Yesterday should have been a good day for Northampton County. As I told you last month, the County had received proposals for both a pay study and a Gracedale performance review. The chosen bidders were ready to provide presentations. But Council members still complained. The Executive interjected himself without being recognized. The Council Solicitor was "disappointed" by the ""tart" reply he received from the Executive to a strange request to produce the Requests for Proposals that Council itself had previously approved. Council member Ron Heckman accused the administration of doing an "end run" around what Council wanted, which presumably was the actual bids for a pay study and nursing home review.
Nobody looked very good. Everyone looked just a bit petty. This internecine warfare does nothing but prevent good government. It needs to stop.
Having said that, let me tell you about the proposals.
Pay Study. - The Request for Proposals (RFP) was accessed by 54 potential bidders. Two bids and one no-bid (a potential bidder who advised the county it would be making no bid) were received. One bid was disqualified off the bat because of a cover letter stating the process would be confidential when it should be public. The one bid that impressed Finance Director Steve Barron was from Bolton, a fairly large consulting firm based in Maryland. Its pay study would be limited to nonunion workers because Council Solicitor Chris Spadoni warned Council that a pay study of union wages is arguably an unfair labor practice. The pay study would be completed in 12 weeks at a cost of $64,500.
Vargo Heffner complained about the pay study being limited to nonunion, but what I don't understand is that she presided at the meeting in which the decision was made to seek a nonunion pay study only. She was complaining about an RFP that she herself approved.
Gracedale Performance Review. - The Request for Proposals (RFP) was accessed by 47 potential bidders. Four bids were received. Three were from outside the state, and one wanted over $600,000. The bid Barron liked was from Affinity Health Care, which already does the mock surveys for Gracedale and is located in the state. It was for $39,980. Affinity has worked with 16 county-owned nursing homes in its 26 years of operation. Council member Lori Vargo Heffner questioned whether Affinity could truly be independent. "The truth is the truth," responded a representative. She said she would be contrasting what is happening at Gracedale against the industry standard.
Council member John Cusick asked that resolutions be prepared for March,
Under the Administrative Code, the county could have formed a committee to review the proposals and have a Council member (not a clerk) as part of that committee. Finance Director Steve Barron opted against a committee because he wanted to get the proposals to County Council as soon as he could. This bothered some Council members.
As I understand things, Council member Lori Vargo Heffner wanted Barron to form a committee to review the proposals with a Council Clerk being a participant. She implied a lack of transparency. But that's untrue. I reported on this blog on January 27 that the bids were in. Nobody hid anything.
But here's what's weird. According to Vargo Heffner, Barron failed to respond to queries from the Council Clerk about the bids that were received. Barron countered that the RFP was online and the bid opening was attended by the Controller and any member of County Council (or the public) could have been there.
"All we wanted to know was how many bids we had and we couldn't get a simple answer," she complained. She had earlier asserted that staff was unable to get a Yes or No answer on whether bids were received.
When she told Barron that staff had requested this information several times, he answered, "Those things should be vetted in public."
After the meeting, Barron said he had provided this information to Council clerks, but they wanted him to form a committee to review the bids. He felt it was more important to present the bids to Council at a public meeting.
My assessment is that there appears to have been a misunderstanding fueled by mutual distrust.
It's pretty clear to me that both Council and the Executive branch should be trying to work together instead of being at odds about everything. Council member Ron Heckman made this point, He also shut down Exec. Lamont McClure for interrupting the meeting without being recognized.
McClure needs to recognize that, like it or not, County Council is a separate and equal branch of government. County Council needs to recognize that how an RFP is processed is purely an administrative function, even if it is pursuant to a county council ordinance.
By the way, Council members John Brown and Kevin Lott completely missed these presentations. Council member Tara Zrinski phoned in, but uncharacteristically said nothing. She was scheduled to be at a campaign event in her Controller race at 6 pm and obviously missed at least some of a critical meeting about two very important topics.
McClure was treated exactly the way he should have been treated. He is allowed to make a presentation but he is not allowed to enter a council debate. He was out of order. Heckman was right for a change. Please show me where it is written that Council can't do a pay study of all County Positions (unions included). They are not meddling in labor negotiations. For Gods sake, it's a pay study. McClure didn't look very good here. He doesn't like to hear when he is wrong, but, you were right Bernie. He made a fool of himself. Council needs leadership. They too made a fool of themselves.
ReplyDeleteI agree he was properly shut down. Chris Spadoni is the one who advised Council that a pay study of union jobs would be an unfair labor practice. I am certain he is wrong, but Council should listen to their lawyer, not a blogger. In the end, they all looked pretty bad.
ReplyDeleteCan those of us on the western side of the county petition to secede and become a part of Lehigh County?
DeleteThis administrations arrogance is amazing. People see it every day in the courthouse. From McClure to Chucky to Barron. County Council may want to review regulations because you can be sure this crew will push their power to the limit and more regardless of the effect on everyone.
ReplyDeleteSo we’re just going to accept Spadoni’s opinion about how a pay study will violate some imaginary policy in his head? What I believe would worry county council is that the pay study will prove that union employees are grossly underpaid. And this fact will trigger unions to force arbitration delaying any contract settlement.
ReplyDeleteIf union employees are grossly underpaid, why doesn’t the union pay for their own pay study?
DeleteUnion employees got the market rate that their union bargained for and that the employees approved.
That’s a settled issue.
If the union wants taxpayers to fund the study, let them first agree to be bound by any results that show they might be overpaid.
First of all, unions DO fund for their own pay study, but the county just ignores them. But we figured if Lamont’s does his own, maybe he’d be willing to increase union salaries.
DeleteBut you’re okay NON-Union members using tax-payers money to finance a pay study? You make no sense.
A pay study is a tool to determine fair and competitive salary for the employees. We are not bound to pay study results, we are however, bound to arbitration awards.
I say take all county jobs out of the hands of these money-grubbing unions. Get to work, you lazy bums, and earn your pay.
Delete@1:24
DeleteWe do work. We work all available overtime including the weekends.
But we can’t afford anything because you dumb-ass boomers voted Republicans who in turn lobby to give greedy corporations enough power to increase the price of goods and services without repercussions.
McClure was told to shut up, because he really ought to shut up. The absent members were simply following in the footsteps of McClure, whose attendance record on council was one of the worst in county history. Nobody likes or respects McClure. Respect is earned and returned. This is the worst council and executive combination we've ever had.
ReplyDeleteCusick is the only adult in county government. What a dysfunctional mess. Elections can have devastating consequences.
ReplyDeleteIt’s difficult to watch the mess that council meetings have become. In recent years it’s been obvious that council, with the the exception of John Cusick, just don’t know what the heck their doing. They come off as really incompetent. It’s easy to understand how the administration would be frustrated dealing with them. Their given information over and over again but refuse to accept the answers their given.
ReplyDeleteDid Myers show up for meeting, I might have missed his comments as I had to leave early.
ReplyDeleteGod Bless Lamont !
ReplyDeleteI think Vargo-Heffner’s attempted power grab was funny. She’s very hungry for power.
ReplyDeleteRon Heckman should resign. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about anymore. It’s kind of sad watching him make a fool of himself.
ReplyDeleteYou are correct. TeamTara had a petition signing event last night. She posted over 30 photos on her campaign's FB page. Why would one schedule a campaign event on the same night one has a commitment for their current role as an elected official? Aren't county council meetings scheduled for the year in advance? I know you need to get the signatures and work the public to get votes but this seems to be a clear display of lack of responsibility and commitment to your current office.
ReplyDeleteLast night was a finance committee meeting not a county council meet. It Tara is not on the finance committee, then there was no reason for her to be there.
DeleteLeave Heckman alone. He’s old and Lori is manipulating a frail elderly man into doing his bidding. Somebody should call aging on her.
ReplyDeleteThe use of "tart" unless it was in reference to sour, should be publicly admonished accompanied with an apology for poor choice of words.
ReplyDeleteMcClure looked like the jerk he is. He thinks he can do WHATEVER and act ANY WAY. He needs to go.
ReplyDeleteThat Eileen woman is very mad. They let her make a fool out of herself.
ReplyDeleteLVH is not power hungry. She’s just got a voracious appetite for oversight.
ReplyDeleteBernie - your mild criticism of Lamont might get you excommunicated from the club.
ReplyDeleteRon thinks he influences Lori. She specializes in the elderly. He should watch his wallet.
ReplyDeleteNot one word from or about Kerry the Kreeper last night.
ReplyDeleteKerry seemed distracted last night. Was he tweeting ?
ReplyDelete"McClure was told to shut up, because he really ought to shut up. "
ReplyDeleteHe was out of line, and for the second time. He does not run County Council meetings. They do.
"The use of "tart" unless it was in reference to sour, should be publicly admonished accompanied with an apology for poor choice of words."
ReplyDeleteYes. Yes. A thousand times, yes. Sharp, pointed, flip, insouciant, impudent, or barbed are just a handful of better choices. Be better.
Dont feign ignorance. You know what I meant.
Delete"Ron Heckman should resign. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about anymore. It’s kind of sad watching him make a fool of himself."
ReplyDeleteThough he talks way too much, as I always tell him, Heckman was fine last night. He very properly shut down the Exec and correctly pointed out that the admin could have formed a committee to review the RFPs had it wanted to do so. He also later did recognize the Exec and let him speak. He was actually good last night.
Given that this was Council's baby, McClure should have been more forthcoming. The real problem here is Council feels he was playing games. I don't think he was, and the proposals actually sound very good. But there's a lot of animosity between the two branches of government. This goes way beyond the usual friction you see in a board comprised of members of both parties.
Part of this is McClure's personality. He is not a warm and fuzzy person unless you really know him. As Exec, he works hard and invests a lot of time and thought into what he is doing. He thinks Council should just go along with him, but that's not how government works. He does have a great deal of personal integrity, and Council should realize that when they deal with him, even if they differ.
Part of this is Lori Vargo Heffner. She tends to get bogged down in minutiae and drags the rest of County Council with her. In fact, she is so trapped by detail that she often complains about things that she herself put in place. Last night was a perfect example. She complained that the RFP did not cover union positions (and also contradicted the ordinance) when it is her own governing committee that put that RFP in place.
Part of this the Council Clerk. That office has become a source of friction. It has itself become the source of controversy. I can say from covering other governments that this is far from the norm and demonstrates dysfunction. Last night, that office did its best to make Barron look like a liar. As Barron has explained to me, he made sure the Clerk's office knew that RFPs were in and being reviewed. The Clerk's office wanted a committee but, had he decided to form one and invite a Council member, he would have to delay matters and get them to appoint someone at a public meeting. The Clerk's office wanted that done behind closed doors. This would violate the Sunshine Act. There is also animosity within the Clerk's office. Aileen Shafnisky, the Deputy, and the Clerk do not get along. Shafnisky has also made the mistake of failing to realize she works for nine Council members, not just Lori Vargo Heffner.
Part of this is the usual friction that should exist between Council and the Exec, which is actually healthy.
I do not think Heckman is influencing Heffner. I think it is the other way around. She distrusts the Exec. Some of this is her own personality and some of it is justified. She plants seeds of distrust in other Council members like Heckman. Last night, he felt that the Exec was doing an end run around Council although he was actually moving through the RFPs in a way that appears quite reasonable.
I believe that Council and the Exec should attempt to do a reset in their relations. Council needs to clean up the animosity in the Clerk's office.
Personal integrity? Something I didn't have the opportunity to see. And frankly I find it hard to believe. Maybe he should let his employees see that side that you think exists
DeleteLori is a problem. She thinks she is holding Lamont accountable and all she is doing is holding him back. She's annoying, and not only at CC meetings. She used to be someone the Dems admired, but now she has turned into a blustering know-it-all. Time to vote her out in her next election....or not support her in her next position she wants to get elected to.
ReplyDeleteWell said
DeleteMcClure is the true definition of an asshole!!!
ReplyDeleteSpadoni is nothing short of a circus clown
heckman should be in gracedale
Eileen shuld just bow out
"If union employees are grossly underpaid, why doesn’t the union pay for their own pay study?"
ReplyDeleteThey do, and so does the county. They both use their pay studies to negotiate wages.
Correct. So why are people (presumably union employees) thinking they should be included in this study? Neither side gives their info to the other.
Delete12:16, LVH is right to hold the Exec accountable, but I'll agree she shoots herself in the foot. She was critical last night of how the admin handled Council's RFPs, although Barron's explanation sounded reasonable (not "ludicrous") and actually beneficial to good government. She wanted a committee review, which would have taken place behind closed doors. It is not Council's call on whether a committee is even needed. That determination is made by the admin. She suggested a rebid, and that again would slow everything down bc an ordinance would be needed. It would almost certainly make the bidders who would likely think twice about bidding again. As a member of Council, she has been argumentative with the Court ADMIN, the DA and now, the Exec. It surprises me that a psychotherapist can be so difficult.
ReplyDeleteBernie, this is about all the ageist comments on Heckman. As his contemporary and someone who has had lunch with him on many occasions, I can tell you those comments are crazy and mean. He could teach a class. He loves county government and I have never heard him
ReplyDeletesay a mean thing about anyone in particular in government. His knowledge of how the county operates at all levels is impressive. I have heard him complain that he has seen it change over the years and he blames both executive and council. He once joked county executives now want the presidential seal on their doors and that some council members appear less serious about local government and don't understand its purpose.
I know you are no fan of his, but I think he cares a great deal and has a great deal of knowledge and love for the county. So, the old age shots are wrong, and I hope the young people coming up care as much as he does about the county and less about how old someone is.
Mc Cluless and Charlie Tuna think they can do whatever they want when they want. It's about time they get shut down. Baron does whatever Lamount tells him to do.Also it is written that the County must do a pay study every so many years and they have not for over 15 years.Can't wait till we can get these Clowns out of Office!
ReplyDeleteWe up here in the Slate Belt would like to declare ourselves a sovereign country and name Ron Angle or Emperor! Keep your craziness in Easton.
ReplyDeleteYes, where oh where is Ron Angle when we need him?
Delete3:43 PM States "We are not bound to pay study results. We are however bound to arbitration awards".
ReplyDeleteYour statement is factual if you are in a County that is not a HOME RULE COUNTY. Northampton County is a Home Rule County that must follow the guidelines of Act 53. If the union and the county both agree to "Binding Arbitration on medical benefits" the Union must abide by the arbitrators decision. If the union agrees to binding arbitration on all but medical benefits the Arbitrator may not diminish in any way the benefits of union retirees as they pertain to their existing benefits. That is a case that has been tried in the Courts and upheld by the Courts.
"Last night was a finance committee meeting not a county council meet. It Tara is not on the finance committee, then there was no reason for her to be there."
ReplyDeleteEvery member of Council is encouraged and expected to attend all committee hearings. Zrinski is NOT on the Finance Committee, which begs the question why she is running for Controller.
Good question Bernie
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