County, court reach deal

SUNBURY - Call it a compromise, a truce, a goodwill gesture for the taxpayers of Northumberland County: the county commissioners and President Judge Robert B. Sacavage have reached a settlement on their budget debate.

During a 30-minute press conference Monday afternoon, Sacavage shook hands with his former adversary, Commissioner Vinny Clausi, as well as with fellow Commissioners Kurt Masser and Frank Sawicki. The gesture, in marked contrast to most of the dealings between Sacavage and Clausi last year, came after the commissioners agreed to provide the court with $2,837,403 from the general fund in 2010 and pay approximately $20,000 in legal fees and expenses incurred by the court in filing court action against the commissioners.

The funding level is about $50,000 to $60,000 more than the general fund provided to the court in 2009.

In exchange, the lawsuit filed by Sacavage will be discontinued. To date, the county has paid approximately $33,000 to defend itself in the litigation.

At a Dec. 28 injunction hearing, the commissioners agreed to compromise with the court by adding $200,000 to the its budget so employees would get paid. As a result of the hearing, the commissioners were able to pass a 2010 county budget, which established court funding, including state allocations, at $6,207,038, close to the amount spent in 2009. Under the Dec. 28 stipulation, the commissioners had committed millage from the general fund to the court in the amount of $3,932,638.22.

Monday's settlement is more than $1 million less than that.

Sacavage and the courts were originally asking for a $6.4 million budget for 2010, while the county commissioners proposed $5.8 million. The judge previously said the proposed amount would "completely eviscerate the function of efficient justice."

The stipulation also calls for the total 2010 budget funding to be allocated to any court department at Sacavage's discretion and supersedes the stipulation reached on Dec. 28. The stipulation is a complete settlement of all claims between the parties pertaining to the budget debate, but does not have any value in regard to future disputes between the commissioners and court.

Monday's stipulation was signed by Sacavage, the three commissioners, county Chief Clerk and Attorney Kymberley Best, Attorney Timothy A. Bowers, who represented the county, and James Gardner Colins, counsel for the Northumberland County Court of Common Pleas.

Best said the county commissioners saved money by having Bowers represent them in the case. She said the Danville lawyer also has a better understanding of the local court system and taxpayers of Northumberland County than a big-city attorney.

Sacavage and Clausi praised Northumberland County Chief Adult Probation Officer Dave Wondoloski and county Court Administrator Brandy Yasenchak for negotiating the settlement.

Negotiations described

At the beginning of the press conference, Wondoloski said he and Yasenchak negotiated with Clausi during the past few days. Clausi then negotiated with his fellow commissioners, who agreed to settle the issue for the betterment of the county and taxpayers.

Wondoloski said the fact that neither he nor Yasenchak were plaintiffs or defendants in the lawsuit made it easier to negotiate. He said he believes the settlement is fair to both parties and was done in the best interest of taxpayers.

Sacavage previously said attorneys involved in the litigation told the media that the ultimate cost of continuing litigation would be $200,000 for each party.

"I want to thank Mr. Wondoloski, Brandy (Yasenchak), Judge Sacavage and the court for their cooperation in resolving this matter," Clausi said. "Now, we can move forward and do our jobs. We have established an open dialogue with the court that has improved our relations."

Sacavage also praised Wondoloski for serving as the "catalyst" for the new settlement.

"Mr. Wondoloski is a good negotiator," the judge said. "Maybe we should send him to the Middle East to negotiate a peace deal."

The judge added, "We do what's best for the court, and the commissioners do what's best for the taxpayers. Now, hopefully, we can get back to some kind of normalcy."

'Time to move forward'

Masser said it was unfortunate the debate led to a lawsuit, but now that a settlement has been reached, he's hopeful the relationship between the courts and commissioners has mended for good.

"This is a good day, and it's time to move forward," he said.

Sawicki said the commissioners will officially adopt the stipulation at their next meeting, Feb. 23. He said any money not used by the court must be returned to the general fund.

Under the stipulation, Yasenchak said there is about a $50,000 to $60,000 difference on the net effect on the general fund from 2009 to 2010.

Sacavage said the court doesn't pay for itself. But he said, the money given to the court by the commissioners under the stipulation signed Monday doesn't give the court a license to spend freely.

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