A Luzerne County Court filing is planned as part of an effort to stop the county’s anti-discrimination repeal referendum, an attorney said Monday.
In a separate development, the council won’t be reconsidering the anti-discrimination ordinance Tuesday as planned.
Legal challenge
Citizens submitted 15,405 signatures seeking the referendum on the 2027 primary election ballot, which was well above the 11,615 signatures required, prior county controller Walter Griffith, who heads the citizen petitioners committee, has said.
Action Together NEPA and seven residents sought a review of the petition, asserting there are 8,971 deficient signatures, issues with the petition format, and that signature collectors intentionally misled voters who signed it — claims disputed by the petition filers.
The county’s five-citizen Election Board unanimously voted last week to refrain from adjudicating the request for review.
Attorney Joseph Borland, who represents Action Together and the seven citizens, said Monday his clients plan on filing an action in the County Court of Common Pleas.
This action, in part, will seek to force the county Election Board to make a determination, Borland said.
“The intent of the filing is to ask the court to direct the Board of Elections to review this matter, as we do not believe the first review was adequate or even existent,” said Borland, of Borland & Borland in Wilkes-Barre.
Under procedures outlined in the county’s home rule charter, the election board has 20 days to process petition challenges, which in this case is Sept. 24.
County Assistant Solicitor Gene Molino told the board the charter does not mandate board action on review requests. He pointed to the charter’s description of the board’s “opportunity” to make a determination and cited charter references that review requests may be taken to county court upon failure of the board to decide.
Several election board members also said they do not believe the board has enough time to delve into the extensive legal issues raised in the review request, particularly amid conflicting legal opinions from petition filers and challengers over whether state election law applies to the petition format and signatures.
Tuesday vote
The anti-discrimination ordinance was on Tuesday’s County Council agenda for reconsideration — a step necessary under the charter in citizen-initiated repeal efforts.
Council Chairman Jimmy Sabatino said Monday evening he has removed the reconsideration from the agenda because county legal counsel determined further review is warranted on when it must be completed.
Sabatino said he wants to honor that request because the repeal effort is “uncharted territory,” and he does not want the county to be subjected to any legal challenges and related costs.
The charter says the council shall reconsider the ordinance within 30 days after the citizen petition is “finally determined to be sufficient.”
Sabatino had cited reasons the reconsideration should occur now, but an argument could be made that the petition’s sufficiency won’t be “finally determined” until the outstanding petition challenge has been fully resolved.
Tuesday’s council meeting starts at 6 p.m. in the county courthouse on River Street in Wilkes-Barre. Instructions for the remote attendance option are posted in the council’s online meeting section at luzernecounty.org.
The anti-discrimination ordinance requires local adjudication of complaints that extend beyond county government and involve employment, housing, healthcare, education, and establishments that sell goods or services to the general public.
Supporters said the ordinance will protect classes not already covered in state and federal laws and speed up processing of complaints due to a state backlog. Critics argued the county should not get involved in such matters and raised concerns about potential liability, litigation, and added expenses.