Click here to subscribe today or Login.
Luzerne County Council members will be in a unique situation picking the next county manager because they have to sit back and allow an outside committee handle the search, screening and initial interviews.
Council won’t start reviewing applicants until this search committee recommends the candidates it believes are the most qualified, the home rule charter says.
Three council members — Tim McGinley, Edward Brominski and Jim Bobeck — met Tuesday to finalize a proposed plan to set up this influential outside search committee. Their proposal will be presented to the full 11-member council for its consideration next week.
A search committee may be needed because Manager Robert Lawton has applied for several positions in other states in recent months and was scheduled to interview Thursday for an administrator position in Cochise County, Arizona, where he is one of two finalists under consideration.
A plan for the search committee isn’t in place because a different approach was used when Lawton was hired as the first permanent manager shortly after home rule took effect in January 2012. Back then, the first 11 council members elected in November 2011 joined a transition committee that ranked the 72 manager applicants and interviewed the top 10.
McGinley, Brominski and Bobeck settled on the following details Tuesday:
• Number of search committee members: The charter says at least three people must be on the committee.
The group agreed up to five members may be selected, though three would be sufficient.
• Committee member qualifications: Members must possess relevant qualifications, knowledge and/or experience in recruiting and identifying qualified candidates for county manager or related positions, the charter says.
The group concluded the ideal committee members will have bachelor’s degrees and 3 to 5 years of experience in recruiting and identifying candidates for management positions. These qualifications will be preferred but not mandated to apply.
While a high level of expertise is warranted to help select the county’s top administrator, Bobeck said he doesn’t want to set mandatory minimum qualifications because he worries the county won’t receive enough applications.
“I think this is going to be highly contentious. The people that do come forward on the search committee, they will be publicly known. I’m leery to add anything else until we see the crop of candidates.”
• Committee compensation: The group agreed committee members should be offered a stipend.
Bobeck said he believes $1,000 to $2,000 would be appropriate because members will be expected to attend numerous meetings and “put up with a lot of pressure.”
The committee also will need a budget allocation to cover expenses related to the manager search, such as advertisements and expenses to bring applicants in for interviews, the group said.
• Selection of committee members: County staffers should conduct criminal background checks and verify education and other qualifications cited by applicants, the group concluded.
Charter restrictions for appointees to permanent county boards and authorities also should apply to the selection committee, the group said. The ban says board members can’t be employed or compensated by any individual or business serving as a contractor to the county or its boards and authorities.
An invitation to apply to serve on the committee will be published in all newspapers covering the county. All council members will receive applications before they vote on selecting nominees.
• Residency of committee members: The group said all applications will be considered, though preference should be given to a county resident if his or her qualifications are equal to a non-resident’s.
“I’d prefer people from the county because it’s going to affect them directly, but I wouldn’t want to eliminate someone who is outstanding” from another county, McGinley said.
Bobeck said the county may end up needing experienced committee members from neighboring counties, particularly because the ban on selecting contractors who do business with the county and its boards rules out a significant segment of the county population.
Council members plan to discuss the search committee at Tuesday’s meeting, which starts at 6 p.m. in the council meeting room at the courthouse.
Council must decide if it wants to form a search committee now or wait until a vacancy arises. Lawton has not publicly discussed his career plans.