Pubdate: Fri, 04 May 2007
Source: Times Leader  (Wilkes-Barre, PA)
Copyright: 2007 The Times Leader
Contact:  http://www.timesleader.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/933
Author: Jennifer Learn-Andes

SKREPENAK SAYS HE WILL WORK TO FIGHT CRIME, DRUGS IN LUZERNE COUNTY

Greg Skrepenak said he would continue fighting Luzerne County's drug
and crime problem if he's elected to a second term.

Major cities are doing a better job of policing and pushing crime to
the "path of least resistance," which includes the county because of
its access to major highways, the Democrat said during an interview
Thursday with the Times Leader Editorial Board.

The county is particularly vulnerable because policing systems are
different in each of the 76 municipalities, and police aren't sharing
information or effectively communicating with colleagues outside their
boundary lines, he said.

The county's high elderly population and denial about the extent of
the drug problem makes things worse, he said.

"Right now we are welcoming crime -- not knowingly -- but we are
welcoming crime."

He wants to improve the situation by executing a plan being drafted by
a consultant to implement a countywide database that will give all
local police access to information about crimes in other
municipalities. He wants to push for creation of a countywide police
force that would spot trends and specialize in needed services, such
as a SWAT team.

Skrepenak has spoken to many groups about drugs and worked with
Luzerne County Community College to create a new Substance Abuse
Education and Training Institute that will teach counselors and the
public about the latest drug prevention research.

The county must be creative with its funding because the state forces
counties to rely on property tax, and the federal government will
continue reducing allocations.

One example of creativity -- and regionalization -- he cited was a new
HealthChoices program in which Luzerne and three other counties have
merged their medical assistance funding into one pot, hoping that
shared administration and other efficiencies will yield savings that
may be reinvested, he said.

The county got out of the financially draining nursing home business
- -- something he says was personally difficult because his sister
worked at the then-county-owned Valley Crest.

Commissioners have agreed to put two branches -- the Workforce
Investment Office and Drug and Alcohol -- into not-for-profit status
so they will be out of commissioner control and free to receive
private donations, he noted.

County grant writer Michele Sparich has brought in $12 million in
grants.

The county's budget is more detailed and public, he said, though he
does not see an end to long-term debt.

"Our critics will say that we're pushing debt out to the future, onto
future generations, but the fact of the matter is that if we don't
create opportunity here, it's not going to matter what happens in the
future because this community's going to be dead."
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MAP posted-by: Derek