County Commissioners - Regular Meeting

I'd like to call to order Dauphin County Board of Commissioners meeting for July 22, 2026. We'll begin with a moment of silence followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

Pledge of Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, liberty and justice for all.

Chief Clerk's report, Mr. Haggerty.

Good morning, Commissioners. There's been no executive session since last week's Board of Commissioners meeting. In addition to the June 24th, 2026 Board of Commissioners meeting minutes, the July 1st, 2026 Board of Commissioners meeting minutes, the June 1st, 2026 salary board meeting minutes and purchase order packet, there are 16 items for board consideration today. three facilities maintenance agreements, one hazardous materials response team agreement, one work relief center agreement, two parks and recreation agreements, one human resources agreement, one district attorney's office agreement, one conservation district agreement, one information technology agreement, one public defender's office grant application for state funds, one legal services agreement for the prothonotary's office, one tax forgiveness request, one tax stipulation, and the training packet. Lastly, an agreement for deferred compensation plan administration recommended by the Voluntary Employee Benefits Committee appears in former business after being tabled during last week's meeting. That concludes my report. Happy to answer any questions. Any questions for Mr. Haggerty?

Hearing none, solicitor's report. Guy Benaventana, thanks for stepping in.

Good morning, commissioners.

Morning.

The 16 matters referred to by Mr. Haggerty have all been reviewed by the solicitor's office. Those matters are ready for board action today. There's no further report unless you gentlemen have questions.

Any questions for Mr. Benaventana? Hearing none, we'll move to public participation related to agenda items. You'll need to state the agenda item you're referring to in your public comment. You'll need to state your name prior to speaking, and you'll have three minutes, and we are being livestreamed. Is there anyone who would like to make public comment on agenda items? At the end, there will be a time for general public comment. Seeing none, we'll move to review and approval of the minutes. We have minutes from June 24 and July 1. Do I have a motion for both? So moved. Move by Commissioner Hartwick. I'll second that motion. Seconded by Commissioner Priest. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. We have no directors and guests with us today. We'll move to salary board where we have the three commissioners and the controller, and we have salary board meeting minutes from July 1st. Do I have a motion?

So moved.

Moved by Controller Bateman. Do I have a second? Seconded by Commissioner Priest. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. We have no packet today, so we'll move the budget and finance. Mr. Davis.

Morning, commissioners. Morning. I have no changes to the purchase order packet that was sent out prior. It's ready for your approval. Happy to answer any questions.

Any questions for Mr. Davis?

Yeah, just give us an update on where we're at as we are closing in on August, how the budget is looking countywide, and if there's any departments that we need to be alerted to that could be going over budget.

I'm working on finishing up estimates as we speak. I mean, departments I'd pay close attention to are the same ones that are on our monthly meeting cadence. Yeah. those departments that had the larger miscellaneous adjustments that were approved. They seem difficult to overcome without

big changes I'm just gonna ask it's one Commissioner that you alert all three of us in the event that we need to be looking forward to making adjustments within those departments so that as we get closer to the budget cycle for next year there are any surprises yep certainly thank you just keep on that agenda since you raised the topic yeah I personally like to see a public discussion about work release consolidation of prison the

efforts at solid waste. I mean, there's a host of things that we outlined in the last budget as we are getting closer to, you know, past mid-year. It would be great to know where we are with progress on closing the gap on a number of those areas where I believe we're spending money and the needs don't exist. And we need to press back on directors to be able to put together a plan to ensure that taxpayers aren't going to be footing the bill.

Mm-hmm.

I wholeheartedly agree.

Thank you, Commissioner.

Okay. Any other questions? Comments? We need a motion for the purchase order packet. So moved. Moved by Commissioner Preece. Seconded by Commissioner Hartwick. Any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Thank you, Mr. Davis. We have 16 matters requiring board action before us today. Does anything need pulled for a separate vote?

None for me.

Okay.

I'll make a motion we approve items 1 through 16 on today's packet.

Motion made by Commissioner Priest. Do I have a second? Second. Seconded by Commissioner Hartwick.

Any discussion?

Hearing none. All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Move to former business, we have a tabled item.

Yes. Mr. chairman if I could, um, I tabled this last week. Uh, I was, I had the opportunity, uh, over this past week to represent Pennsylvania, the National Association of counties on the board of directors. And in doing so, I met with some of the representatives from nationwide. Um, there's a number of questions that I had related to the review process and to the selection that occurred here that, um, I've not been able to finalize and what I've. developed has been sort of an exchange and information that is clarifying some of what i've heard versus what proposals were so i said instead of you know having us postpone this i'd recommend to the board if we could to have a meeting a public meeting and a public presentation from the two finalists who may be under consideration for us from the Alaris group and nationwide to come before us to clarify, to provide the highlights related to the presentation they presented to the Volunteer Benefits Committee and for us to be able to ask some questions and place it on the public record related to this decision. I think I've heard over and over in the past week about the importance, particularly at the county level, to really talk about how can we save towards retirement. Talk about government employment. It's oftentimes not at a higher salary. Folks have very little disposable income and any dollars that they could put away towards the future of their retirement is a great accomplishment to be able to, it may be extraordinarily difficult, but down the road, The benefits that exist from compounding interest and the ability to make those investments are really critically important. I know we've had a generally lower level of participation in the county on this particular deferred compensation plan. And I just want to make sure that we're doing everything we can to provide education, an open level of conversation, resources, and the best opportunities for our employees to be able to make those considerations. And ultimately, we are one... Comment from Dallas, Texas, and in our board meeting about how they've targeted women in their organization and changed it from about 15% of compliance and participation over 70%. And the stories of what that meant to those individuals in their family were pretty compelling. So, I think there's a reason to be a little bit cautious as we do this and we've never we've not changed this in a long time. So I want to make sure that we're providing all consideration as we make this choice. in the best interest of our employees moving forward. So I'd ask that we table this for one more week with hopefully a public presentation to follow.

Is that a motion on the table? It is. Yeah, I'll second. Any discussion?

Yeah, I want to just touch on something that George brought up, that he was at NACO, and I know you were as well. And, George, I want to thank you. For those who don't know, we have two commissioners across all 67 counties in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that represent Pennsylvania at the national level, and Commissioner Harwick is one of them. uh and he's done so for well over a dozen years i believe now and i want to thank you for your service there and brought back many good ideas over the year over the years i know the land bank came from your meetings at naco i believe a couple other the infrastructure bank as well and some other great ideas we've been able to implement here in dolphin county so thank you for your leadership in that role thank you commissioner

We have a motion and a second for tabling former business. Any further comments? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Should we create a motion under new business for a public meeting, public presentation, or will we just do that? I'm just more asking point of order.

If the board would like a public presentation from anyone, you don't need to make a motion per se, but we can certainly discuss that.

I believe there's agreement for a public presentation from uh nationwide yes so we'll get on that in the meantime so just remain table all right commissioner's remarks commissioner hartwood

Just bear with me. I've got a little bit of lengthy remarks today, just from a federal updates perspective. And then there's a lot of happening events tonight. So I just want to give them their consideration. First of all, start off last Thursday. I had the opportunity to participate in Rural Transportation Day at the Northern Dolphin Human Services Center alongside Bonnie Kent, Rich Farr of Rapid Transit and Representative Fleming together yesterday. We experienced firsthand the critical role shared share ride transportation plays in connecting rural residents with essential medical care and other vital services. The day reinforced that reliable transportation is far more than a ride. It's a lifeline that promotes independence, improves health outcomes and ensures our seniors, individuals with disabilities and rural families remain connected to the services they depend on. Transportation is a huge issue. in Northern Dauphin County and rural Pennsylvania, and ensuring folks have access to that transportation is critically important. Secondly, on some good news, and this is something we press, but to safely reduce our placements in children and youth is always a goal to try to find ways that kids are not stuck in a system where they don't have permanency. They need to be safe first, but ultimately, the longer they linger in a system without a place where when they knock the door they don't have to answer may i enter before they come in and actually have a permanent home is critically important and while children and youth takes a significant amount of criticism i think it's important to to note that they've made some remarkable progress for children and families that we serve our formal first foster care and kinship population has dropped below 300 for the first time in several years Caseworker vacancies have reached their lowest level in several years and the agency continues to strengthen partnerships, improve accountability, and expand services that keep families together whenever safely possible. These accomplishments are more than statistics. They represent children finding permanency, families being strengthened, and lives being changed. I'm incredibly proud of our staff who choose to do this job. Every time we receive concerns about children and youth, obviously there are never any winners. The kids are oftentimes the ones who are stuck in the most difficult position and they didn't ask to be there. And to understand those concerns, there's always multiple sides to the story. But I want to commend our Children and Youth staff for sticking in there and continuing to make the priority of safety of our kids their number one priority. We could not have a solid community and kids protected without their efforts. And while they always take criticism, I think today is a good opportunity to acknowledge all that they do. Finally, during the National Association of Counties annual conference in New Orleans, I participated in several policy briefings, highlighted legislation and regulatory changes that could significantly impact county government. One of the most encouraging updates was NACO's transformation into a far more proactive advocate in Washington. Rather than simply reacting to federal legislation, NACO is really helping to shape policy before it is written by bringing county-driven solutions directly to Congress and to the administration. As Pennsylvania's representative to the NACO Board of Directors, I continue to work to ensure Dauphin County priorities are part of those national conversations. The conference included important updates, and I could give you multiple pages. I'm trying to condense it into two paragraphs. but it included transportation, Medicaid, election administration. Congress continues to debate a reconciliation package that could reduce discretionary funding for programs supporting older adults, children and families, behavioral health, housing, transportation, and emergency management. So we need to pay attention. At the same time, proposed transportation, a Build America 250 Act would increase federal investment in roads, bridges, while expanding funding opportunities for counties. NACA also briefed counties on new Medicaid work requirement regulations that would significantly increase administrative responsibilities for the state and local human service departments, as well as proposed Save America Act, which could impose significant substantial new election administration requirements without dedicated federal funding. The common theme throughout each briefing was the growing importance of county government in shaping federal policy and implementing these national priorities. The decisions that are being made in Washington have direct implications for the services we provide every day, making it essential that Dauphin County remains actively engaged. I will continue advocating for policies that strengthen local government, protect taxpayers, preserve critical federal investments, and ensure counties have the resources necessary to effectively serve our residents. So, finally, tonight there is an opportunity to honor three really important individuals within this community. The first is our the head of Harrisburg Area Community College who is retiring to ski. We know he has provided a distinguished level of 15 years of service to this region, has provided significant leadership. And tonight at Central Penn College, I believe there's going to be an organized event to say farewell to ski and do him the appropriate honoring. I know both personally, And professionally, I'd like to thank Ski for being involved in my life during the ups, downs, and continuing to be an encouragement to me personally and to those who he has mentored along the way. He is truly a good man, and he will be sorely missed in this region. uh sandy moore is also a person that we will be honoring tonight as she retires from the administrative office of the pennsylvania courts sandy was our children youth director she was also the director of human services and served in both roles and capacity at one time sandy was scooped up by the then head of the supreme court chief justice max bear her and about five to seven other dolphin county staff members were taken over to run the dependency side under Supreme Court Justice Max Behr and Goodfriend. Sandy has richly engaged and enlightened me on a number of topics and has provided leadership in the dependency area for a number of years. I just wanna thank her for her level of service and her richly deserved retirement. I know she continues to be a mentor and somebody who I know we can all count on for some level of advice and support. And finally, I just wanna read something that was posted this past week, and I normally don't do this, but I think this is important. This was posted by a good friend of mine, Jason Bryant, and it's about another individual who we will be honoring tonight. It's about a young lady named Natori Jackson, a gold glove boxing winner and somebody who just won the recent gold medal in the Junior Olympics. He said, imagine this 14-year-old female walked into a store to rob them or stole a car and wrecked it or maybe shot someone in the neighborhood. Every news station would talk about her for the next two weeks. Note, all she did was represent the state of Pennsylvania in capital punishment boxing gym in the state of Kansas to win a gold medal in the Junior Olympics. No press, no interview from any news station. Crime is celebrated more obviously in the city. It's so much more to this girl's story, but way too much to type. We continue our journey. We are now on to Allentown, Houston, Cleveland, and Louisiana coming up, and we plan on wiping everyone out. I just want to tell you that young ladies like Victoria Jackson are important to acknowledge. We don't need to monetize, outrage, and continue to report nothing but negativity and reinforce stereotypes. I know positive news does not sell, but we certainly could use some more of it, both here... and in this region. And it's young ladies like Notorious Jackson who fights tirelessly, works out in the quiet, goes and shows up and hones her skills in a way that represents this region and brings home bold and national recognition to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. We're going to be proud to honor her tonight, too, at the Capital Boxing Gym, as well for her incredible accomplishments. And I would ask, you know, that we all recognize those accomplishments as a part of what we celebrate, not just the fingers that we point in the community. Thank you. That's all. Are we delivering a proclamation for her?

We are. I just wanted to make sure. Thank you. Commissioner Priest.

I just want to start off by completely agreeing with commissioner Hartwick positive stories do exist out there and there is way too much. Emphasis on the negativity that occurs here in central Pennsylvania and around the world. It's pretty amazing. I did not know that George. That's something I would have loved to see on TV or read in the newspaper, but. As of this point, I have not. So thank you for bringing that up. Dr. Ski, there's an individual who has changed thousands of lives for the better in his role as the president of HACC, a real solid individual who, as well with you, has reached out to me on many occasions, offering advice and sound judgment. And I consider him a friend, and he will be missed in his role as the HACC president. The Riverfront Concert Series has begun over across the street here, and I want to urge everyone, if you can, to get out there and check out this fantastic line of musicians that they have set up for this year's series. I joined city and state officials last week at a ribbon-cutting for Wild Heart Ministries and the Gateway on Market Street in Harrisburg. That's an awesome new project, and I want to thank those individuals for bringing that here. It's a project that's much needed for housing issues that we have today. in the city of harrisburg and in dolphin county last evening commissioner douglas and i attended the fire chief's meeting for dolphin county and they thanked us for our continued support and commissioner hartwick they also said to say thank you to you as well and we thanked them it's funny that they thank us but it's those individuals who given their most valuable personal treasure of their time away from their families away from their homes 24 7 365 and I say it often open when people are in their time of greatest need or first responders who are most valuable community resources are always there for us we can never ever thank them enough and we made sure we gave them several shout outs last evening and that's my report for today

Thank you, Commissioner Preece. For my report, I just want to say I was at NACO as well with Commissioner Hartwick. And while I was gone, I just want to state like French Fest happened, Brew Fest happened, Riverfront Concert Series kicked off. Lots of amazing things happening here that it was unfortunate that I had to miss. But I was checking in with people who were going to these events and just thankful for all the work. I heard French Fest specifically went really well. Obviously, the concert went well. I know there was some weather and challenges in that regard. Obviously, with the smoke, the wildfires and stuff, that was that was a real challenge, but just thankful for everyone in their planning. You know, as we want this region to be a place that people come here, these types of events are the types of things that bring bring people here that put our region on the map. Also, while I was gone, the community of central Pennsylvania held their gala. I want to thank my executive assistant for going on my behalf. While at NACO, I'm a member of the Justice and Public Safety Committee. I'm in leadership as the Vice Chair of Courts and Corrections. So it's an opportunity to just really be read in on national level issues and trying to bring local issues to the national stage to really try to work for reform in the space of corrections specifically is something that I'm very passionate about, but learning about a lot of other things as I've been in this role for two and a half years on justice and public safety but in even the role of vice chair of courts and corrections things like fema funding and learning about the challenges that are that are happening there with the disasters that were that are occurring and those being funded we had atf come give a presentation on 3d printed guns ghost guns specifically and the challenges that they're having with that and how our communities can better address those things. And then, obviously, the challenges with federal government transparency with local government. There were a myriad of things we talked about while at NACO, but the great thing, I think, is I always come back more informed, get to go to different breakout sessions throughout the week, went to one on elections, went to multiple sessions that ultimately bring me back more prepared To have connections with other commissioners who are doing things and other communities that are trying to maybe approach some of the challenges that all counties are going through over 3000 counties. But they've maybe, you know, crack the code, and we can, you know, model after what they've done. So it's a great place to idea share. And so I was thankful for my time there. I was, as Commissioner Priest said, I was at the Fire Chiefs meeting last night. They were just thanking us for the mental health resources that we've now provided to all of our fire and EMS. And I just want to state one more time, you know, that those resources are so critical. You know, when... Someone is the first to come on the scene to to an accident where there's fatalities, right? They see things and some of them might be volunteers, right? And If you've ever had to navigate mental health services, it can be a challenge to even get a meeting. It can be a challenge to see the bill after the meeting. And this is going to be an opportunity for them, whether they're volunteers or whether they're doing this as a career, to get the resources they need to process the things they're seeing taken care of us. and i think it's so critically important that we've funded this and that ultimately they're able to get these resources especially as we're seeing volunteers and experience the challenges that it's experiencing firefighters specifically to have this resource i think just continues to help put opportunities for them there so that they don't burn out and that they have the opportunity to process what they're seeing and just to be clear this also is extended to their families and what they experience as you know their loved ones are out serving so I'm very proud of that very thankful for the fire chiefs and their advocacy for that This weekend we have Pride in Dauphin County. Dauphin County will have a booth at Pride, so please stop by if you're there. Also look for us in the parade. We'll be walking in the parade. And then I just want to say a special thanks to our LGBTQIA plus advisory committee as they are, you know, the ones who, their leadership and planning are ultimately what, you know, allowed for much of this to happen. And so thankful for them. And if you ever want to be a part of that, if you're an employee in Dauphin County, please email me or my assistant. And then ultimately, as both of these individuals said, Dr. Ski is a local legend, I think, just in his energy, enthusiasm, positivity. He's certainly been an encouragement to me. Sad to see him go, but I know he even extended the time he was supposed to go just because of his heart of service to this region. And thankful that he's going to have some time to reflect on the impact this evening that he's had on this region and the many people in it.

Yep. Also want to add one more thing. We did hear from our parks and rec director and the stems this week. Our parks had some damage from the storms over the weekend. And I want to thank her and her staff that came in over the weekend and cleared the trails so that our residents could continue to utilize that. So thank you very much.

Great. If there's no more comments, we'll move to correspondence. Correspondence will be received and disseminated by the chief clerk's office as appropriate. With that, we'll move to general public participation. I have a sign-up sheet here. Just a reminder, you'll have three minutes. You'll need to state your name, and we are being live-streamed. I'll go through this list, and then I will open it to the floor. Nicholas Yinkst, East Hanover Township. Morning, Mr. Yinkst. Morning.

Good morning, county commissioners. As noted, my name is Nick Yankston. I'm the township manager for East Hanover. I'm joined today by two of our township supervisors, Becky Older, who serves as our chair, and Suzanne Donovan. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. My purpose is to follow up on a letter the East Hanover Township Board of Supervisors sent to you last month, expressing its concerns about the administration of the Dauphin County Local Share Municipal Grant Program and offering to provide assistance as you seek to reform the program. I don't know if you've had an opportunity to review that letter, but I do have copies available today to distribute to you if you're interested. As you know, East Hanover is proud to have served as the host municipality for Hollywood Casino at Penn National Racecourse for nearly 20 years. because of that unique role as well as these handovers distinct statutory status under the pennsylvania racehorse development and gaming act our officials and staff have gained both experience and perspective we believe would benefit the county as it considers reforms to its grant program we're familiar with the history and complexities of the gaming act And the institutional knowledge we've developed over the past two decades would help ensure that any proposed reforms meet the requirements of the Gaming Act, while also benefiting the casino and the communities most impacted by it. Every Hollywood casino patron, employee, vendor, and entertainer accesses it by traveling on our municipalities. If there's a fire call at the casino or a motor vehicle accident on the roads leading to it, our local volunteer fire company is the first to respond to protect lives and property. This means that East Standover has unique responsibilities related to Hollywood Casino and a deep interest in ensuring the grant program addresses needs related to the casino. Because of this, we've had real concerns about how gaming grant monies have been distributed in recent years. One such example noted in the letter concerns how the 1% of gross terminal revenue from the casino that the Gaming Act requires to be used for municipal grants to fund the cost of infrastructure improvements, emergency services, and health and public safety expenses associated with licensed facility operations, how that's being dispersed. Our purpose today is not to point fingers, but rather to offer our support. As we heard today, there's so many other important priorities that you all are working on. We appreciate that. East Hanover and Dauphin County have a long history of cooperating on matters relating to Hollywood Casino, and we believe the reform process provides another opportunity to work together. We appreciate that the Board of Commissioners is leading the way on these important and essential reforms, and East Hanover is willing to provide any support we can. Thank you again for your time, and please do not hesitate to reach out to me or any of the supervisors if we may give assistance. We hope to hear from you.

Thank you, Mr. Yext.

Normally, I'll respond, but I think a larger 10 in your input is welcome. And we certainly would love to be able to set up maybe a follow-up meeting to better understand budgetary constraints, concerns, and hear your recommendations.

Appreciate that. Are you interested in a copy of this letter, or have you already received that?

We've already received it, and I look forward to discussing that in a follow-up meeting with staff.

Thank you, Commissioner. Appreciate it.

Next up, we have Louis Butts.

good morning my name is butz harris from pennsylvania born and raised went to uh uncw wilmington and i really didn't know what happened to wilmington until i got a little bit older with the coup um where they had government of black there was a black government but they cooled and the people took over wilmington north carolina that was the only coup that really worked and i didn't really know and gravitate why I felt certain different pressures. But I came from Harrisburg in which we won the civil war. And I felt some of the pressure down there from a reconstruction, but that's not what I'm here. I just want to tell you a little bit about my history and what I've, I lived with the KKK for four years down there. And they taught me a lot about people. That's just where I'm from and some of my experience. I came here to discuss the Susquehanna Agnes We're on our 50th anniversary of Agnes. That's what devastated Harrisburg. We lost jobs, and we still haven't really recovered from Agnes. with all the employees that left from the state, we're not coming back. And the panels that I see looking at how we change Harrisburg, they're not jiving. They don't have the teeth. I'll put my comprehensive plan against anybody in this country regarding Harrisburg and moving forward and moving the city forward. It's a narrative that we need in our 250th anniversary. And it seemed like still black men in Harrisburg, we don't get the credit for everything that we do around. And it is serious. We need to make a change for the Keystone State. We got to turn the corner. and bring our whole country around to recognizing people who have always been here and understand the natural and the human resources that it's in our indigenous zone. I was born and raised here. I understand what's going on. We need something like a Harrisburg International Aquarium down on Marcus Street at the old post office and join it up with the train station or something like that that can bring visitors, bring our tourism dollars in and compete. With Hershey, Lancaster, we have to do things that compete. The Susquehanna may rise again, but we're still not using it. When I grew up, we had a lot of boat races. We had things that we were using the river. We don't use the river anymore. Like it's a taboo and we got to get over it. Within my comprehensive plan, it covers the river. It covers how we need some of the funds to make sure it's healthy, make sure it's tested, make sure we take ownership and responsibility for the Susquehanna. It's vital. And some of the narrative, we're not going towards that. We're going somewhere else. As a resident, as someone that was born and raised here, I know that's important. I know we need to change. And there's nobody, people that are on a panel that's been here for like 10, 20 years, and they're on a panel to see where we're going ahead. They haven't even understood where we've been. And it's vital. Thank you. I appreciate it. I think I'll be talking with you later this week. It's vital that you include people from here that understand where we've been.

Thank you, Mr. Buss. Appreciate it. Anyone else for public comment? We have no one else on our list. Seeing none, I'll entertain a motion for adjournment. So moved. Moved by Commissioner Priest, seconded by Commissioner Hartwick. All in favor? Aye. We're adjourned.