News

December 23, 2009

Commissioner to be selected today

Luzerne County jurists plan to interview and name 3rd board member to replace Skrepenak.

By Jennifer Learn-Andes jandes@timesleader.com
Luzerne County Reporter
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Luzerne County judges will split into three groups today to conduct initial interviews of all applicants for the vacant county commissioner seat, county President Judge Chester Muroski said Tuesday.

All seven judges will then interview the applicants who make the cut, he said.

Muroski did not know how many each panel will select, but suggested it will be about five each, or around 15.

The judges will then deliberate and vote by secret ballot.

The applicant with the most votes will win the seat. There is no requirement that the applicant receive a majority vote, Muroski said.

For example, one person could receive two votes while five other contenders each receive a single vote. The person with two votes would win the seat, Muroski said.

If there is a tie – two people receiving three votes each and a third person receiving one – the person with one vote will be eliminated, Muroski said. Judges will then revote on the other two until someone prevails.

All interviews will be conducted in public, and judges don’t plan to leave the courthouse tonight until they choose a replacement. The judges have more time but want the new commissioner to be briefed before voting on the county budget Dec. 30.

Sixty-eight people applied for the seat vacated by Greg Skrepenak’s resignation, though applicant James Desiderio withdrew Tuesday, citing an unforeseen medical condition.

To get an interview, applicants must survive any court challenges to the eligibility of their 10 signatures of registered voters and clear a county election bureau verification that they were registered Democrats in 2007.

The law requires that the replacement be registered to the same political party as the person leaving the seat. Eligibility objections must be filed before 10 a.m. today and will be heard before the interviews commence.

Names will be picked from a container to assign applicants to one of the three interview panels, Muroski said.

Applicants may not be in the courtroom while others are being interviewed so nobody has an unfair advantage, Muroski said.

Contenders who survive the first level won’t advance to interviews in front of all judges unless they sign waivers authorizing the county to conduct a background check, Muroski said.

A county detective has been assigned to complete the background checks before the judges vote, so there is no chance that judges will choose someone with a criminal record, Muroski said.

A Times Leader records check through the Luzerne County Clerk of Courts Office on the applicants showed no serious felonies or misdemeanors.

The following judges will be voting: Muroski, Joseph Augello, David Lupas, Hugh Mundy, Peter Paul Olszewski Jr., Thomas Burke and Joseph Musto.

The chosen applicant won’t be immediately sworn in because he or she must get bonded to serve in public office and pass a criminal background check, Muroski said.

The seat is open because Skrepenak resigned Thursday and was charged Friday by the U.S. Attorney’s Office with accepting a bribe as part of the ongoing county corruption probe.

Judges won’t consider applicants who have already taken a stance for or against tax increases because the judges don’t want to be accused of choosing someone based on their willingness to raise taxes and avoid further court layoffs.

Democratic Commissioner Chairwoman Maryanne Petrilla and Republican minority Commissioner Stephen A. Urban have approved a proposed budget that raises taxes 18.5 percent, but Urban made it clear that he doesn’t support a tax increase and wouldn’t give Petrilla a second vote on Dec. 30 without further deep cuts.

Though Petrilla and Urban say they are working on a compromise, Skrepenak’s replacement may end up deciding whether a budget passes or fails. If commissioners can’t reach an agreement on the budget and tax rate by the end of the year, the tax rate will automatically stay the same, leaving no options but slashing expenses to close any remaining deficit, officials say.

The new commissioner will serve through December 2011, which is the remainder of Skrepenak’s term.

Commissioners are paid $42,000 per year and are entitled to county health insurance coverage.

Staff writers Terrie Morgan-Besecker and Ed Lewis contributed to this report.

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