DA pushes for additional staff and new task force as budget shortfall looms

During recent Lebanon County budget hearings, the district attorney’s office requested a new hire as well as funding for a human trafficking task force. 

The DA’s office is the only department in Lebanon County seeking new staff and funding to create a new program in 2026, county administrator Jamie Wolgemuth told LebTown.

The hiring of a new assistant district attorney, if approved for inclusion in the county’s 2026 budget – which currently faces a $5 million-plus shortfall – would include a 2025 base salary of $53,963.70 for someone with no prior experience, according to Michelle Edris, director of the Lebanon County Human Resources Department.

Read More: Lebanon County budget proposal for 2026 reveals a $5 million-plus deficit

Other county employee benefits, depending on enrollment, include health, vision and prescription insurance, with family coverage costing the county $35,521.08 annually and single coverage running $15,617.04 annually; employee-only life insurance at $114 annually; and employee-only dental insurance at $275.28 annually, according to Edris.

The new hire request, which was made by District Attorney Pier Hess Graf in mid-September, remains pending as of Monday, Nov. 19, despite a new hiring freeze implemented by the commissioners. In early October, Edris said, commissioners informed all department heads not to submit new hiring requests for 2026.

Existing vacancies may still be filled but commissioners implemented the hiring freeze so they can incorporate the results of a recently concluded salary study for existing county employees, according to Edris.   

On two occasions during the DA’s budget presentation Oct. 20, Graf asked to discuss the new hire with commissioners, who told her personnel discussions traditionally occur in November before a proposed budget is finalized. Graf also requested $50,000 in the 2026 budget for creation of a countywide human trafficking task force.

Multiple emails to the DA over several weeks about the requests were not acknowledged or answered as of publication. Following the swearing-in of new Lebanon City Police Chief Eric Sims on Oct. 27, LebTown asked Graf when a response might be forthcoming. She replied that she’d have to check her email for the questions.

One question asked what statistical data supported the new hire, since President Judge John Tylwalk said during budget discussions for the county court system that there were fewer cases coming into Lebanon County’s courtrooms.

A similar statement was made by Audrey Fortna, director of Lebanon County Adult Probation, who noted that her office is placing and handling fewer individuals. 

Wolgemuth asked Tylwalk why costs are down in the electronic monitoring of offenders and other tools used by the probation department – if it was because costs are lower or if fewer people are coming through the court system. Tylwalk said it was the latter. 

Additionally, during her recent campaign for re-election, information distributed by the Friends of Pier Hess Graf Election Committee touted that crime in Lebanon County was down by 30% under her watch. Arrests are down 31.47%, according to the commonwealth’s Uniform Crime Reporting System.

Read More: Lebanon County crime rates continue to drop

LebTown filed a Right-to-Know request for the DA’s budget proposal to gather additional insight into her proposals. The RTK was necessary since Graf wrote on her budget document that it contained “sensitive and at times confidential” information, some of which was redacted before the document was sent to LebTown.

Part of the new hire request appears to be in response to efforts by the county’s public defenders office to “receive salary increases without eliminating positions and additional staff within the office,” Graf stated in the document.  

“This occurred within our County despite the harsh reality that the public defenders represent less than half of the criminally charged defendants. Our request for an additional ADA position rests in our responsibility for 100% of all criminally charged defendants, the burden to prosecute said criminals, and the abundance of responsibilities lodged to our Office outside,” Graf wrote to commissioners. 

Earlier in the document Graf noted her department cut three staff positions in previous years to pay more senior attorneys in an effort to maintain them within her office.

She also notes that staff workload has increased through the creation of several treatment courts that she writes her office must either implement, which was the case with the new mental health treatment court known as the Law Enforcement Treatment Initiative (LETI), and/or administrate.

It is unclear if the treatment programs represent additional duties or a shift in duties, since time spent in the courtroom may be down with decreased case volume. Graf did not respond to requests for clarification.

Read More: Lebanon County launches initiative to help non-violent criminals get treatment

Twelve bullet points primarily listing existing duties and responsibilities of her department are also included as reasons to hire a new staff member.

LebTown asked commission chairman Mike Kuhn if it is possible the new hire is in anticipation of her office potentially prosecuting Child & Youth Services workers in the coming months. In a late October press release, Graf said detectives “are investigating past and ongoing instances of inaction and/or negligence on behalf of LCCYS caseworkers, which resulted in death and serious injuries to multiple children.”

In response to that announcement, the county hired a law firm to represent CYS workers who may be questioned by detectives as part of the investigation. LebTown asked Kuhn if the county approving the new hire might conflict with hiring a law firm to represent CYS workers during her investigation. 

Kuhn responded that the county would not interfere with the DA’s office potentially filing criminal charges, and he noted that he would need more data concerning the need for a new hire before making a final decision.

The new hire decision will need to be made soon since the county will present its 2026 budget at the Dec. 4 county commissioners meeting. The budget will be available for 21 days for inspection and comment at the county building and on the county website. 

LebTown asked Commissioner Jo Ellen Litz about both requests, and she said she wished it had occurred outside the election cycle. Graf ran for re-election this year in the Nov. 4 election, which she won by a 59% to 41% vote over challenger Michael Light.

Read More: Graf wins re-election in Lebanon County DA race; turnout higher than expected

Commissioner Bob Phillips said he needed more information from Graf before making a decision concerning the requests. 

“I want to hear her out, this is a public safety-related question, I don’t want to be in a position to second guess our district attorney. She knows what the numbers are,” Phillips said.   

It was not immediately clear how many arrests may have stemmed from human trafficking related investigations by the DA’s office. A search of the Pennsylvania State Police crime database indicates that there was one arrest in 2024 and none in 2025 under human trafficking crimes in Lebanon County. (The 2025 website may not have current data since reporting can lag behind.) Graf noted in her budget document that there had been two spas permanently closed and that they were in business to “traffic women and provide sexual favors in exchange for money,” and that at least two men had been arrested recently in connection with child pornography charges with other ongoing investigations happening. It is also unclear if anyone was arrested in conjunction with the massage parlor closings.

Read More: Human Trafficking Task Force makes child pornography, massage parlor busts

Graf’s budget document stated her office would seek a pedophile warrant round up initiative with task force members working with the state Attorney General’s office and state police to serve search and arrest warrants on known homes and suspects based on Cybertips and follow-up investigations. 

The task force would also work to “stop human trafficking: prostitution.” The document notes that if it was shown any individuals were being trafficked, then the task force would work to arrest the trafficker.

Graf’s document states that the requested line item would pay basic operation costs and “salaries of local police who participate” but not for those in the Attorney General’s office nor the PSP.  

“The goal is to have it be mainly composed of local municipal police departments who want to give us manpower to do some of these investigations,” Graf said at the hearing.

“With every detail you’re looking at two shifts back to back, anywhere from 8 to 10 hours, and depending on the size of the detail depends on the number of men or women that we need from law enforcement. But we did have local people that wanted to sign up. One officer went partially unpaid because he just wanted to do it and his chief wasn’t willing to pay him for it.”

In stating that her department would run details on a quarterly basis, she said the financial issue is that each officer on a human trafficking detail must have their shift covered by someone else in their home department, since that “is an officer that is not servicing that community and those citizens for a regular shift.” Graf noted that police chiefs wrote letters of support for the task force, but none pledged financial support from their municipalities.

“So the police chiefs had drafted letters and sent them to us in support just explaining from their budget perspective why the task force is so important but why they’re also begging and hoping that the commissioners are willing to give us an amount every year to pay for the cost of their salary while they’re doing the details and that’s what we’re looking for,” Graf told commissioners. 

After Sims’ swearing-in ceremony, Lebanon Mayor Sherry Capello told LebTown her office had not been contacted about helping to fund a human trafficking task force. The mayor said she’s the one who crafts the budget that’s presented to city council.

“I have not personally been asked that question,” Capello said, when asked if the city had been asked to contribute financially for costs associated with the task force. 

Capello said that while no Lebanon city residents, police officers or officials have told her human trafficking is a problem in the city, she believes it’s something that should be investigated, and special details are needed to determine if a problem exists.

“That doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist,” she said. “It means that we haven’t come across it yet and a special detail could determine if there is an issue, and it is probably a good idea to have it.”

Western Lebanon County Regional Police Chief Andrew Winters said he isn’t proposing additional funding for the task force, adding that funding for overtime, etc., is baked into his budget requests. The regional department covers Annville Township and Palmyra Borough and was launched in May 2024. 

He added, however, that, “there’s no extra money in there to cover overtime that would be generated by (a) human trafficking task force.” He said he wrote a letter to the DA’s office in support of the task force, noting that state police investigated an incident in his jurisdiction a few years ago where females were being trafficked.

He also said his department is planning to participate in future task force operations. 

During the budget hearing, Litz questioned the county paying for municipal officers to serve on a task force without financial input from local municipalities. Litz also asked about liability the county would have while non-county employees were performing work as part of the countywide task force. 

“They have to be sworn to be part of the task force, they have to be sworn as a special county detective just like the SWAT team does, just like the Drug Task Force does, because they’re technically operating with us and I can tell you with these details I’m there the whole time. So it’s a county operation where they are assisting,” Graf replied.

One issue facing the task force’s creation is the availability of officers, Graf told commissioners. She noted that while over 10 local municipal officers had participated in an earlier undercover investigation, the next planned operation has only one municipal officer willing to participate. She said the timing of the two operations so close together might explain less interest for the next investigation. 

It’s unclear how the county would pay for the new hire and task force given the $5 million-plus deficit, since a balanced budget is required by state law, meaning expected expenditures in the budget must not exceed anticipated revenues during the year.

The commissioners’ options are limited. According to Wolgemuth, they can raise taxes, cut spending, or tap into existing county reserves.