The new Compressed Natural Gas Bus in use by the Luzerne County Transportation Authority. Times Leader file photo
                                A Luzerne County Transportation Authotity bus is seen at the agency’s Kingston garage in this file photo. After contemplating criticism from Luzerne County officials, authority board members have decided to stop accepting life insurance.
                                 Times Leader file photo

The new Compressed Natural Gas Bus in use by the Luzerne County Transportation Authority. Times Leader file photo

A Luzerne County Transportation Authotity bus is seen at the agency’s Kingston garage in this file photo. After contemplating criticism from Luzerne County officials, authority board members have decided to stop accepting life insurance.

Times Leader file photo

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After contemplating criticism from Luzerne County officials, county Transportation Authority board members have decided to stop accepting life insurance.

“We were not doing anything wrong, but we felt ethically we did not become authority board members to get life insurance,” board Chairman Charles Sciandra said Wednesday. “We also did not want to be a burden to taxpayers.”

The authority established life insurance for its board members more than three decades ago because the coverage is permitted under the state’s Municipal Authorities Act. As another example, the neighboring County of Lackawanna Transit System, known as COLTS, provides life insurance to its board members, Sciandra said.

County Councilman Walter Griffith discovered the life insurance while reviewing an authority audit and publicly revealed his finding in January. Council appoints authority board members, and Griffith and his colleagues argued such perks go against the spirit of the county’s home rule government.

The authority board unanimously voted on the life insurance rescinding Tuesday night, and Griffith announced the decision at council’s meeting that evening.

“Kudos to them,” Griffith said.

Griffith commended the authority for acting on council’s concerns. He stressed the board members did not do anything “nefarious or illegal” because the life insurance was allowable under state law.

The transportation authority’s vote ends life insurance for its sitting and future board members, Sciandra said.

The authority had said it spends approximately $3,400 on the board member life insurance annually — $2,600 to provide $45,000 basic term policies for the entire nine-member board and about $800 for 14 prior members to receive $10,000 policies.

Ten or 11 past authority board members are still receiving the insurance, Sciandra said. The authority solicitor is in the process of discussing potential changes with these prior members that may be discussed at the authority’s April board meeting, he said.

Sciandra said he had no idea life insurance was offered when he applied for an unpaid seat on the authority board and said he is confident his fellow board members also sought seats as a public service.

“I got on the board to use my business acumen to help the authority,” he said.

Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.