Lebanon County Commissioners on Thursday, Dec. 28, approved by a 2-1 vote a $94.4 million county fiscal budget for 2024, which includes a .50 mill tax hike to cover its $5 million deficit.
Republican commissioners Robert Phillips and Mike Kuhn approved the budget while Democrat Jo Ellen Litz voted against it after requesting the county rebid healthcare services at the county prison.
The county’s millage increases from 3.8925 mills to 4.3925, meaning a homeowner next year will pay about $4.39 in property tax for every $1,000 of assessed value on their home. This is the third increase since 2016; the most recent county real estate millage increase occurred in 2022.
The average assessed value of homes in Lebanon County is just above $183,000, according to the county’s tax assessment office. Taxes for homeowners with that assessed value will see theirs increase by about $110.
An additional $245,000 in revenue will be realized by the county following a vote by the state legislature in late December to increase the 911 surcharge by .30 cents from $1.65 to $1.95 per every landline and cellphone in Pennsylvania.
“The budget leaves a total surplus of $480,000 going into 2024, which I’ve characterized before is about a day and a half of operating costs for the county,” said Wolgemuth.
Before the budget was approved, Litz asked her colleagues to explore rebidding the healthcare contract for inmates housed at the county prison.
“I think putting it out for bid keeps everybody’s pencil sharp, and will help us with the budget,” said Litz.
Kuhn, who chaired the meeting since Phillips was participating by phone, said he wasn’t opposed to looking at a request for proposal (RFP) for healthcare services at the county prison.
“Before we accept bids, I would welcome the opportunity to discuss a thorough RFP to identify exactly what we need before going out for bid,” said Kuhn.
After the vote to approve the budget was taken by a 2-1 vote, Wolgemuth advised against pursuing an RFP.
Wolgemuth said the current provider, Harrisburg-based Prime Care, and only one other business bid on the contract in 2019, adding the contract increases have been reasonable and the provider has given excellent service.
“To me, those are reasonable renewals under the circumstances and environment,” said Wolgemuth. “They also achieved for us during COVID an accreditation – a national accreditation – for standards in correctional healthcare, which is incredible during a pandemic.”
Wolgeumuth had additional concerns about rebidding the contract.
“The real issue I believe in going out to bid or for proposals for this is there are no other players – Wexford has since left the business of doing healthcare for county jails. While there are plenty of hospitals and healthcare providers, correctional healthcare is a completely different industry,” noted Wolgemuth.
Wolgemuth said healthcare in correctional facilities is different because employees have to be placed in the prison to work, many inmates enter the system with pre-existing healthcare issues – potentially due to drug abuse and alcoholism – and they also have a higher rate of mental health issues.
“Those reasonable increases that Prime Care has given us the past two years may change, if you completely open the door to a new number,” said Wolgemuth. “Prime Care may come back and give us a new number that is in with the price index of medical care and we might end up with a higher number than we have now.”
Litz responded to Wolgemuth’s comment by noting that the prison population was over 500 inmates in 2019 when Prime Care was hired and now averages around 260 to 270.
“So to me, it’s like we’re being charged double the inmates that we have,” said Litz. “I am just making that comparison by the number of prisoners, but we have never been given a break…I think it is a hefty price to pay for 260 inmates, and that is one of the reasons I think we should encourage bidding on this particular process.”
Wolgemuth said while the prison population averages in the mid-200s throughout the year, the number of inmates who pass through the prison is multiples of that average.
When asked by the press, Wolgemuth said he believes that there were only two bidders in 2019 when the county outsourced healthcare at the county jail and confirmed the contract is a flat rate regardless of the size of the prison population.
Following that discussion, Kuhn directed Wolgemuth to seek sample RFPs so the commissioners could further explore Litz’s request.
In other county business, the commissioners voted to:
- Sign an agreement with WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital to provide health care to low-income Lebanon County residents who are ineligible for Medicare, effective Jan. 1, 2024.
- Accept the Treasurer’s Report, the minutes of its Dec. 21 meeting and several personnel transactions.
- Approve the minutes of the Lebanon County Employee Retirement Board for Dec. 22, 2022, and Feb. 16, May 18, Aug. 17, and Nov. 16, 2023. They also voted to accept 2023 listings for refunds, member deaths and member retirements as provided by the retirement board.
- Compensate Korn Ferry $1.85 per retirement statement issued by them.
- Pass Resolution #1 that includes IRS-mandated language for the retirement plan document concerning minimum distribution age under the SECURE Act.
- Set aside $40,000 from the county’s liquid fuels tax fund program for engineering costs associated with the replacement of Red Rock Bridge in Heidelberg Township in 2024. The total cost of that project is $450,000.
During public comment, Kuhn recognized Senator Chris Gebhard and asked the state legislator if he would like to provide any comments. Gebhard declined, stating he was “here as a citizen of Lebanon County.”
Following the meeting, Gebhard told LebTown he attended in case questions arose for him about the 911 surcharge legislation. Republican Gebhard of North Cornwall Township represents Lebanon County and small sections of York and Dauphin counties.
LebTown spoke with the senator about the 911 surcharge and other legislative matters in an impromptu interview that can be read here.
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