://www.luzernecounty.org/Calendar.aspx?EID=1277" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">luzernecounty.org</a>.
				Solid waste
				The county&rsquo;s Solid Waste Advisory Committee will meet virtually at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, with a link to attend also posted under the calendar at luzernecounty.org.
				This committee is related to the county&rsquo;s requirement to adopt a solid waste management plan every 10 years.
				The plan designates specific disposal facilities to be used for the disposal of all municipal solid waste collected in the county and penalties for haulers collecting municipal solid waste that unload at facilities not specified in the plan, according to the agenda.

Luzerne County advertises election director position