Luzerne County Chief Solicitor Harry W. Skene is seen in a file photo. Skene sent an email to county Election Board members Tuesday night informing them of an issue with the ordinance for an April 23 Government Study Commission referendum.
Times Leader file photo
Luzerne County Council held a closed-door executive session Tuesday night about a potential issue with a Government Study Commission referendum it had approved for the April 23 primary election ballot.
State law says a certified copy of council’s ordinance authorizing the referendum must be filed with the county election board within five days after the ordinance enactment.
A council majority approved the ordinance Oct. 24, but it was not time-stamped as received by the election bureau until Dec. 5.
The ordinance itself said it takes effect in 15 days and acknowledged the state law filing requirement, directing the council clerk to file it with the election bureau within five days of final enactment.
The underlying concern is that a late filing technicality could put the legality of the referendum’s placement on the April 23 ballot at risk.
County Chief Solicitor Harry W. Skene sent an email to county Election Board members Tuesday night informing them of an issue with the referendum ordinance.
“We are currently investigating the matter. The investigation involves technical compliance with 53 Pa C.S.A. Section 2911,” Skene wrote. “The Office of Law is not convinced there is an issue to worry about, but out of an abundance of caution I feel compelled to alert you of our investigation.”
Skene said he would provide additional information when it is available.
Wilkes-Barre resident Beth Gilbert said Tuesday she discovered the issue through her work with Action Together NEPA.
Gilbert, who previously worked as county deputy election director and acting election director, said she learned of the five-day notification requirement in the state’s home rule handbook and saw the Dec. 5 time-stamp on a copy of the ordinance that had been included in the election board’s December meeting packet.
Seeking to confirm the five-day requirement was missed, Gilbert said she submitted a public information request that verified the ordinance was not submitted to the election bureau until Dec. 5.
Employed as Action Together’s voting engagement organizer, Gilbert said the organization is monitoring the referendum and other election issues “as part of its effort to ensure that elections are protected in Northeastern Pennsylvania.”
“We’re looking forward to new county council members being sworn in next week,” Gilbert said on behalf of Action Together. “Everything that has been done by current council members in terms of the ballot question should be reviewed, and every voter should watch it.”
Five new council members and one incumbent are set to take the oath of office on Jan. 2 because they were elected to four-year terms in the Nov. 7 general election.
The council-approved referendum simultaneously asks county voters if they want to convene a study commission and to elect seven citizens to serve on the panel. The selected residents would only serve if the referendum passes.
Study commissions have 18 months to decide if a change in government is warranted and, if so, prepare a recommendation on how to proceed.
The study commission would be free to recommend no change, revision of the current home rule charter, a switch to a new charter or a return to the prior government system in which three elected commissioners and multiple row officers handled decisions that now rest with an 11-member council and appointed manager.
Voters would have to approve a recommended change for it to take effect.
As it stands, the election board approved the council-selected ballot question at its December meeting.
Citizens interested in running for the study commission can start seeking signatures on their nomination petition on Jan. 23.
Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.
