County Commissioners - Regular Meeting

I'd like to call to order the Dauphin County Board of Commissioners meeting for March 25th, 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.

Chief Clerk's report, Mr. Haggerty. Good morning, Commissioners. An executive session was held on Tuesday, March 24th to obtain the advice of legal counsel regarding legal services, bond proceeds, Oracle implementation, the purchase or release of real property, economic development, and personnel matters. With us today we have Liz Straub who's being recognized as Dauphin County child welfare professional of the year. In addition to the March 4th board of commissioners meeting minutes and the March 11th board of commissioners and salary board meeting minutes. We have an amendment to the board of commissioners meeting minutes from February 21st, 2024. in which the outcome of a vote was inadvertently omitted from the minutes. Notes from that meeting which are still on hand in our office indicate the vote in question was unanimous in favor, and this amendment clarifies the record. There's also a salary board packet, personnel packet, and purchase order packet, as well as 22 additional agenda items for board consideration today. have one adoption assistance agreement one adult probation agreement one conservation district agreement one i.t agreement an extension of the mou with visit hershey and harrisburg through the end of 2026 three public safety agreements one work release center agreement two grant applications for state funding one human services agreement one legal services agreement an amendment to the county's existing responsible contractor ordinance which would allow the county to proceed with the low bid in instances in which none of the bidders provide a contractor responsibility certification three parks and recreation presenter agreements three satisfaction pieces one request for tax forgiveness and the training packet I'd like to take a moment and congratulate the Dauphin County hazardous materials response team, which will be receiving a national chem track help award this week. This prestigious award recognizes outstanding hazardous materials, response capabilities. And commitment to community safety and corresponding grants will support continued training equipment and readiness for hazardous materials emergencies. I'd also like to thank our department heads and directors for their participation in this past Friday's quarterly meeting. We will be issuing formal budget guidance very shortly following that meeting, which outlines a revised budget process, timeline, 2027 budget request instructions, our 2027 budget hearing schedule, 2026 budget monitoring cadence, purchasing guidelines, and information relating to appropriate invoice coding. That concludes my report. Happy to answer any questions you may have.

Any questions for Mr. Haggerty? Hearing none, we'll move to solicitor's report. Mr. Owens.

Thank you, Commissioner. All matters requiring review by my office have been reviewed and approved for board action today. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Owens. Any questions for Mr. Owens? Hearing none, we'll move to public participation relating to agenda items. This is for agenda items only, and there is a three-minute time limit, and you'll need to state your name prior to making public comment. We are being live-streamed. Is there anyone for public participation related to agenda items? Seeing no one, we'll move to review and approval of the minutes. We have three items of minutes to approve before us. We have the March 4th Board of Commissioners meeting minutes, March 11th Board of Commissioner meeting minutes, and February 21st, 2024 Board of Commissioner meeting minutes for an amendment. Do I have a motion for all three? So moved. Moved by Commissioner Hartwick. Do I have a second?

I'll second that motion.

Seconded by Commissioner Preece. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. We'll move to our directors and guests portion. We want to welcome Elizabeth Staub, Dauphin County Child Welfare Professional of the Year. Congratulations, and I'll hand it over to Commissioner Harwick. Y'all can make your way up.

And first call Stacey and Kim up. Yeah, of course. Obviously, before we call the honoree forward, which we have a number of important accolades and recognitions to be able to provide. But I'd like to turn this over first to our co-directors of Children and Youth to see and obviously to talk a little bit about that. And before I do, I also want to recognize Brad Dorrance, who is here with us today, our longtime board chair of our advisory committee. somebody who has been an unbelievably great and wonderful supporter of our agency and staff so we appreciate your attention morning commissioners i just want to start by thanking you this is one of our favorite days of the year when we get to come down here and celebrate our staff

and then any individuals who were specifically chosen by our advisory board they for the last two years about a week or so before this meeting occurs the advisory board volunteers to bring things in for the staff stacy and i were not present because we were at a conference but people were sending us pictures of last week two weeks ago i'm sorry the advisory board donated a lot of food good things to nourish people in the morning and it is much appreciated so they were sending us pictures to let us know that that was all occurring in our absence so we thank the advisory board and brad for being the chairperson of that

going to let stacy take it over to talk just about some specifics for this dog because she is a much valued individual at our agency we are very happy to be here thank you i echo what kim said this is um you know we our agency has many challenges every day um and we have a lot of dedicated personnel within the agency across the board But we always want to recognize those who go above and beyond and are outstanding for us. And so we're happy to be here today to select and recognize Liz Staub. She has been, she started with our agency as actually an intern for our placement matching team. And from day one, she was extremely dedicated, demonstrated a lot of professionalism as an intern. So we were very happy when she came on board as an ongoing caseworker, mostly dealing with placement cases. She is A valued and dedicated member of that team and but I think 1st, and foremost, she is, um, I think commissioner Hartwick mentioned it earlier with his greetings. Her smile says it all. Um, she has a very positive outlook. A lot of energy, which I understand she does, like, some of her energy drinks, which helped to boost her. on a daily basis, but she is the real deal. She is first and foremost positive. She is very kind-hearted. That is evidenced in her engagement with the children and families on our caseload. she is always eager to learn new skills she she coaches her her teammates to always strive to do better she is she just goes above and beyond she thinks outside the box and assisting her families with reunification efforts and when reunification isn't possible She uses that creative energy and permanency options for our youth. She has demonstrated really positive relationships with the teenagers on her caseload, which is not an easy feat for... Smile. Yeah. A couple of fun facts, she is a twin, which I didn't know until we started. And she is here today, her family is here to support her as well. She graduated from Townsend University, And we are very happy that she is pursuing her master's degree in social work through our Sewell program. So that's a good news all the way around in her professional development, but also in her commitment to the agency. And we absolutely look forward to seeing her grow professionally. with us and within Dauphin County. Just a quick example of what she does and what this job means to her. On Monday, after she put in a full day, she went and met a father on her caseload at one of our visitation centers to make sure that he had a positive experience so i just wanted to note that that our our job is not always nine to five in fact often it isn't and she without hesitation showed that initiative and outstanding case management services well thank you um i had to

this good fortune to meet her sister and her parents and it doesn't take much to see the kind of spirit and love and you've got to have a higher purpose and a good foundation in which to operate from in order to really play this role because in many cases it's so heart-wrenching being seeing children through no fault of their own be torn in multiple directions and families and Challenge, but knowing that we have hearts. And capable individuals that have the interests of our children 1st that are being the ones to respond are, you know, are the things that we don't read in the headlines. I understand. We only really see sort of the negative outcomes and the. the difficult side and let me tell you in all these cases uh it's an emotional outcome for children but um knowing that we have a caseworker as dedicated as you not only for her peers and her co-workers to keep a spirit in a difficult environment but also one that keeps the interests of our children and families first it is truly a great deal of pride i know this board takes in being able to recognize your accomplishments because The job you do every day, the job our children and youth staff do every day is not an easy one. but it's one of the most critical functions that we have in all levels of government is to protect the safety of our children. And you doing that in a way that puts your heart first and puts all of you into that role is certainly worthy of recognition and honoring every day. And we're blessed to be able to do that here today, both in front of your parents and in front of a proud county that really is appreciative for the work and the efforts that you put in. And for those of you outside of here, you know, this track of coming into dolphin county as an intern being able to really show your talent and your abilities that have shined and then getting your master's degree and hopefully having some level of career path is also something we want to help promote uh to folks who have similar hearts and passions to be able to serve our children we need uh good caseworkers and we need folks that are like you liz um that are willing to step up and to make a difference and protect our our youth and do it in a way uh that you've been able to set an example to do so with that i'm proud today to present you a proclamation Again, I want to thank our advisory board for taking on this initiative several years ago and all they do to be able to support our staff. But before I read the proclamation, let me call on my colleagues to provide some additional comments before we actually do the official business.

Thank you, George. I'd just like to start off by thanking you for your leadership and your passion in human services over decades. You're 24 years as a county commissioner. I've seen it firsthand. I know staff has and I know the residents have benefited from the amount of work that you put in, not just while you're here, but also at nights and on the weekends, taking the calls and advising your fellow colleagues of of. issues as they come up I'm going to also thank Brad Dorrance for your years of service to the county and your leadership in that role it's always great seeing you in here at least once a year please tell your family I said hello it's great to see you and to Elizabeth congratulations I mean this is a true success story you're part of a great team of dedicated professionals we're working to assist some of our most vulnerable residents in their time of greatest need and you're there providing comfort direction and stability to those children and we cannot thank you enough for the great work that you and your team do as well and under the leadership of stacy and kim that department has been run very very well we appreciate you thank you

Yeah, I just want to say congratulations, but then also just certainly echo the comments of my colleagues, the leadership team here is strong. Randy, thank you for your leadership. Kim and Stacey, thank you for your leadership. So many people make this happen. Brad, thanks for your leadership as well. It is a hard job to care for kids, as I've become aware over the last couple of years as a county commissioner, the challenging circumstances that y'all are put in day in and day out. I guess my question is, what's the energy drink of choice?

It's a free promo. Hopefully they'll send you some free ones. Alani.

Okay. Okay. All right. All right. The orange and the pink. Sounds good, sounds good. Now we know what to purchase if we ever need to, you know. I gave up energy drinks this year, so I'm jealous. And also, as a father of two teenagers, any advice you have on connecting with those teenagers? Don't hesitate to pass it along. But I do want to just echo, like, Public service and the work that you do and everybody in this, not just, you know, the professional of the year for Dauphin County, but it's exhausting work. And it's something you take home with you even when you are off the clock. It's something you think about. It's something that you wake up in the middle of the night about. And I know that's the level of leadership you bring to this and the level that our entire team brings to this. And so I just want you to know the gratitude that I have for that effort and work in the community and that my colleagues share that gratitude for you and for the entire staff and the good that you're trying to do in this community. And so just thank you for that effort. And we're really excited to acknowledge it today.

So, along with supporting a peach and orange, we, we are proud today to recognize you. The board of commissioners celebrate Elizabeth list all as the caseworker of the year for dolphin county. Youth, whereas Liz began her career with dolphin county children youth as an intern with the placement matching team and after demonstrating exceptional skills as an intern and finding placements for challenging youth. And expressing confidence in a presentation during shelter panel meetings, she was hired as a case worker where she has been here for 2 years. Where she continues to go above and beyond when assisting families and children to ensure their needs are met. She has developed positive relationships with teenagers on her caseload and is able to diffuse challenging situations effectively. Whereas Liz is dedicated to the work of ensuring child safety and reunification of children with their families. She has a kind heart and thinks outside the box to assist families and reunification of our youth and permanency or youth and permanency when reunification is not possible. Liz inspires others to improve their own work. She's always willing to assist with our case workers, train new hires, learn new skills and has a positive outlook that is evidence in her interaction with staff and families. Therefore, we are proud to join the 293,000 residents of dolphin county and thanking Liz for her incredible service. continued care and determination in her role and commend her as caseworker of the year as we do hereby proudly proclaim march 25th as elizabeth liz stahl day in dolphin county congratulations

Tell us what this award means to you. It's been a long two and a half years. There's definitely harder days than others, but everyone from children and youth in the county have helped. I go to all of them for anything. It is a lot of long days, long nights, a lot of hours, but there's so many success stories that push me to keep going, whether it's kids who become adopted after many years of being in the system or get to be reunified. There's way more success stories than ever make it to the public. So that's what keeps me going every day.

You need two rows or?

Thank you.

Thank you so much. Congratulations.

We'll move on now to salary board.

meeting minutes from march 11th and a salary board packet for approval do i have a motion second moved by controller bateman seconded by commissioner hartwick any discussion hearing none all those in favor aye opposed motion carries we'll move to uh human resources faye fisher

morning commissioners morning uh the personnel packet has been distributed to the board um it is my understanding that all the transactions included in the packet are budgeted for are there any questions make a motion we accept the salary board personnel personnel packet 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, Fay. Budget and Finance, Mr. Davis.

Good morning, Commissioners. Good morning. I have no changes to the investment report that was sent out yesterday. I also have no changes to the purchase order packet that's ready for your approval. Again, please disregard the budget remaining column while we work through Oracle.

We have a motion for the purchase order packet. So moved. Second. Moved by Commissioner Priest, seconded by Commissioner Hartwick. Any discussion?

hearing none all those in favor aye opposed motion carries any questions for mr. Davis I know we've had some discussions even as late as this morning about a couple things that I might as well bring it up now both training packets salary board requests and sort of tracking budgets and I just making a statement that we are paying attention we're not the idea of getting engaged in those decisions related to training are not going to be things that we attempt to micromanage but it's clear that you know there's some questionable things that um we might have seen related to some of the training pieces and uh the message is this when folks who are budgeted a certain amount uh are nearing those budgets that we're gonna have to provide explanations uh and there's going to have to be some critical looks at if folks are going to be able to request additional resources I would ask them to evaluate their existing budget, make sure they make those decisions accordingly.

Thank you. I agree with your comments. I just want to add, we don't need to wait until they reach the budget numbers. We can ask at any time for explanations for a lot of the training. A lot of the training that takes place is done to reach certifications within the department. So it is absolutely necessary. Some of these are not.

knowing that in this particular packet.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. We have 22 items before us for action. Does anything need to be pulled out and voted on separately? Do I have a motion for the 22 items?

So moved.

Moved by Commissioner Hartwick. Do I have a second?

I'll second that motion.

Seconded by Commissioner Preece. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Former business, we have none before us. Any new business?

hearing none we'll move to commissioner remarks commissioner hartwick uh just two things uh for today the first one is uh on friday this past friday afternoon i had the great pleasure of speaking to about 70 high school students juniors and seniors who are part of a school of business and industry cohort at harrisburg high school i want to say something you know we see so many negative stories out here about issues with problems i i've not seen the school of business and industry kids highlighted anywhere but i will tell you that the kids that i met were bright intelligent diamonds that are full of light they were truly both inquisitive uh the skill sets that are being taught to them are phenomenal uh from you know being able to be first of all kept together as a cohort over four years uh there is certainly bonds and relationships i think that'll exist long beyond that but Both resumes, soft skills, the ability to write business plans, the opportunities to think about what is your purpose. And actually, the conversation they had asked me to speak about was finding your purpose in a complex world with so much information. uh and we had a incredible open truthful dialogue that was met with both questions and honest answers and it was probably one of the best ways i could have finished the week last week and i want to thank the harrisburg high school for arranging this, for what they're doing with their children, and would ask that, you know, as we think about all of the things and stories we see about highlighting some of the bright and incredible youth that, despite facing difficult circumstances in many cases, are facing, I think, one of the brightest futures and doing it with purpose and a plan and using the things that they've been through in order to make a difference in this world. It was a proud moment. um second part is you just want to mention i met with the dean of widener university's law school andre cummings this week we talked a little bit about their vision from a law school perspective of providing a definite track related to generative AI, sort of economic development associated with that, and both the ability to talk about local zoning, land use, and being a part of, I think, our larger effort to take a look at sort of the impacts of that kind of investment in this region, have agreed to be a partner. But his forward-thinking discussions have really opened my mind about sort of the possibilities of the legal side And my national conversations, as we talk about even issues with children and youth and the multitude of cases that are referred to your agency, how do we make sure that we're effectively using our time in a way that does not have to take significant time of weeding through a number of these complaints and concerns. And I know there's some tools that are used, but there's very few legal guidance as it relates to how counties both ethically, morally, and structurally are able to use some of these tools in a safe and legal way in order to make sure that our workforce is able to improve and focus really on the needs of safety related to our children. That's just one example out of many we can provide. There's very little case law. There's very little sort of track record. And I think their initiative will provide great opportunities for lawyers who want to be on the cutting edge of this area and, quite frankly, are much needed as we begin to move into the next generation of law. how we move related to the new technology. So I just wanted to highlight that and thank him for his time this week. And the final little fact is he has written an incredible book about hip-hop. He is a West Coast hip-hop background. He's from Long Beach, but our conversations were probably – is exciting over the history of hip-hop as they were about the future of ai and the legal world so a really interesting guy and and the one that i look forward to getting to know a little bit better thank you i have a couple updates as well thank you commissioner hartwick first of all the gaming grant allocations will be forthcoming in the next several weeks i want to thank

director George Connor and his staff as well as the gaming board for months of preparations interviews and determinations which we will be receiving very soon secondly let's keep our Our hospital doctors and nurses and our first responders and our thoughts this past weekend. There were a lot of horrific acts here in Dauphin County, including a mass shooting in Stilton. I think a lot of times people just see the headlines and don't think about what's happening behind the scenes and those individuals who are coming upon these acts and how that impacts them, not just on site, but when they go home at night. Thirdly, I want to thank County Treasurer Nick DeFrancesco and his staff for assisting a resident in the past week and a half for questions that they had on a tax bill. They handled it very quickly and efficiently and enabled those folks to get a good night's sleep and not have to worry about the tax bill that they received. and then lastly we have prison board today at 1 30. uh the current population at dolphin county prison is 740 and of those to note we have 58 federal inmates and one juvenile in-house thank you thank you commissioner priest i echo uh your heart going out to steelton and certainly our first responders who you know arrived on that scene uh certainly something that we should be uh

Paying attention to, I think, addressing gun violence nationally, but certainly locally is something that that we need to be doing as elected officials and certainly as community leaders. I do want to note just a couple of things. This past weekend, we had St. Patrick's Day parade in the four miler. We had a number of people in Harrisburg, and I just think. It's moments like that that really show the potential that exists here in Harrisburg for all these people to come together for there to be a real great community benefit. Just want to continue to thank the planners of those types of events in Harrisburg and the people who come from all over to enjoy those. As we look forward, April 7th, my birthday, the Harrisburg Senators are actually having their opening day. They planned it around my birthday is what happened, but no. But I'm really excited. Obviously, you know, one of the unique kind of gems of this region is that we have a baseball team and we have this cool thing called City Island here. And I think sometimes we forget how really unique that is when you travel around the country and you see other regions. and and how much of a draw that is for our region and how uh you know it's a great opportunity to go out and see a baseball game for a really low cost for families to go out and celebrate together uh that you know sport that tradition that goes with that sport um and uh and i think it's something that uh you know we should be highlighting as opening days coming up so just a few things there

And my apologies, if I could, I know I received from Charlotte Plains early this week, an important event that's coming up on Saturday, March 28th. It's being put on by the National Coalition of 100 Black Women Inc. at Harrisburg Chapter. Talking about enough is enough as you talk about steel related to gun violence demands real solutions. This is going to be a forum that's going to be Saturday, March 28th, 2026 from 12 noon to 3 p.m. at the Commonwealth Charter Academy. It's going to be featuring guest speaker Sylvia Washington, Director of Community Engagement and Research and Partnership from Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence. So as we talk about these issues, the community being engaged in solutions is critically important. I think this is an event to highlight.

So thank you. Thanks for highlighting that. We have some correspondence here. We have a number of correspondence items for the chief clerk to disseminate where appropriate. We'll move to general public participation. Just a reminder, three minute time limit on public comment. We are being live streamed and you'll need to state your name prior to starting. I'm just curious if we have a sign up sheet of anybody in advance. Okay, it looks like no one has signed up, but certainly anyone is welcome to speak if there's anyone for public comment.

You're okay.

Mr. Butts, how are you? Good morning.

Good morning. My name is Butts, Louis Butts from Harrisburg. There are a lot of things that we're facing in Harrisburg. One is an identity crisis. We don't really know who and what we stand for. Right now, we're fighting a war. Harrisburg is based on war. And we have a monument. We have The State Street Bridge, it's a memorial to all the war that's been going on in our country for 250 years. I want to highlight our Civil War heritage. People talk about one life, two life, three lives lost. In Gettysburg, over 51,000 people died for our freedom. Harrisburg's population is 50,000. So when you look at the numbers, you really say, it really doesn't matter if we're looking at a story. If we're trying to tell who and what we are, we have to tell the story truthfully. There was 74 flags that we won, Harrisburg won in Gettysburg. People really don't know that the regiments came from Harrisburg to win Gettysburg. They don't even know Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania in some cases. We have to sort of like beat our chest. We have to put Harrisburg at full dress. This is our anniversary year. Let's get a project that puts Harrisburg at full dress so men and women could understand what the cost was for freedom and who won freedom for all. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania did. And I think we need to tout that. I'm from Harrisburg. I'm from the city. I came through the school, full school. I played in the creek, Paxton Creek. That was my creek. I played in the mountains of the incinerator. I thought it was Jules, but it was just burnt rubble. You know, I lived through the TMI. I lived through the flood. I'm pretty durable. I know that I won the Civil War. I get it, but I want my city to be at full address so the whole nation and the world can see what we gave and who organized the war. We're in wartime. It's going to happen again. But we must remember, that's why we have the grids, as a memorial. It's our turn to add our contribution to the memorial. As men and women, let's do something that our kids can learn from, regards to our ethics, our moral code. We have a moral code. It's Mennonite, it's Amish, it's Quakerish. but it's for freedom. And I want to have a time later on to go a little bit more in detail about the project, because it's not a Alec to Zing, Alec to Zang, but it's a collaboration of different entities and different municipalities and things of that nature. So I appreciate a little bit more extra time, maybe next week, maybe 10 minutes. So I can show you the look. It looks good. It's a good look.

you mr butts this is the this is the kind of thing i think um you know certainly uh thanks for putting together this proposal well this is just the beginning it's the introduction it's not the whole kit and caboodle right and for folks at home that might be wondering where this is headed uh the it says here at the end the ask is to request for a formal resolution of support on a partnership on bladed parcel transfer

thank you thank you i appreciate it thank you see you soon thank you anyone else for public comment

Good morning.

Good morning, Commissioners. Pamela Parson, City of Harrisburg. I heard you, Commissioner Douglas, when you talked about the cool thing that City Island is. I'd like to remind you of a few things. You might not be familiar with its history, but it was deeded to the City of Harrisburg as part of an estate. and it laid fallow for a very long time. It was to remain public land. During the Reed administration, the Tri-County Commission for Community Action, working with the Reed administration, got community development block grant monies to create what we have on City Island. I will remind you that CDBG funds are based upon our poverty rate as a city. and they are designed to benefit older people children and the cash poor i have i have in my possession the documents so i have read them so i'm just not talking off the top of my head and at the time that its creation was to provide recreation for the city of Harrisburg and to create jobs and other things which would benefit those folks that I'm talking about, older folks, children, and people who live in poverty. I think that you would agree with me that what we see there today does not greatly benefit the people who live in the city. And according to the deed restrictions, that property was never supposed to be used for anything which generates income for a private business. And there are several private businesses there. In the time I have left, I will also address the issue of AI. I'd just like to say that a friend reminded me that the Dauphin County Bar Association is offering continuing legal education credits coming up with a seminar on the dangers of AI. and looking at sort of legal guidelines, I think, is very important. One thing I'm not hearing from you, Commissioner Hartwick, with all the people you are meeting with to talk about artificial intelligence, I'm not hearing that you are meeting with the Susquehanna Riverkeeper or anyone who is talking about water pollution air pollution, nor am I hearing that included in the kinds of meetings and things that you are having, that you are including ratepayers and its impact upon ratepayers. Because thus far, what we have seen is that ratepayers are bearing the burden of increasing costs and not the individuals or companies that will benefit from AI itself. Thank you.

I normally don't respond. You're welcome to respond.

Ms. Parsons, I think both environmentalists, folks who are advocates for the areas of interest, community members, and ratepayers should make up the entire look at what we plan to do related to AI.

But they were not included on your junket to Loudoun County, were they?

But they will be included in any decisions that are being made for the region.

They should have been part of it from the beginning. Thank you.

I would just like to say I was unaware of the history on City Island. That's certainly something that I need to be updated on, but thank you for sharing. Anyone else for public participation?

Hearing none, I'll entertain a motion for adjournment. So moved.

Second. Moved by Commissioner Priest. Seconded by Commissioner Hartwick. All in favor? Aye.

We're adjourned.