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Northumberland commissioners approve grants, contracts, appointments and ARPA administration fees; budget amendments adopted
Summary
The Board of Commissioners approved a state homeland security grant for 9-1-1, multiple appointments and vendor contracts, amended personnel policies, and authorized use of ARPA funds for administrative fees; a public commenter pressed the board on a 20% tax-line increase.
The Northumberland County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 4 approved a package of routine measures including a $459,736 Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) state homeland security grant agreement for the 9-1-1 public safety department, contracts for janitorial and snow-removal services, several appointments to county boards, amendments to personnel policies and budget adjustments. The board also authorized the use of $190,868.81 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for administrative fees.
Why it matters: The actions formalize grant acceptance, vendor contracts and personnel-policy changes that affect county operations and spending. Several votes were ratifications of prior agreements; the board recorded motions as passed with the standard “All in favor, say aye” formula.
Major approvals and ratifications included adoption of resolution R02-25, a memorandum of understanding with Central Susquehanna Opportunities for HUD-funded housing projects and environmental reviews; resolution R03-25 authorizing an amendment for County Bridge Number 73; and resolution R04-25, which set compensation for tax collectors at $2.10 per county real estate tax bill in accordance with section 36.1 of the Pennsylvania Local Tax Collection Law. The board also adopted resolution R05-25, approving agreements, grants and contracts for the human services department (items 1–6 and 8–14 on the agenda); the board said item 7 would be tabled.
Other approved items included authorization for the chairperson to execute a PEMA 02/2024 homeland-security grant agreement for $459,736 on behalf of the 9-1-1 public-safety department; execution of a janitorial-services agreement with NEPA Cleaning Professional LLC at $7,000 per month for Jan. 1–Dec. 31, 2025 (ratification); and renewal of a snow-plowing and salting agreement with Brookside Landscaping of Shamokin for three installments of $7,766.67 (ratification).
The board ratified amendments to the county personnel policy manual—telework policy HS-3, meal and break periods policy WA-4, and flexible work arrangement policy WA-11—and authorized the county to use $190,868.81 in ARPA funds to cover administration fees for county staff and administrators.
Commissioners also approved routine financial business: payment of payrolls (payroll #1, $731,123.14; payroll #2, $833,272.00) and county bills (total reported on the agenda as $5,001,294.59 for Jan. 4–Jan. 31, 2025), and adopted budget amendments listed on the public agenda.
Appointments approved by the board included Samuel Shikitano to the Northumberland County Recreation Commission (five-year term), Brad Kleban to the Cedarcog board of directors (one-year term; the transcript records one abstention), Nicole Will to the Redevelopment Authority of Northumberland County (two-year term), and an appointment ratification to the Cedarcog board. The board also authorized advertising several procurement notices and requests for proposals: designation of Geisinger Medical Center in Danville for involuntary mental-health triage services under the Pennsylvania Code mental health procedures (chapter and citation given on the agenda), an RFP for County Bridge No. 150 replacement in Lewis Township, and weatherization department contractor bids for the 2025–26 fiscal year, among others.
Public comment and tax questions: During public comment, resident CJ Grego of Shamokin asked the board about a reported 20% tax increase and how it would affect taxpayers on fixed incomes. A commissioner responded that the 20% figure applies to one line on the county tax (the general-fund line) and not to a taxpayer’s entire bill, and attributed the need for increases to rising employee salary negotiations, insurance costs (which the commissioner said rose by approximately $3–4 million over nine years), gasoline and heating costs, and other operational pressures. The commissioner said the county has reduced staff from higher levels and plans a special salary-board meeting in March to consider additional staffing cuts; the board recorded employee-count reductions from roughly 704 employees five years ago to 560 currently.
The board observed a moment of silence for two former commissioners, Commissioner Dietrich and Commissioner Zwicky, whose recent passings were noted by one commissioner.
