Northampton County Council decided unanimously at their May 7 meeting to suspend as many as 54 pay hikes that may have been awarded illegally by Executive John Brown. He has argued that he has this authority under personnel policies that are written by the executive. But earlier in the week, council solicitor Phil Lauer ruled that county law requires council approval for most wage hikes.

Though council voted to suspend the wage hikes, it has no authority to do so without a written resolution. So the May 7 vote only reflects the will of council. Adoption of a formal resolution will take place in two weeks.

So ends the latest chapter in a dispute that started with Democratic Executive John Stoffa and a Democratic Council over the powers of the executive and legislative branches. In 2008, Stoffa took Council to court when they adopted an ordinance requiring review of hundreds of new policies that might interfere with council's career service regulations. Though that matter was supposed to have been settled, it required review of these new policies. That never happened. So now, it's a Republican executive and council who are at loggerheads.

Raise sparks concern

This issue first surfaced when Controller Steve Barron revealed that Brown's controversial Deputy Director of Administration, Cathy Allen, had seen her salary rise from $57,460, when she was first hired, to $68,554.93, or 19.3 percent, all within the span of just one year.

Council had rejected her nomination as Brown's $88,000 director of administration. Brown justified part of the increase because Allen had assumed "significant responsibilities" for insurance programs, workman's compensation and labor negotiations. He also gave her a "temporary" increase because she assumed some of the functions of recently retired HR Director Pat Siemiontkowski. Though the county now has a new HR director, Tracie Barnes, Allen is still getting paid at a higher rate of pay.

According to Controller Steve Barron, 54 county employees are currently receiving "out of class" salaries approved by the executive. It is unclear just how many of these have been approved by council.

Out of class beneficiaries

Two weeks before, Scott Parsons asked Executive Brown to identify the employees who are being paid beyond their payscale. In some instances, council's approval may be unnecessary. Even where it is, Parsons indicated council would likely approve most of them.

Brown has so far refused to cooperate with council, telling Parsons he's prefer to wait until Council decides how it is acting. This refusal troubles Hayden Phillips who said the executive's unwillingness to be transparent "takes my breath away."

Why Regulations Matter

Gearld ("Jerry") Seyfried has been a member of Northampton County Council. He has been its Executive. He has even worked as a cabinet officer. He was one of the first Council members named after Home Rule. He was instrumental in drafting the Administrative Code and Career Service Regulation. He attended Council's meeting, and at their invitation, to discuss the current dispute over the Executive's authority. He explained why career service regulations matter.

There are approximately 2,200 county employees. The whole point of what must seem like arcane provisions is to promote a system in which all employees are treated fairly. Advancement should be based on what one knows, not cronyism. Though 75 percent of the workforce is now scattered into 11 different bargaining units, the principles in career service regulations still apply for someone who wants to move from one department to another, or who needs to test for a job. Seyfried explained it's how one nurse's aide, who started out changing bedpans at Gracedale, became its director of administration.

He explained that these rules were violated when Brown moved Deputy Director Cathy Allen up three steps in her pay grade without council's approval. He stressed that the litigation between the executive and council over a four-inch thick binder of double-sided, fine print executive rules is also unfinished business that needs to be addressed.

He recommended against a lawsuit. "We all look silly when one body of government sues another body of government," he advised. "It creates a lot of hard feelings." He did give council two options.

Option one is to sit down with the executive and try to hammer out a resolution, a path that both Council and Executive embraced. Option two, which he called the "hard road," is to simply abolish the positions where the executive is granting increases without council approval. "That's your hammer," he said. "That brings them back to the table."

County solicitor

At one point, Solicitor Jeffrey Durkin attempted to explain why Council Solicitor Phil Lauer is wrong. He did not get very far. "Frankly, sir, your advice has not just been suspect, it's been wrong," lectured Lamont McClure, himself an attorney. "You did not do your research," he stated, referring to Durkin's failure to note the previous litigation between council and executive. "It's basic competence."

Just the previous week, the Solicitor's office had failed to provide an attorney at a hearing in Northampton County, prompting Scott Parsons to wonder whether Brown's elimination of a full-time assistant solicitor position had been the right call.