Acting as the county’s salary board, Republican commissioners Sean Kertes and Doug Chew, along with Republican Controller Jeff Balzer, approved the financial package for the auditors. It’s a move Balzer said was needed to retain a quality staff and was recommended by the county’s human resources department.
Gina Cerilli, a second-term Democrat, claimed Balzer threatened to shutter his auditing department and hire outside staff to complete those mandated functions should the proposed raises be rejected.
Balzer denied that a threat was made but conceded that during a private meeting last week he suggested that the hiring of an outside firm to perform the county’s routine auditing would be costly.
“It was a talking point and I don’t have the authority to do that,” Balzer said. “Once again, she’s exposed her inexperience in government and claims she knows everything.”
Kertes and Chew, first-term Republicans, supported the raises and said they were cheaper than hiring private auditors.
Source: Westmoreland commissioner claims county pay raises result of political threat | TribLIVE.com
