W-b Man 
Found Guilty 
In Sex Case

Annette Meil 
Nov. 29, 1992 
Annette Meil, 72, Of City Line Avenue, Phoenixville, Died Sunday In Stanford 
Hospital, Stanford, Calif.

By JIM VAN NOSTRAND; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Thursday, December 03, 1992 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1D QUICK WORDS: LUZERNE COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS 





WILKES-BARRE -- The Luzerne County commissioners unanimously resolved
Wednesday to reject the idea of merging the county's pension fund into a
statewide system. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The resolution opposes a recent study released by the Public Employee
Retirement Commission in Harrisburg, which recommends establishing one
statewide retirement system for all local government employees. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The study includes a draft bill that could be introduced when the
legislature reconvenes. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Commissioners Frank Crossin, Rose Tucker and Jim Phillips all lauded the
fiscal stability of the county's pension fund, which serves 560 retirees and
has a balance of $74 million. Employees can contribute 5 to 15 percent of
their pay and retire after 10 years or at age 65. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The fund has been fully funded for six years, meaning the county
contributes no money to subsidize it. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "No way are we going to be any part of that," controller Joseph Tirpak said
of the merger proposal. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Tirpak said a 3-percent cost of living increase for county retirees will
take effect in January, and this is the 20th straight year the county has
granted increases. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The public employee commission's study calls the structure of
Pennsylvania's 2,600 local government retirement systems "deficient," and
contends merging them into one system could save more than $62 million
annually while providing improved benefits for many employees. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The study shows more than two-thirds of those 2,600 systems have fewer than
10 active members. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The commissioners' resolution says while many retirement systems do have
problems, those problems do not exist in Luzerne County. They said the county
should not be mandated to participate and that it should be optional on a
county-by-county basis. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The proposed bill would phase in the new system over 20 to 30 years by
mandating participation only for newly hired employees, while providing
incentives for counties and current employees to join in. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Pennsylvania State Association of County Commissioners has not yet
taken a position on the issue. However, deputy director Nancy Rorem said the
organization probably will oppose it and lobby against it in the legislature. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 All the county retirement systems are fully funded, Rorem said.
Commissioners fear the loss of local control and the rate of return on
investments should a merger take place. They're also worried about whether
their money will be invested out of state or in ventures they don't agree
with. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Our major concern is that our systems are working well right now ... we're
not really anxious to change," she said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They're just worried that someone is going to take their money, and I
think that's a legitimate concern," Rorem said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In other business, the commissioners: &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Appointed Peter C. Dougherty, Mountaintop, as a Community Development
fiscal technician at $19,000 per year. He is the brother-in-law of former
county commissioner Frank Trinisewski. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Appointed Ellen K. Torbik, Wilkes-Barre, as a Community Development
clerk/typist at $13,000 per year. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Ratified a $3.2 million one-year contract with Coordinated Child Care of
Northeastern Pennsylvania Inc. for child day care services for the Office of
Human Services. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Approved a $20,532 contract with Paraclete and Associates for a study of
the Mental Health/Mental Retardation system. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Appointed LeDonne Kelly, Wyoming, as a Children and Youth Services
caseworker at an annual salary of $18,375. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Appointed John Humble, Wilkes-Barre, as a per diem driver in the
Luzerne/Wyoming Counties Transportation Department at $40 per day. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Appointed Lisa Balestrini, Wilkes-Barre, as activity director at Valley
Crest Nursing Home. No salary was listed. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Appointed the following as certified nurses aides at Valley Crest at
$12,000 or $12,312 per year: Thomas Roman, Nanticoke; Nancy Rawls, Luzerne;
Martha Boyle, Mountaintop; Beth Meehan, Wilkes-Barre; Tina Major, Dallas;
Shelia Burrier, Warrior Run; Brenda Precha, Plymouth; Joann Ginder, Kingston;
and Sean Rogers, Pittston.

County Rejects State Pension Idea Luzerne County Commissioners Tell The State To Keep Its Hands Off The County Pension Fund