Resident accuses county landfill mismanagement, cites $27 million debt; commissioners say expansion and account separation underway

Todd Lauer, a Jersey Shore resident, used public comment time at the Lycoming County commissioners meeting to sharply criticize past landfill management and to accuse previous commissioners of decisions that left the operation with about $27,000,000 in outstanding debt. "We're in debt $27,000,000," Lauer said, and alleged that the county previously excused as much as "$1,000,000" owed by a hauler.

Commissioners responded during the meeting that the current board has worked to separate landfill funds from other county accounts to increase transparency and to stop past practices such as using landfill funds for unrelated purchases. One commissioner said the county has since separated accounts so "you could see that account day to day, every dollar that came in and every dollar that went out," and described the separation as an early step to prevent improper charges.

The commissioners said the key fiscal problem is the lifespan of the county's final landfill cell and insufficient revenue to service decades-old bonds. "So it's critical that we get that expansion so that we can pay off $27,000,000 in debt," an unidentified commissioner said during the meeting. Commissioners noted the county recently acquired federal property intended for expansion and indicated the expansion must be completed within roughly seven to eight years to preserve long-term capacity.

Lauer pressed for stronger accountability and suggested criminal charges for past decisions he called improper. "I would feel that a county commissioner should be criminally charged to allow that to go on," he said. Commissioners rejected retrospective blame as the primary remedy, saying they lacked the authority to pursue past staff disciplinary actions in that forum and that their current priority was to move forward with reforms and fiscal stabilization.

The exchanges also included technical and operational details: commissioners said some prior purchases and account commingling have been corrected, that a former director retired, and that pursuing an expansion is the county's current fiscal priority. The county indicated it has retained a management company to operate the landfill after failing to find qualified in‑house candidates.

Next steps signaled at the meeting included continued oversight of landfill accounts, pursuing expansion options, and focusing on budgeting to address outstanding bond obligations. The commission adjourned with a reminder that the next regular meeting would be Feb. 12 at 10 a.m.