StopLouBarletta.com

Mayor Lou Barletta, feeling more and more pressure, appeared on the Sam Lasante Show to address charges that his incompetence has led to the imminent financial ruin of the city of Hazleton.  During the interview, Barletta managed to blame every major problem currently facing the city on someone else, mostly State and National politicians.  Barletta used charts, graphs, and lots of fluffery to try and shift some of the heat away from himself and onto as many other people as possible.  Overall, Barletta’s performance came across as desperate.

During the interview, Barletta failed to, at any point, accept any responsibility for any of the city’s current problems.  This, despite the fact that every major problem currently facing the city originated during his tenure as Mayor of Hazleton.  Addressing the city’s pension fund fiasco (which could, by itself, bankrupt the city), Barletta offered this cheery analysis of the situation (from the Standard Speaker)…

In reviewing the pension fund crisis, the mayor stressed that the city has never taken money out of the pension fund and has never failed to make the full required contribution to the fund. In several years, the city contributed more than it was required to the fund

Utilizing a portion of the Pension Tax revenues to pay for health benefits for pension beneficiaries is the issue that set the stage for the current controversy between state Auditor General Jack Wagner, state Rep. Todd Eachus and the mayor.

“I don’t believe we did anything wrong. I believe what we did will benefit, not only the retirees in this city, but many other municipalities that would benefit from Senate Bill 961,” Barletta said.

Senate Bill 961 would formally legalize the use of a portion of Pension Tax revenues to pay for retiree health benefits in addition to mandatory municipal pension fund contributions.

So you see?  Everyone thinks that this whole mess will bankrupt the city.  And despite previously warning that this situation really could bankrupt the city, Barletta now says that it will “benefit” not only the city retirees but also other municipalities, as well.  Why haven’t we given this man a medal yet?  And then when talking about the huge legal bills from Barletta’s ill-advised defense of his “Illegal Immigration Relief Act”, Barletta gave this hopeful response (from the Standard Speaker)…

As the city continues to defend its Illegal Immigration Relief Act, the unconstitutionality of which is currently under appeal in the Third Circuit Court in Philadelphia, the city is also fighting to hold its insurance carrier responsible for possible plaintiff attorney fees.

Barletta remains optimistic that those costs will be reduced or paid by insurance.

Well, as long as Mayor Barletta remains optimistic, shouldn’t we all?  I mean, yes, if the city were to have to pay all of these legal bills, then, yes, Hazleton would go bankrupt.  But what are the chances of THAT happening, right?  Did I mention that Mayor Barletta is optimistic about the situation?  And when discussing the city’s budget shortfalls, Barletta explained that none of it was actually his fault and that it was all those bastards in Harrisburg’s fault.  As reported by the Standard Speaker….

Barletta offered proof that certain decisions in Harrisburg resulted in less money in Hazleton. He said it was an act of the state legislature that reduced the amount of Local Services Tax revenues collected by municipalities statewide.Authorized by the legislature in 2005, the $52 EMS tax was originally deducted from paychecks in one annual lump sum. In 2008, the legislature changed the name of the EMS to LST (Local Services Tax) and changed the $52 lump sum deduction to $1 per week for 52 weeks. In its $52 form, the tax was deducted from most paychecks and later refunded to those earning $12,000 or less. In contrast, the $1 weekly tax is only deducted from citizens earning more than $12,000.

Barletta said if a citizen works two jobs, each job paying $12,000 or less, the combined earnings could be as much as $24,000, but the tax would not be deducted from either paycheck. The red tape of deducting a $1 tax from employee paychecks each week is also considered a nuisance to some employers, Barletta said. So the fee goes uncollected, leaving the municipality with less LST revenues.

The city received $539,798 in EMS revenue when the legislature first authorized the tax in 2005. After the legislative change, the city received $316,903 in LST revenue in 2008 – which is a $222,895 reduction in the amount of money the city used for public services.

“That’s almost a quarter-million dollars less. We hired the police, now we have less because of what they do in Harrisburg,” Barletta said.

See?  It’s not Barletta’s fault that the city’s budget is a trainwreck.  It’s because of “what they do in Harrisburg”.  But the very best part of this interview was the part where Barletta talked glowingly about himself, bragging about how popular he is in California (he has a fan club) and how he could probably be the Governor if he wanted (he’s decided he doesn’t) and that people in Washington DC are practically begging him to come be a Congressman so he can save the country from itself.  Again, as reported in the Standard Speaker…

“It would be a lot easier for a lot of politicians if Lou Barletta would go away. But I’m not going to.”According to Barletta, a recent statewide opinion poll gave him a significant approval rating for the office of governor or lieutenant governor.

“But I have ruled both those out,” Barletta said.

Still, a run for higher office appears to be a sure thing in Barletta’s future.

“It is no secret they have been talking to me in Washington. But right now there is so much going on here in Hazleton. Yet I definitely think Hazleton has been short-changed. Take stimulus money, for example. Hazleton hasn’t gotten any. And I believe it’s for no reason other than politics,” Barletta said.

“I definitely feel Hazleton needs a stronger voice in Washington,” he said.

The mayor said he was recently approached by a woman in a grocery store who was visiting from California. She said there is a huge “Barletta Fan Club” on the West Coast.

“We love you in California,” the woman said.

After receiving similar accolades from a citizen of Houston, Texas, Barletta said the news makes him feel more frustrated than flattered.

“That shows there are so many voices across the country shouting for the same things, but the people in Washington and Harrisburg have grown too big, too powerful to listen,” Barletta said.

All of this finger pointing, blame shifting, and pipe-dream-happy-talk is nothing new for Barletta.  This man, as Mayor, has ground his city into the dirt.  He has left it a financial disaster area, one of the worst run cities in the nation.  And now, despite this, he wants to run for Congress.  Lou Barletta wants to bring his brand of “leadership” to Washington.  Facing the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression, the people of the 11th Congressional District can not afford to have Barletta represent them in Congress.  Lou Barletta should not be elected to the US Congress.

See also: Hazleton’s Financial Problems Might Get Even Worse

-Dan Cheek
www.StopLouBarletta.com
StopLouBarletta@stoploubarletta.com

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 5th, 2009 at 11:15 am and is filed under Hazleton Pension Fund Fiasco, Lou's Leadership Flaws, On the Issues . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.