News

August 18, 2009

Exeter Twp. eyes joining partnership

Municipality approaches Back Mountain group to improve chances of receiving grants.

By Sarah Hite shite@timesleader.com
Staff Writer
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DALLAS TWP. – An official from Exeter Township asked members of the Back Mountain Community Partnership on Monday if the township could join the intermunicipal group.

The partnership is composed of Dallas, Franklin, Jackson, Kingston and Lehman townships and Dallas Borough. Members met publicly for the first time in June.

Donald Hoffman, who is chairman of the Exeter Township supervisors, says he came to the meeting to take information back to the other supervisors in his township.

“We have a hard time getting grants and surviving, really,” Hoffman said.

Joseph Chacke, of the NEPA Alliance, says the partnership’s articles of agreement would permit Exeter Township to join, even though it is not in the Back Mountain area, as long as a majority of the partnership’s representatives approve it. Chacke says school districts are also eligible to take part.

Al Fox, president of the partnership, asked Hoffman to submit a letter of interest in joining the partnership on behalf of Exeter Township. Fox said the partnership would discuss the matter at their September meeting.

In other business, several member municipalities of the partnership collaboratively applied for two separate DEP Energy Conservation Grants through the Pennsylvania Conservation Works Recovery Grant Program.

According to Chacke, Kingston and Jackson townships and Dallas Borough applied for money for solar panels. Kingston and Lehman townships and Dallas Borough applied for funding for energy efficiency upgrades.

Chacke says the municipalities applied for about $750,000 total. More than 400 applications were submitted across the state for $22.2 million available.

The partnership is considering jointly applying for additional grant money to be used to purchase tasers for Back Mountain police departments. Partnership representatives say Kingston Township police have two tasers and Dallas Township police have 10 of the stun devices.

If the partnership were to apply for funding, Chacke says, each municipality would need to adopt a taser policy if it does not already have one. In addition, officers would have to complete special taser training.

Partnership members say they could also save money because some Back Mountain police officers are already trained in tasers and are able to train other officers.

The partnership also passed a resolution for each member municipality to appoint the same delegate and alternate delegate to the Luzerne County Tax Collection Committee. Mark Van Etten, of Misericordia University, will serve as the delegate to the committee and Karen Rose, tax collector for Kingston Township, will serve as the alternate delegate.

State Act 32 amended the Local Tax Enabling Act to require the collection of earned income tax on a countywide basis. Having the same delegates for all six municipalities will provide greater voting power on the committee.

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