Clinton County Commissioners Approve Key Initiatives: Literacy, Bucktail Medical Center Loan Terms, Justice Reform, and Hunger Relief 

By Emily Wright

LOCK HAVEN— During their meeting on Thursday, October 30, 2025, the Clinton County Commissioners addressed a packed agenda that ranged from promoting the importance of literacy and supporting essential healthcare services provided at Bucktail Medical Center to enhancing technology within the county’s justice system. The board also addressed concerns about local food insecurity and urged state and federal lawmakers to resolve ongoing budget delays that jeopardize crucial resources for county residents.

Opening the meeting on a positive note, Commissioner Jeff Snyder read Proclamation No. 16 of 2025, celebrating the 31st anniversary of National Family Literacy Day on November 1, 2025. The proclamation underscored the importance of family engagement in literacy, stating that the day “highlights the importance of reading and learning for the entire family and emphasizes the impact that parents have on their children’s learning.”

Diane Whitaker, retired executive director of the Annie Halenbake Ross Library and current state vice chair for the National Literacy Promotion Committee of the Daughters of the American Revolution, attended the meeting to accept the proclamation.

Highlighting the ongoing challenges in literacy, Whitaker stressed the importance of literacy advocacy, pointing out that “up to one in seven adults lacks the literacy skills needed for work and everyday life, and one in four children will grow up without ever learning to read.”

As she accepted the proclamation, Whitaker shared her personal commitment to promoting literacy. “One of my goals is to reach out to the communities, whether it’s libraries, schools, or organizations, to promote literacy in various forms,” she said.

Whitaker pointed out that Proclamation No. 16 of 2025 marks the first time Clinton County has officially recognized National Family Literacy Day. She expressed her appreciation to the commissioners for issuing the proclamation and challenged the community to take part in this inaugural effort. “I ask all of you to go out and promote that day in your own way. Lend a book to a friend, go to a library, read to a child, help somebody with a GED class—whatever way you would like to promote literacy,” she said.

Shifting to other important business, the board unanimously approved a forbearance agreement to extend the maturity date on a $300,000 loan to Bucktail Medical Center (BMC). This loan, originally granted in late July of this year to help BMC cope with delayed insurance reimbursements, was extended to provide continued financial relief. At the end of the meeting, Commissioner Angela Harding emphasized the importance of this support amid ongoing state and federal budget delays. “We’re trying to continue to work with Bucktail Medical Center to make sure that they’re a viable source for healthcare in our community,” she said, underscoring the essential role that timely financial assistance plays for healthcare facilities facing similar challenges.

The commissioners also advanced efforts to modernize the county’s justice system by approving a $101,846.00 master services and purchasing agreement with Justice Premier Plus and Axon Justice. This agreement will equip the district attorney’s office with an integrated digital evidence and case management platform that’s designed to help legal professionals quickly manage, review, and share large amounts of digital evidence, such as body-worn camera video and audio recordings. District Attorney Dave Strouse attended the meeting to highlight the significance of this investment, pointing out the administrative burden that digital evidence currently places on his office. “Recent studies have found that approximately 35% of attorney time is now spent doing clerical work in the office—trying to deal with digital evidence management, and approximately 60% of county detective time is also spent doing digital evidence management,” he said.

Strouse elaborated on the rapid changes in prosecution over the last decade, explaining that the process has shifted from relying on paper reports to depending almost entirely on digital evidence. He explained that every case his office handles now includes digital evidence in a wide array of formats, including photographs, surveillance videos, suspect interview recordings, PDF documents, cell phone data extractions, recorded phone calls from correctional facilities, social media extractions, vehicle video footage, and bodycam recordings. Strouse emphasized that many of these videos are duplicates, capturing the same incident from multiple angles, but each one must be reviewed in its entirety to ensure that no key evidence is overlooked. This repetitive process highlights the complexity and time-consuming nature of managing digital evidence in the modern legal system.

To tackle these challenges, Strouse outlined the advantages of the new digital evidence and case management platform: “This program allows us to use an Axon system, which is heavily AI-based,” he said. “It integrates all those digital files into one database and reviews them prior to having human eyes put on them, and it alerts us to what those evidentiary issues are, where they’re located in the videos, and allows us to replay those videos, sometimes four or five at a time—at the same time—so, it essentially reduces our time spent on each video.”

In another significant move during Thursday’s meeting, the board approved an application to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) to expand the Law Enforcement Treatment Initiative (LETI) Diversion Program in Clinton County. The $230,392 pass-through grant awarded to the West Branch Drug and Alcohol Abuse Commission aims to enhance community health and promote more positive interactions between law enforcement and county residents by prioritizing treatment for substance abuse over incarceration. 

The LETI Diversion Program is a collaborative effort that enables law enforcement to refer individuals with substance use disorders to treatment and recovery services instead of pursuing arrest and prosecution for certain non-violent, low-level offenses. Its goal is to break the cycle of addiction and repeat offenses through early intervention, connecting individuals with vital support resources, and reducing strain on the criminal justice system.

Barb Vanaskie, program coordinator for Clinton County’s LETI Program, reported to the board that the initiative has already contributed to a decrease in recidivism rates, as observed by both the district attorney’s office and the probation department. Discussing what the expanded program will allow, Vanaskie explained, “This will really expand not just the types of charges that we’re going to be looking at, but looking at early intervention and youth diversion.” The grant will also support increased engagement with magistrate-level judges and additional training for the county probation department.

As the meeting drew to a close, the focus shifted to the growing issue of food insecurity in Clinton County and the ongoing government funding shortfall. Commissioner Angela Harding shared concerning statistics, reporting, “As it stands right now, in the most recent documentation that I could find, 5,637 residents in Clinton County—that’s 14.9% of our neighbors—rely on food assistance here in Clinton County. The average payout, the average assistance amount, is about $200 a month; that includes children, the elderly, the disabled, and working residents with low income.”

With local food pantries and churches bracing for increased demand, Harding encouraged community members to support local hunger relief efforts in any way they can. “If you would like to contribute to the cause, please consider a monetary donation because local food banks can leverage buying power through the Central PA Food Bank and stretch a dollar much further than we can if we go to the grocery store and buy food to donate,” she said.

Harding concluded her remarks by encouraging residents to approach those facing hardship with empathy and support, especially during the current period of financial uncertainty. “Regardless of how you feel about assistance programs, it is not okay to demonize or place shame on food insecurity,” she emphasized. “The wealthiest nation in the world should not be facing this, and our elected officials need to get to work, negotiate, and, most importantly, work for all citizens, especially those less fortunate among us.”

Commissioner Jeff Snyder echoed these concerns, emphasizing the need for greater accountability in government. “I believe of the last 20 years, 12 of those 20 years, the state has not finished their budget on time,” he said. “It is time for the voters across this Commonwealth to keep in mind the next time they vote for legislators, to pick people who know to how to go to Harrisburg and know how to go to Washington, that can reach across the aisle and do what we send them to do instead of making everything political and then having services not being provided for people in need. We need to vote smarter and get people that represent us and not themselves in Harrisburg and Washington.”

The commissioner’s next work session will be held on Monday, November 10, 2025, at 9:00 a.m., followed by a voting session scheduled for Thursday, November 13, at 10:00 a.m. Chief Operating Officer/Chief Clerk Desiree Myers announced that the preliminary budget for 2026 will be presented during the November 13 meeting and will be available for public review for one month. The board aims to finalize and approve the budget at the meeting scheduled for Thursday, December 18. 

Myers also reminded residents that all county offices will be closed on Tuesday, November 11, in observance of Veterans’ Day.

All meetings of the Clinton County Commissioners are held in the second-floor conference room of the Piper Building at 2 Piper Way, Lock Haven. For those who cannot attend in person, meetings are livestreamed on the “Clinton County Government” Facebook page, where meeting agendas are also posted within 24 hours prior to each meeting.

Members of the public who wish to comment on any agenda item may do so during the public comment period at the beginning of every meeting by calling 570-893-4000. Questions or comments can also be submitted via email to commissioners@clintoncountypa.gov by 9:00 a.m. on the day of the meeting. To schedule a presentation for a work session meeting (held on Mondays), contact Desiree Myers at dmyers@clintoncountypa.gov.