Wilkes-Barre City Council mulls possible changes for hiring of police officers

WILKES-BARRE — City Council at Tuesday’s work session discussed possible changes to the rules and regulations for hiring police officers as an emergency measure to fill 12 vacant spots on the force.

Wilkes-Barre Police Chief Joseph Coffay explained the amendment would allow the department to create a non-competitive list of applicants who are already Act 120 certified, which is required for all municipal police officers in the state.

Applicants would have to be certified by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania under the Municipal Police Officer Education and Training Program or must be certified by another state whose certification is recognized by Pennsylvania or have successfully completed Act 120 qualification training and be able to obtain Pennsylvania municipal police officer certification.

Applicants would then be able to bypass the psychological and physical agility part of the civil service test because they’ve already gone through that process during Act 120 certification.

This would streamline the hiring process, Coffay said, and allow the department to get officers out onto the street in a more timely matter. The training and certification process for applicants from the current competitive civil service list usually takes about a year.

Applicants would still have to go through an interview process with the Civil Service Commission as well as a thorough background check, which includes consideration of prior employment, relevant education, prior experience and character.

Other municipalities in the region have made similar amendments including Reading, Allentown and Hazleton.

Those who are not Act 120 certified will still be allowed to apply to the department. The amendment will essentially create two lists to choose from when hiring in order to fill vacancies faster.

Coffay said the department, like many departments across the state, has struggled in recent years to keep up with hiring demands.

“Over the past several years, in our attempt to fill positions within the police department, we’ve had numerous retirements,” he explained, adding that the department has also seen a decrease in applicants.

Because this is considered an emergency measure, Coffay said the department will revert back to normal Civil Service Commission hiring procedures once the department reaches full complement.

Council Member Jessica McClay questioned whether the police union was aware of the proposed changes and Coffay said it was.

In other business

Also at the work session, Mayor George Brown’s agenda included discussion on three applications for Statewide Local Share Assessment grants, including one for $500,000 for the purchase of 2 new 2025 cab and chassis refuse trucks, one for $587,435.00 for phase 2 of King’s College Safety and Security Project and $110,772.00 for an HVAC replacement project at the Domestic Violence Service Center.

King’s College President Rev. Thomas Looney explained to council that phase 2 will be the final phase of the project.

“One of the things that you’ll see is there’s a need for other lighting to help other angles of the campus and an external community. So, one of the issues that’s here is that the pole size isn’t tall enough for the angle of the lighting to secure broader kind of lighting and security across campus,” Looney said.

Marsha Pigga, executive director of the Domestic Violence Service Center, explained the need for a new HVAC system to replace one that is 26 years old.

“Recently we had three of the units break and it was leaking carbon monoxide into the building,” Pigga said. “We’ve had a significant mold issue we’ve had to have rectified recently too.”

Enhancing air filtration in the building would help keep the staff and survivors, as well as children and babies, safe and in a healthy environment.

According to Pigga, the center currently has 36 employees, and 90 beds that are nearly full. The center helps over 2,000 people a year.

All of the above will be put to a vote at Thursday’s meeting at 6 p.m. Council will also vote on Mayor Brown’s proposed 2025 budget, which contains no tax or fee increases.

The spending plan, including revenue and expenditures, totals $58.46 million, which represents a 7.7% increase from this year’s budget of $54.25 million.

There will be a budget hearing at 5 p.m. Thursday so council can hear input on the plan ahead of the 6 p.m. meeting.