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Luzerne County Councilwoman-elect Elaine Maddon Curry discusses the county manager selection process during Monday’s home rule transition committee meeting.

AIMEE DILGER/THE TIMES LEADER

After more than two hours of debate and discussion about the selection process for the new Luzerne County manager, most of the home rule transition committee members left the county courthouse Monday night with packets of information about the 72 applicants.

Councilmen-elect Rick Morelli and Stephen J. Urban did not receive packets because they refused to sign confidentiality agreements saying they wouldn’t release the names.

Morelli said he would honor the decision to keep the names confidential even though he didn’t agree with it, but he said he won’t sign a confidentiality agreement after consulting with two attorneys. He said he would explore legal options to obtain the packet.

Stephen J. Urban said the committee decided to enact a confidentiality agreement before the 11 new council members joined the group, and he tore up the agreement during the meeting. He said he will eventually receive the names, whether it’s now or on Jan. 2 when he’s sworn in as a council member.

County Commissioner Stephen A. Urban, who was also elected to council, did not receive a packet because he did not submit a confidentiality agreement, but he may be out of the selection process regardless.

The committee agreed at the start of the meeting that no applicants for either the manager or council clerk post should participate in any decisions involving the selection for those posts. Committee consultant Ken Mohr, the only person who saw the applications, said he was aware of two committee members who had a conflict of interest in either position.

Stephen A. Urban abstained from votes on the manager selection process but would not say whether or not he applied for the manager position. He facetiously said he would be violating the confidentiality agreement if he disclosed that he was an applicant.

The identity of the other committee member with a conflict was not known because nobody else abstained.

The committee decided that any other members who identify conflicts when they review the packets should abstain from future decisions for those positions.

Morelli made a motion during the meeting to release applicant names for both positions, but he only received support from Stephen A. Urban and Stephen J. Urban. Councilman-elect Rick Williams also made a motion to reopen the application process for two weeks guaranteeing confidentiality to applicants, but he received support only from Commissioner Thomas Cooney, Stephen J. Urban and Stephen A. Urban.

Williams announced during the meeting that he will give up his employment at Williams, Kinsman & Lewis Architecture when he takes office on Jan. 2 because of a prohibition in the home rule charter.

The business has a small contract with a county authority, and the charter prohibits council members from employment or compensation by a company that does business with a county authority. Williams said the business must honor its obligation to fulfill the authority contract, and he doesn’t want to give up serving as a council member.

The committee agreed on categories that will be used to rank the manager applicants: education, leadership, county/local government experience, demonstration of outcomes and other standout skills or traits.

The group differed on the weight that should be given to each category but came up with percentages by majority vote.

If you go

The home rule transition committee will meet at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in the second floor jury room at the county courthouse in Wilkes-Barre.