County Commissioners - Regular Meeting

I'd like to call to order the Dauphin County Board of Commissioners meeting for July 29th, 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, with liberty and justice

Chief Clerk's report, Mr. Haggerty.

Good morning, commissioners. An executive session was held on Thursday, July 23rd, to obtain the advice of legal counsel on issues relating to economic development programs and personnel matters. An executive session was also held on Tuesday, July 28th to obtain the advice of legal counsel on issues relating to economic development programs and personnel matters. In addition to the July 8th, 2026 Board of Commissioners meeting minutes, salary board packet, personnel packet, and purchase order packet, there are 60 items for board consideration today. We have three public safety agreements, one IT agreement, two facilities maintenance agreements, one drug and alcohol services agreement, two grant applications for state funds, 11 grant awards, 32 human services agreements, five parks and recreation presenter agreements, two resolutions, and the training packet. An agreement for deferred compensation plan administration recommended by the Voluntary Employee Benefits Committee appears in former business. At the request of the board, we have scheduled time for retirement collaborative and nationwide to both present before the board, which will happen later in August. In the meantime, I would suggest the board consider simply voting down the item remaining in former business, and we can instead add the appropriate item following those presentations next month. Most importantly for today, I wanted to share an update relating to Dauphin County's administration of our gaming grant program. Under state law originally passed in 2004 as a host county of a category one horse track casino, Dauphin County receives 2% of slot machine revenue and 1% of interactive gaming revenue from Hollywood Casino. In addition, the county also receives a portion of a $10 million annual fee, which is split with East Hanover Township. The total amount of money the county receives, which is referred to as our local share, has historically been between $12 million and $22 million per year. state law dictates that 50 of this total amount of gaming revenue be retained by the county for its discretionary unrestricted use while the remaining 50 be distributed through a gaming grant program today we are announcing several reforms to this gaming grant program first we are strengthening the contract language grant recipients are required to agree to beginning with the 160 grant awards the board of commissioners approved earlier this year Under the terms of these new agreements, grant recipients will now be required to certify the funds were used appropriately, submit progress reports every six months detailing the project status, anticipated timing of future milestones, and how funds have been spent to date, provide closeout reports, disclose any conflicts of interest prior to receiving payments, and if serious questions arise, submit a formal audit completed by a certified public accountant. This new contract language will also empower the county to revoke grants if projects do not materialize, ensure the appropriate withholding of assets purchased with grant funds, and ultimately claw back funds if necessary. We will also be incorporating similar language into the contracts for other economic development programs moving forward, such as our tourism grant program. So these improved accountability measures will not be limited to the gaming grant program alone. Second, for the next round of grant applications, which will become available on August 1st and due on November 2nd, we are overhauling the application and selection process. Grant awards will be limited to only municipalities and nonprofit organizations, and the county commissioners are setting specific strategic targets for the allocation of the available funds across several eligible categories. the board's goal will be to award around 35 percent of available funds to public safety and emergency services 25 to facilities infrastructure and transportation projects 20 to health and human services and 20 to other projects in the public interest An updated scoring rubric is also being provided to the Gaming Advisory Board for its use when evaluating applicants. The purpose of this scoring rubric is to promote a fair, consistent, transparent, and merit-based evaluation of all applications submitted to the Gaming Advisory Board. Using this new rubric, applicants and projects will be scored based on their location, connection to Hollywood Casino, public need and community benefit, project scope, budget, and cost effectiveness, leveraging of other funds, project readiness and timeline, alignment with public sector strategic or comprehensive plans, professional support and documentation, municipal community and partner support, and project outcomes and long-term impact. And finally, for the first time, the application process and accompanying documents will be fully digitized. Not only will this ensure a more efficient process for applicants, awardees, and our staff, it will also allow us to be more transparent with the public by posting online every application, an aggregation of the Gaming Advisory Board scoring results, and the newly required progress and closeout reports for each grant recipient. Again, the applications and criteria will be posted publicly on August 1st, and applications are due back November 2nd. I want to take a moment and commend the Board of Commissioners for working collaboratively together to bring today's announcement to fruition. There's been a lot of work behind the scenes to get to this point, and they deserve credit for identifying shared goals and reaching consensus together on all of these important issues. Lastly, I want to remind everyone there's no Board of Commissioners meeting scheduled for next week due to the annual County Commissioners Association conference taking place instead. So our next board meeting will be Wednesday, August 12th. That concludes my report. I'm happy to answer any questions.

Any questions for the Chief Clerk? I just want to thank Archie Burke's office for the tremendous work that went into developing the gaming grant reforms. I also want to recognize economic development staff for their dedication and support throughout the process. Thank you as well to my colleagues, Commissioner Priest, Commissioner Harwick, for listening to the concerns raised by the community and joining in an effort to strengthen this gaming grant program. Together, I think we've charted a new path forward. These reforms mark a significant step toward greater transparency, accountability, and public trust for the gaming grant program. From the beginning, my goal has been pretty simple, just to ensure that every public dollar is used for the intended purpose and delivers the greatest possible benefit to the people of Dauphin County. And while there's always gonna be work to do, I believe these reforms move us meaningfully forward and closer to that goal. So thank you to the chief clerk's office, especially for the work that you've put in. We'll move to the solicitor's report. Mr. Owens.

Good morning, Commissioners. All matters requiring Board action on this agenda that require review by my office have been reviewed and approved for action.

Thank you, Mr. Owens. Any questions? Hearing none, we'll move to public participation related to agenda items. Just for the room, you have a three-minute time period. You'll need to state your name prior to speaking. You'll need to state the agenda item you're addressing. We are being livestreamed. Again, you'll need to state your name once you begin speaking. Anyone for public participation related to our agenda, there is a time for public participation later in the meeting. Seeing none, we'll move to review and approval of the minutes. We have the July 8, 2026 Board of Commissioners meeting minutes for approval. Do I have a motion? So moved.

Second.

Moved by Commissioner Hartwick, seconded by Commissioner Preece. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. We have no directors or guests before us today. Move to salary board. Salary board packet is before us. Do I have a motion for the salary board packet? So moved. Moved by Commissioner Hartwick. Second. Second. Second by Commissioner Preece. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Human Resources.

Good morning, Commissioners.

Morning. Morning.

Are there any questions regarding the personnel packet?

it's just verifying that all of these fall within the budgeted 2026 numbers that is correct thank you i'll make a motion that we accept the personnel packet as presented second motion made by commissioner hartwick seconded by commissioner priest any discussion hearing none all those in favor aye opposed motion carries thank you thank you budget and finance director christopher davis

Morning, Commissioners. Good morning. I have no changes to the investment report that was sent out earlier in the week. There's also no changes to the purchase order packet. It's ready for your approval.

Do I have a motion for the purchase order packet? Second. Moved by Commissioner Priest, seconded by Commissioner Hartwig. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. We have 60 matters before us requiring Board action. Are there any you would like to pull for a separate like to make a motion that we approve items 160. um i was i was going to pull item number 18 19 20 and 38 i was just waiting if there was anything anyone else was pulling i'm i i will second all items outside of those in one through sixty so one through seventeen twenty one through thirty seven thirty nine through sixty if you're amenable to that motion so so we have a motion moved i've seconded for items 1 through 17 21 through 37 39 through 60. i just want to check our note takers that they're that's accurate everybody's good okay um any discussion yes i do have a question from the for the chief of staff on item 17. did you give a description on that topic

Yes, thank you, Commissioner. Several years ago, the county, city, and downtown improvement district began making payments to Park Harrisburg to ensure that parking be free in downtown Harrisburg between 5 and 7 p.m. This $146,000 payment is this year's annual payment towards that program.

Did we make a payment in 2025? no i believe the most recent payment towards this program would have been in 2023. okay and just for the record i do remember this board had some individuals in here talking and supported this back in 2024 i believe and we were told actually all three of us asked for updates quarterly updates or updates from those individuals including businesses and we were promised we would get them As of today, I received zero updates on this topic. I will support it because I believe it benefits our downtown businesses, but the lack of communication from the other side is very concerning to me, and I hope moving forward that we do hear from the businesses and that this is something that's beneficial to them because all that I'm seeing downtown are businesses leaving. And we continue to provide funding over the years for this, not since 2021. for i believe 2023 you're saying but we have many years and i just want to make sure that this is a two-way street with the communication of knowing that that money is being utilized and it's working Thank you. I'll mission remarks.

Um, I think this board, I think this board has been very clear. In talking about the level of expectation and outcomes for businesses. I mean, we, we know parking is probably 1 of the biggest barriers for business in downtown Harrisburg. That's very, very clear. And I think this board former boards wanted to be a part of that solution. Uh, but in order to ensure that businesses are benefiting, we asked for some specific data. data around the ability to see who was parking there, what times they were parking, how much was it utilized. We even talked about and floated the idea about businesses being able to stamp receipts as you come in and you're parking at a local business. We don't want that to be a barrier for local businesses. We want to figure out a way to help lead the way and not stand in the way. I think all of those requests from this board of commissioners have been rightfully ignored. And that's, I think, where Commissioner Preece and I think our board have expressed frustration. And I'll speak for myself just as one commissioner. This is going to be the last year that I want to support an effort without real meaningful looks at who this is benefiting. I think right now we've seen a changeover in the downtown improvement district with new leadership. I think there's an effort to try to address downtown, and there's a lot of things that really need to go into this, and parking is one of those big barriers. I'd like to us not just throw additional resources because we're being pressed in the challenge. I'd like to see the resources that come from the county go into meaningful help. for businesses who are struggling because parking continues to be a barrier in downtown harrisburg and i would expect before next year this request comes before us again we will have a substantive plan and a way to be able to review that plan before we approve any allocation i concur with my colleagues i think we we asked for the data last time we haven't received it but i do believe we have to continue to invest in downtown which is part of the challenge and so i think we got to continue to press for data for the future but

With that said, was there any other comments for items 1 through 17, 21 through 37, 39 through 60? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. We have items 18, 19, 20, and 38. I'll entertain a motion for those items as a block if that's something. So moved. Moved by Commissioner Hartwick. Is there a second? Second. Seconded by Commissioner Priest. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed?

Nay.

Motion carries.

As suggested by the former business clerk, under former business, I am going to make a motion to vote the former business down in an attempt to allow for public presentations to occur from both of the vendors and make a decision following that presentation.

So parliamentary here, do we need to make a motion and vote together to bring it off the table? And then...

I think the appropriate motion would be a motion to approve, followed by three, if the board is unanimous, three.

I'll make a motion to approve.

Second.

Okay, motion made for approval of item one under four number business by Commissioner Hartwick, seconded by Commissioner Priest. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? All those opposed? No. Okay. Motion is not moved. All right. New business, any new business?

Hearing none, Commissioner's remarks. Commissioner Harwood. Just to piggyback on the opening remarks, I want to obviously give a great deal of credit to our staff, starting out with Chief Clerk Haggerty, Vince Pease, who has been drafted for a job that he's never signed up for, and for those staff at Economic Development that continue, despite being in challenging circumstances and understaffed continue to provide a level of work ethic and credibility to ensure that they are meeting the many obligations of our economic development staff. So for all involved in these reforms, I want to say thank you. It would not happen without you. And also thank my colleagues to demonstrating how working together can provide measurable and achievable outcomes and results. I just want to be very clear first that these reforms are not an indictment of the previous gaming grant process or the individuals that have faithfully served it over the years. Rather, they represent an opportunity to build upon what has worked, learn from our experiences, and strengthen the program for the future. Our goal is to provide clear direction, greater accountability, higher expectations and ultimately better outcomes for the residents of Dolphin County. Good governance requires that we continually evaluate our processes and make thoughtful improvements when opportunities arise. I also believe there's additional work ahead. I think this was a great start. While the revised grant agreements appropriately place greater legal responsibility on grant recipients, language alone is not enough. We have a responsibility to ensure compliance through meaningful oversight, periodic audits, and clear accountability measures. Over the coming months, I believe we should continue strengthening our internal compliance processes so that we can provide the public with confidence that gaming funds are being used exactly as intended. Finally, I do not believe these reforms should represent the end of this conversation. they should be the beginning of a culture of continuous improvement. I would encourage us to regularly engage with our legislative delegation, the Gaming Advisory Board, legal counsel, staff, and our grant recipients to evaluate what is working, identify opportunities for refinement, and remain responsive to changing needs, times, and best practices. Public trust is not something we earn once, it's something we earned continuously. By remaining committed to transparency, accountability, collaboration, and ongoing improvement, We can ensure Dauphin County's gaming grant program continues to be a model of responsible stewardship and delivers the greatest possible benefit to the communities that we serve. And finally, last but not least, I'd like to wish a happy 30th birthday to my administrative assistant. And again, Jennifer Smallwood, today is her birthday, and I just wanted to publicly thank you for being an incredible, loyal partner, being extraordinarily capable, and all you do to represent this community and to our office. So thank you and happy birthday.

Happy birthday.

Commissioner priest, thank you. I'm going to follow up my colleagues and and of course, thank our solicitor's office specifically. Matt owens guy and the executive assistant. Kelly banks to the works that they did getting us to this point. The game reforms and of course, thank the. Economic development department and staff and our chief of staff. So I know. A lot of time went into this and it's something that has been longer county, but to support this. unanimously with my two colleagues last week i attended the cap cog council of government's meeting on behalf of the county and provided county updates meetings attended by officials from high spire west hanover lower paxton hummelstown and swatara I had the pleasure of representing the county this past weekend at the National Boy Scouts Jamboree in West Virginia. There were 8,500 scouts total, 6,500 boys and 2,000 girls. They were on site with an additional 4,500 staff. This takes place once every four years, and it was one of the most secure events I've ever been to. West Virginia State Police were checking credentials at the entrance to the 15,000-acre facility. National Guard troops were stationed at various entry areas. A large contingent of medical staff was on site, and I had the opportunity to address the scouts and discuss the importance of community service and becoming active in one's community, along with others from around the country, such as the West Virginia Secretary of State, Senator from South Dakota, numerous military dignitaries, Councilmember from Wilmington, Delaware, several mayors, and many professional businesspersons. Last night, I attended the public hearing of the opening of the Crane Clean Energy Center. at penn state harrisburg fema and nuclear regulatory commission staff gave a series of updates and there have been thousands of hours emergency preparedness planning among local county state agencies back during three mile island and now for the crane clean energy center which is anticipated 2027. The impact of this reopening at the former TMI site is substantial. It will put 835 megawatts of emission-free energy onto our grid, add $16 billion to the Pennsylvania State GDP, 4,500 direct and indirect jobs created during the restart, and 600 full-time family-sustained jobs once it's offered. constellation it's committing 1 million dollars to the community nonprofits and workforce development initiatives and millions and local taxes will go to the lower dolphin school district londonderry township and dolphin camp and as i mentioned before while three mile island was operating every other year 1,200 skilled laborers will be on site for 30 days. That's the equivalent of 36,000 room nights and pumping billions of dollars into our economy.

Thank you. Thank you, Commissioner Preece. I had the privilege and honor of attending Central Pennsylvania Pride Festival this past weekend. Dolphin County, uh, plus, uh, advisory board, uh, man, the booth there along with other employees, uh, that, you know, had all kinds of information about often county people were looking for a job or if they wanted resources. Which I think is great. We did that last year as well this year. The difference was, we also walked in the parade as a county. So it was our 1st time. in the parade as a county. I just want to thank the leadership of that group, all the time and effort and energy and planning that went into that because it was a lot. And I'm just incredibly grateful for all their effort. Certainly grateful to all those who helped plan Central PA Pride Festival. It's a lot of work to plan a festival that large and they continue to grow it with the parade kind of expanding and getting bigger along with all the work of the amount of booths that are there, the amount of performers. So it was a really great time. Also want to thank Free Mom Hugs. They let me walk with them in the parade and they were a great time. They're always fun. I also had the chance of attending the Mecham car auction and auto show, which is really great. I mean, if you're a car person, it's right here in Dauphin County. You see so many amazing cars, but on top of it, just The impact for our region of that many people coming in for the purpose of that show, spending money here in our region, maybe even staying nights in our region. So excited to celebrate that and obviously put the Farm Show Complex on display for what its capabilities are to draw those kinds of events. I want to note for the public that our prison town hall that was scheduled for this coming Tuesday has been moved to August 25th. So the scheduled prison town hall for August 4th is now on August 25th. And a reminder for those who maybe never attended a prison town hall, they happen here in the commissioner's hearing room from 6 to 8 p.m. I also want to just ensure the public is aware that across Dauphin County, there will be many national night outs coming up on August 4th throughout Dauphin County. Many of your townships and boroughs will be celebrating local law enforcement and EMS. And so make sure to get out there all throughout Dauphin County. And as noted by the chief clerk earlier, there is no commissioners meeting next Wednesday. So please make sure to note that August 12th will be our next meeting of the Board of Commissioners. With that, we'll move to general public participation. And I probably have a list in front of me, and then I will call out the names on this list in the order they are. And then I'll call out the names on this list in the order they are, and then we will open it to the floor for public participation. Reminder, you have a three-minute time limit. You'll begin by stating your name, and we are being live streamed. We'll begin with John Martin, and then we'll open it to the room.

Good morning, commissioners. Good morning.

Good morning, Mr. Martin.

My name is John Martin from Susquehanna Township. Since 2025, ICE arrests in PA have quadrupled. Shortly after this wave of arrests began last spring, the number of immigrants with criminal records being arrested has dropped significantly. But the rate of arrests, detainments, and deportations have continued to rise. Why is that? It's because this federal administration has demanded a daily quota. They have said they want more immigrants detained, even if they have no criminal record, even if they have legal permanent residence. Ripped out of their homes and cars, ripped away from their families and careers, ripped away from the American dream, all because of a paperwork issue. Many people are not bearing witness to the truth of the current situation, but every single day, hardworking, taxpaying, law-abiding immigrants have been kidnapped, detained in squalor, deported to a country they've never been to, or even left for dead. This crisis is largely kept from national news, but online independent journalists and eyewitnesses continue to show the world just how widespread this crisis is becoming. Now, there are so many good reasons to help our immigrant community during these dark times. From a spiritual perspective, almost every religion teaches to love your neighbor, welcome the stranger, and do unto others as we would want done to us. From a macroeconomic perspective, our country's birth rate has been plummeting for years. The data proves that only way for the U.S. to continue in this capacity by maintaining our labor force is with immigration. From a local economic perspective, the potential cost to our county is large. through potential lawsuits and insurance rate increases stemming from needlessly collaborating with this unprecedented militarized force. This is why the prison board's resolution was needed. ICE tried to lie on our county employees and tried to blame them for a preventable death that was ultimately ICE's own fault. Now ICE needs a signed judicial warrant when they request someone in county custody. But what more are other counties and cities doing in the Commonwealth? Their locally elected officials are adopting robust legislation through constitutionally sound resolutions and ordinances, and these places are seeing measurable increases in community trust, as well as decreases in both the crime and unemployment rates. I wanted to let you gentlemen know that fellow Dauphin County advocates, organizers, and concerned residents have completed our proposed Welcoming County Resolution, and I'm delivering it here today for your consideration. If I could just speak for a lot of the county residents I've spoken with, they would love to see Commissioner Hartwick sponsor this bill. As they say, you have been a constant advocate for the black and brown communities of Stilton and Dauphin County. Just hope that we can continue this conversation and work together to get this done. Thank you, commissioners. Thank you.

Am I allowed to? Yeah, come on, bring them up. Thank you.

Nice to put a face within an email. Nice to meet you.

John, nice to meet you. Yep.

Thank you very much.

Next up, we'll open it to the floor. Anyone for public comment? Seeing none, I'll entertain a motion for adjournment.

So moved. Seconded.

Moved by Commissioner Priest. Seconded by Commissioner Hartwick. All in favor? Aye. We're adjourned.