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Public weighs Protect Our Neighbors proposal as commissioners send ordinance for legal review

Board of Commissioners of Lackawanna County · February 25, 2026
AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

Dozens of residents spoke Wednesday at a Lackawanna County commissioners meeting, sharply divided over a proposed "Protect Our Neighbors" policy that would limit county staff cooperation with ICE; commissioners said the measure remains under solicitor review and expect an update at their March 4 meeting.

At the Lackawanna County commissioners meeting on Feb. 18, dozens of residents filled the public-comment period to urge opposing outcomes on the proposed Protect Our Neighbors ordinance, which would set county rules for how staff respond to requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Supporters described personal encounters with federal enforcement they said were traumatic. Sarah Balmer of Moscow, Covington Township, who described adopting her daughter from China, said an ICE operation near a theater on Nov. 29, 2025 left her and her daughter shaken: "They condescendingly waved, took my picture, and videoed me," Balmer said, adding that her daughter "thought they were going to shoot her mom." Julie Schumacher Cohen, a Scranton resident, and several faith leaders read statements urging officials to protect constitutional…

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