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LUZERNE — U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta took his 30th Main Street Tour Thursday, this time in Luzerne, where he met with residents and business owners to hear their concerns, answer their questions and exchange ideas.
Beginning with a luncheon at Chuck’s Diner, Barletta set out to gather information from his constituents to start the ball rolling on how he can help from his seat in Congress.
Barletta, R-Hazleton, said he began the Main Street tours to get a keen perspective on what needs to be done throughout the 11th Congressional District that he has represented since 2011.
“The Main Street Tour is one of my favorite ways to meet the hardworking people of Pennsylvania’s 11th Congressional District,” Barletta said after having some chicken noodle soup and a turkey club sandwich at Chuck’s. “During each tour, I go to different locations throughout the nine counties that make up our district, and visit local firehouses, eateries, and shops to hear firsthand how I can best serve my constituents in Washington.”
After walking along Toby Creek with state Rep. Aaron Kaufer, R-Kingston, and other officials, Barletta stopped at the Luzerne Volunteer Fire Company to talk to firefighters and emergency personnel.
Barletta told the firefighters that he recently reintroduced legislation — for the fifth time — to protect volunteer firefighters and emergency responders from the “unintended consequences of Obamacare.” Barletta’s bill — the Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act, H.R. 1991 — ensures that emergency services volunteers are not counted as full-time employees by the Internal Revenue Service under the Employer Mandate of Obamacare.
“If volunteer fire companies were subject to the mandates of Obamacare, they could be liable for crippling new health care costs, causing many to shut down,” Barletta said.
Barletta said the IRS issued a ruling in 2014 that exempted volunteer firefighters and emergency responders from the Employer Mandate. Barletta has continued to fight to give first responders the certainty of a change in the law, ushering his bill through the House three times by a combined vote of 1,226-0. He said the bill has never been able to get through the U.S. Senate.
“Our volunteer firefighters have a hard enough time raising money needed for basic equipment,” Barletta said. “There is no way that they could absorb the enormous cost of providing health care to their volunteers, who presumably have other jobs or receive their health care from another source. It’s just another unintended consequence of a very bad law.”
Visit well-received
In addition to Kaufer, Luzerne Mayor James Keller and several business owners were happy to see Barletta and to hear that he wants to help.
Kaufer and Keller showed Barletta a copy of the Luzerne Borough Vision Plan that details what is needed on Main Street to continue the revitalization of the shopping district.
“Our goal is to continue our growth,” Keller said. “We are all working together to make that happen.”
Keller said to get the job done, “big money” is going to be needed. He said Barletta and Kaufer have promised to help find funding at the federal and state levels.
Karen Brown, owner of My Sister’s Closet on Main Street, said she’s been waiting 17 years for the next phase of revitalization to begin.
“Like most of the business owners here, we are excited about what the Vision Plan will bring,” Brown said. “Aesthetically, it will mean a more beautiful, well-lighted downtown that will be more attractive to shoppers.”
Some of the goals of the Vision Plan are: improving parking options, providing traffic calming and pedestrian crossings, new sidewalks and lights, enhancing building facades, increasing residential options, improving the Toby Creek trail and attracting more businesses.
Barletta reviewed the plan, and he spoke to several business owners, such as Brown and Dan McGrogan of Nucleus Raw Food.
“I was really impressed with Luzerne Borough and with the entire community,” Barletta said after the tour. They have a great vision and they are working together.”
Barletta said he didn’t hear a single complaint during his tour, which he said is not usually the case.
“People I talked to today are happy about living there and having their businesses there,” Barletta said.
His last stop on the tour was The Hope Center, a free clinic that provide medical, legal, dental, chiropractic, optical and counseling services. He said the clinic is staffed by all volunteers and operates on funds received through donations and/or grants. Barletta said Ron Hillard, the clinic’s founder and director, gave him a tour of the facility.
“It really blew me away,” Barletta said. “The amount of services they provide with all volunteers and by raising money through donations is remarkable. And they help so many people who need help.”
Barletta said he will do what he can to help the clinic, and he started by sending a message on his Twitter account.
“Congressman Barletta listened to what we had to say, and he seemed genuinely concerned,” Hillard said.
