CPA Selected as NorCo's New Controller

For the first time since the inception of Home Rule, Northampton County's Controller is a certified public accountant. Timothy A Brezinski, who resides in Hanover Tp and is the Controller of Comprehensive Pain Center in Allentown, was chosen in the first round of voting for four applicants. Voting for him were Council President Ken Kraft and Council members Jeff Warren, Kelly Keegan, Jason Boulette and Theresa Fadem. Brezinski fills the vacancy created when Tara Zrinski resigned from that office to assume her new role as county executive. The vote was conducted after public interviews of all four candidates.

The salary for this position is $85,0000. 

Of the remaining three candidates, former NorCo Council member John Cusick, who lost the Controller election to Zrinski, received votes from Lori Vargo Heffner, Dave Dolland and Tom Giovanni. During his tenure on County Council, Cusick displayed a deep understanding of both the Home Rule Charter and county finance. But he's a Republican and would be filling an elected position previously held by a Democrat. Though the Home Rule Charter is silent on this point, several Council members in the past, notably Kraft, have maintained that vacancies should be filled by a person who belongs to the same party as the person who resigned. 

A third candidate, Leo Atkinson, is heavily involved in the Lehigh Valley Democratic Socialists of America, He received one vote from Nadeem Qayyum, who also is involved in that organization. Atkinson was Executive Zrinski's campaign treasurer. 

A fourth applicant, controls engineer and farmer Thomas Frumpkin, received no votes. 

Brezinsky is a 1983 graduate of St. Bonaventure University. He has extensive experience with audits in both the public and private sector. For some strange reason, he is passionate about accounting. He complimented the staff in the Controller's office as "very professional," and told Council he has reviewed the audits they post online. He added that they came through a peer review with "glowing colors" just last year. 

He said he especially likes to do sewage authority audits, so he's perfect for Northampton County. 

NorCo Council To Interview Controller Candidates on Thursday

When Tara Zrinski was sworn in as NorCo Exec, she was required to resign her position as County Controller. Under the Home Rule Charter, County Council has the obligation of filling the vacancy and must do so within 30 days. If they fail to do so, the courts can be requested to make the appointment. 

Two years ago, when Zrinski resigned her position on County Council to become Controller, Council deadlocked on a replacement, and President Judge Criag Dally was forced to appoint Jeff Corpora. For Council, it was a sign of disfunction that would continue until the end of 2025. With a new Council in place, will this continue?

Although no mention of the vacancy was made during County Council's meetings earlier this month, the vacancy was posted on Council's webpage and with the Morning Call. Applications were due on January 16, and those who applied will be interviewed by County Council on January 22. 

Northampton County's Home Rule Charter is silent on whether the vacancy should be filled by someone who belongs to the same party as the person who held the office. Lehigh County's Home Rule Charter does have the same-party requirement for such an appointment, and this appears to be a more democratic way of choosing a replacement that aligns with the wishes of the voters. In this case, that means that Zrinski, a Democrat, should be replaced by a Democrat. 

Council member Jason Boulette, in a comment he was kind enough to share with readers on this blog, said there are several "excellent" candidates. I will be delighted of the person selected is able to be independent. 

Zrinski Impresses Me in First Council Appearance as Controller

Regular readers of this blog know I supported John Cusick, and not Tara Zrinski, for NorCo Controller. I believed that, like Controller Mark Pinsley in Lehigh County, she's use the job as a launching pad for the next political opportunity that comes along.  That may very well be true, but I must confess that I've been impressed by what I've seen. She appears to be taking the job seriously, has enrolled in accounting classes, and probably gave a better presentation of auditor reports than I've seen since staff were doing it themselves. 

In addition to presenting audit reports, she also made a personnel request yesterday. She wants to change the Audit Manager position, also known as senior lead auditor, from an exempt position serving at the will of the Controller into a career service position that would be protected no matter who is in office. County Council seemed puzzled by her request. Council member John Brown told her to come back in six months. Council member John Goffredo worried that she was creating a new position and expanding its size, even though Lead Auditor Stacy Duke and Zrinski both told him that the number of personnel would remain the same. What County Council fails to realize is that, as an independently elected official, she pretty much has the right to create and eliminate positions as she sees fit, unless they are protected by a union or career service. Council's sole role is setting the pay. 

Let me explain what led Zrinski to seek this change. Under the Home Rule Charter (Section 801), every elected official (except County Council) is entitled to one "confidential" employee. This is the person that an elected official can trust. Yes, it is a patronage position. In the Controller's office, that person has always been the senior lead auditor. 

This has never been an issue, even as Controllers have changed over the years because the senior lead auditor pretty much knows the office better than anyone. But theoretically, a newly elected Controller could dismiss the senior lead auditor and install a political hack. This would hurt the continuity of the office and would certainly disrupt the office's efficiency. 

When the senior lead auditor position opened up, nobody in the office anted it because they would lose career service protections. So Zrinski wants to convert the position to career service. This makes sense.'

But what about her confidential employee? She's entitled to one, and decided to give it to Attorney Mark Aurand. He's been a political and financial contributor to Zrinski for years, so you could rightly say this is pay to play. But this kind of patronage is expressly authorized by the Home Rule Charter so log as it is limited to one person. So she's calling Aurand her Deputy Controller, and has the money in the budget to pay him. 

Aurand is no accountant, but explained that in his years of legal work, he has become quite familiar with financial statements. That does not matter. He is her confidential employee, and she is entitled to have one. 

It seems that what Zrinski has proposed will preserve the continuity and efficiency of the office while simultaneously allowing the Controller to make one political hire. 

Scott Parsons Selected NorCo Controller

Yesterday, I told you that Altynay Kanatbekoff was far and away the best choice to succeed Richard "Bucky" Szulborski. Most of you agreed. Council member Ron Heckman told her, ""We need super-qualified people like you in government." Then he nominated Scott Parsons, who spent most of his adult life working in a slate quarry.

One of my readers warned me this would happen. "Bernie I agree this is a no brainer, however never underestimate the stupidity of some elected members of council."

My mistake. 

Surprisingly, Tara Zrinski nominated Altynay Kanatbekoff, with a second from John Cusick Those are the only two votes she got. 

Scott Parsons, a former County Council member and retired Public Works employee, got the appointment in the second round of voting. Parsons got votes from John Cusick, Tara Zrinski, Tom Giovanni, Ron Heckman and Kevin Lott. 

Scott Parsons is certainly adequate to the task, but pales in comparison to Kanatbekoff.  

NorCo Controller Candidates to be Interviewed By County Council Today

Northampton County Council will interview candidates today for the Controller seat that became vacant after Richard "Bucky" Szulborski passed away. This will occur during a public meeting of Council's Personnel Committee. Council has until the end of July to decide on someone. Whoeveris appointed will serve until the end of the year, when an elected Controller takes over. That elected Controller will either be Tara Zrinski or John Cusick. 

NorCo Controller: Zrinski Gets 60% of the Democratic Vote to Face Cusick In General

Northampton County Council member Tara Zrinski has won the Democratic nomination for Northampton County Controller. She defeated Easton resident Nadeem Qayuum with 60% of the vote, grabbing 13,799 to just 9,086 for Qayuum, 

That race is just beginning. 

Northampton County Council member John Cusick ran unopposed on the Republican side. 

Cusick and Zrinski will face each other ion the Fall. 

Source: Northamptonvotes.com

Why I Will Vote For Tony Bassil

Democrat Tony Bassil and Republican Hayden Phillips are both running for NorCo Controller. I'll be voting for Tony. Let me explain why.

I got to know Hayden Phillips during his tenure on NorCo Council. He was hard-working and dedicated. Even more important, he was independent-minded. He was perfectly willing to take on Executive John Brown. So though he lacks the financial expertise that Bassil has, I'd be tempted to vote for him.

What has turned me off is his continued association with the GOP's DA candidate, Tom Carroll, who hates Democrats, is divisive and a racist. There are several photos of the two together on Carroll's Facebook page. Other GOP candidates have wisely treated Carroll like the pariah he is.

I will vote for the man who came to this country with pennies in his pocket and became a successful businessman.

Controller Wants NorCo to Tighten Eligibility List For Vision Benefits

Northampton County Controller Richard Szulborski and his staff recently completed an audit of the county's vision benefits. The good news is that no evidence of duplicate claims or claims paid for individuals who are ineligible. The bad news is that 72 people are listed on the eligibility list who don't belong there.

Though this is a problem, it's a big improvement over the last audit, when it was determined that 466 ineligible people were on the eligibility list.

Human Resources Director Elizabeth Kelly said she will strive to remove ineligible individuals with periodic reviews.

In 2017, Northampton County paid $39,000 for vision claims and an additional $7,500 in administrative fees. It also reimbursed AFSCME an estimated $36,000 for individuals covered a separate union plan.

Szulborski's lead auditor on vision benefits is Anthony Sabino. His audit manager is Paul Albert.

Bucky Szulborski Appointed NorCo Controller

Richard "Bucky" Szulborski, who served on Bethlehem City Council for 12 years before voluntarily stepping down in 1995, was appointed  NorCo Controller last night in a 6-2-1 vote by County Council. Steve Barron resigned in January after being confirmed as Fiscal Affairs Director.

Voting for Szuloborski were Ken Kraft, Ron Heckman, Tara Zrinski, Bill McGee, Lori Vargo Heffner and Peg Ferraro. Voting  No were John Cusick and Bob Werner. Matt Dietz abstained.

Cusick, a Republican had urged Council to vote for Hayden Phillips. But other than Matt Dietz, he was unable to attract any support. Cusick, Dietz and Phillips are all Republicans.

Szulborski is a Democrat.

Dietz abstained in the vote for Szulborski, primarily because he said he would have liked to have heard from all three candidates. One of those candidates was at last night's meeting and asked to speak, but he made his request after courtesy of the floor was over.

Though Werner never explained his No vote,it may be the result of an apparent Sunshine Act violation on January 31, when the Personnel Committee met to review the applications without advertising. Council President Ken Kraft took responsibility for this error at Wednesday's Personnel Committee, where the applications were reviewed again in public, and the public was afforded two opportunities to speak.     

Szulborski has an extensive record of community service to various organizations, including Camelot for Children, the Catholic Youth Organization, the Sun Inn Preservation Association, the Bethlehem Recreation Commission, the Bethlehem Fine Arts Commission and the Bethlehem Area Public Library Board.

Szulborski told Council that he does engage in real estate sales on a part-time basis on evenings and weekends. He said he has no interest in running for the job when his term expires in two years.

After Jerry Seyfried had imparted his pearls of wisdom to Council (see below), Szulborski told me that you if you cut the edges off of pills, you remove the side effects.

NorCo Council Fails To Invite Controller to Meeting About ... the Controller

Yesterday, Northampton County Council's Governance Committee, spearheaded by lameduck Mat (not Matt) Benol, released an agenda for a meeting today. One item is a proposed change to the Home Rule Charter that will limit the Executive to two terms in office. This discussion was scheduled at the last Council meeting. While they're at it, Benol has decided to address Council's term limits, too, even though Council term-limited itself several years ago. As if these two items are not enough, Benol has also decided to schedule a discussion on both "special qualifications" and "special prohibitions" for the County Controller. But he hasn't bothered to inform the person who has occupied that office for nearly a decade.

I contacted Controller Steve Barron yesterday, who was unaware of a meeting scheduled to talk about him behind his back. "I fail to understand why Council would schedule a meeting concerning my office and fail to invite the person who has occupied it for nearly ten years," he noted.

I know why. They want to clip his wings. He asks too many questions.

Since the mainstream press has more or less fallen flat on its face in covering county government, the sole watchdogs left are bottom-feeding bloggers like me and the County Controller. But as was recently pointed out in Governing, this is an increasingly troublesome problem for independent auditors.

When performance auditors rile mayors and department heads with negative audits, retaliation can come in the form of budget cuts, slow action on personnel requests or even suggestions that auditor functions be eliminated. David Jones, Seattle city auditor and chair of ALGA’s advocacy committee, says, “We frequently find that local government auditors are under attack.”

This is precisely what is going on here. In April, Barron infuriated County administrators and Benol with a detailed memo outlining county waste and abuse. He was concerned that Human Resources Director Amy Trap had increased staff development training from $5,749.35 to a staggering $56,758.15 in the course of just one year. He was bothered that her staff had taken trips to Las Vegas and New Orleans and had stayed at exotic places like the Mirage Hotel, with absolutely no effort made to get a government rate. He noted that her department was charging meals beyond what is permitted. He also warned that this was only the tip of the iceberg, and that a county credit card audit was being performed, which would certainly show that she spent $800 for a popcorn machine and bought meals at the courthouse, to which her staff had no right.

Barron suggested stronger internal controls were needed, and they are.

Though County Council is supposed to be a check and balance on administrative overreach. They instead went after Barron.

Benol accused Barron of playing "political football," adding, "I plan on taking some action on the Controller because the Controller is a financial position, it's not a political position. To me, it's a bean counter position."

Benol was upset that Barron had failed to provide his report to both sides,and that would be a valid complaint if it were true. Barron did make sure that the administration received a copy of his memo.

Under Northampton County's Home Rule Charter, the Controller is the person responsible for the internal control of the fiscal transactions of the county. This includes trips to Las Vegas and New Orleans. It includes department heads who exceed their spending budgets. It includes spending more money than permitted for meals. It includes the purchase of $800 popcorn machines and the abuse of the county purse to purchase gift cards that violate county credit card policy. As an independently elected official, the Controller has the power, at any time and on his own initiative, to review the fiscal transactions of any county agency without first seeking permission from John Brown or Mat Benol. That's what the Controller did, and that is his job. He has in the past found that the Executive himself was abusing his expense reports, and money had to be paid back to the County.

Benol clearly is planning on retaliation against Barron for doing his job.

Or Benol and his Ten Commandments may be trying to scare Barron off. His audit of the county credit cards (called P-cards) is coming out very soon.

Barron, Heffner Prevail in NorCo's Sweet 'n Sour Debate

Phillips a little uncomfortable shaking hands after debate

I'd call it the sweet 'n sour debate. Last night, Northampton County's Controller candidates Steve Barron (Democratic incumbent) and Hayden Phillips (Republican challenger squared off in a debate at Gracedale's Chapel before a crowd of about 100 supporters. Their clash was immediately followed by a forum featuring the County Council for Districts 3 and 4. In District 3, Democrat Lori Vargo Heffner and Republican John Cusick seek the seat being vacated by Lamont McClure at the end of this year. In District 4, incumbent Democrat Scott Parsons is fending off a challenge by pilot Matt Dietz. This event was sponsored by Northampton County's League of Women Voters. It is the only candidates' night scheduled, but most of the people there already have made up their minds.

Dietz gets last-minute pointers from his daughter

In the Controller clash, Hayden Phillips, a current member of Council, immediately went on the attack. Noting media accounts describing Barron as the "worst Controller ever, he accused him of "dirty politics." He belittled Barron's Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) status. "CFE stands for 'I'm not an accountant,'" he charged, calling him a "festering sore that has to be cured." He claimed Barron is "capable of any misdeed."

For his part, Barron tried his best to remain congenial. He admitted that he has made mistakes, but argued he is a different person at age 38 than he was at age 30.

Arlene Klocek gives us a bright smile

He did attack Phillips for his role in proposing what ended up being a one mill tax hike last year, but Phillips countered that financial projections had indicated the County would only have $1 million in the till at the end of last year.

In robocalls, Barron has suggested that Phillips would try to privatize Gracedale. Phillips responded that, as Controller, he "would not take a policy position. I would not be pro or con. That goes out the window." As a Council member, Phillips admitted that he does support a free study of the advantages of forming a 501c3, and noted that pro-Gracedale Democrats like Bob Werner and Scott Parsons agree with him.

When it was over, I asked several Republicans whether Phillips had won. "He lost," responded one of them, a sentiment that was echoed by several others who are still going to vote for him.

Phillips came on too strong, while Barron was congenial and even spoke to a fellow who was heckling him during the debate.Barron actually apologized to the guy. People like sour sauce and sweet sauce, but Phillips was simply too sour.

(From L to R, Matt Dietz, Scott Parsons, NorCo LWV Prez Beverly Hhernandez, Lori Vargo Heffner and John Cusick)

In the Council debates, I'd expect to see John Cusick or Scott Parsons come out on top. Both are very knowledgeable about County government. Nobody works harder than Scott Parsons, who had a near 100% attendance rating at Council and Committee meetings last year.

This debate was far more civil, to the point where it became boring. Arlene Dereskiewicz Klocek had to nudge me awake at one point as I began to doze off.

Though they were all impressive, the winner of this debate would have to be Lori Vargo Heffner. She had a good self-deprecating sense of humor, and conveyed an image of sincerity that seemed to impress even the hard-line conservatives who surrounded me. "She seems like such a nice woman," a tea party member told me as the debate went on.

She was the sweet sauce to compliment the sour sauce from Phillips.

"Why the heck should you vote for a psychotherapist for County Council?" she asked. After the laughter subsided, this double master's degree recipient noted that 48% if the Countys budget deals with human services. "I feel I have something to offer."

Cusick, a high school math teacher who is a bit a=of a wonk, championed the idea of converting Gracedale into a 501c3 before other counties began actively pursuing it. He also spoke of needs for improvements at the 1870's era jail. "To say it's functionally obsolete is an understatement" he noted.

Parsons stressed his inclusive approach to government."Rs and Ds don't matter," he said. "We've got to make sure we provide the services to the people that need them."

Matt Dietz, whose young daughter was giving him a pep talk before the action started, worked his way up from a baggage handler at the Airport to a pilot and small business operator. He spiced his remarks with what people tell him as he goes door-to-door. From speaking to police officers and municipal officials, he pointed to a need for a central booking station in Northampton County so that officers can get back on the road. He'd also work for a more proactive approach to drug overdoses.

All the candidates did very well, and all certainly proved they are worthy of support.

At one point in the evening, Heffner offered this advice. "Say what you mean. Mean what you say. Don't say it mean." She seemed to follow that mantra the best. Phillips, not so much.

UNOFFICIAL: Ron Angle Has Enough Write-Ins to Run For Controller

According to the unofficial tally, Ron Angle will be on the ballot this Fall as the Republican candidate for Controller. That's bad news for incumbent Steve Barron, who has been effective in recent years. It's worse news for John Brown, who has been a disaster as Executive and is sitting on a slush fund of casino table games revenue.

Barron Has No Republican Opponent ... Yet

Northampton County Controller Steve Barron is Executive John Brown's biggest public enemy right now. So much so that he attempted to block his right to send emails to county workers. So much so that he temporarily removed a fraud reporting link that Barron had installed. Last Thursday, he unsuccessfully asked Council to muzzle Barron during Courtesy of the Floor.

Brown's Republican allies on Council would love to see Barron  out of the way, too. Hayden Phillips, Seth Vaughn and Mat Benol proposed a resolution calling on the Kilted One to resign. Benol even secretly contacted Barron's staff to find out if they had any dirt on him.

"Does he wear anything under that kilt? asked Benol.

Instead of diming Barron, staff dimed Benol.

Pam Colton, Bangor School Board Prez, was supposed to be the Republican who would remove the Curious Controller. But she's circulated no petitions.

I learned yesterday that no Republican is circulating petitions against Barron. Now that could change, but the last day to circulate in March 10.