CLARKS SUMMIT - Borough police officers will soon have the resources necessary to enforce commercial vehicle traffic.
At a Clarks Summit borough council meeting Tuesday, officials announced they received a $19,987 grant through the state gambling funds - enough money to purchase four portable truck scales, Borough Manager Virginia Kehoe said.
The scales will allow officers who are certified to inspect vehicles to enforce weight restrictions, Councilman Herman Johnson said. They also will help the borough generate additional revenue, as officers will have the ability to fine violators.
There is no timetable for when the borough will receive the scales.
"Because we didn't know whether we were getting this or not, we didn't include in our income part of the budget money from the fines," Ms. Kehoe said. "This will certainly help us."
The purchase of the scales comes as a response to the steady increase in commercial traffic on State Street since the Marcellus Shale drilling boom began several years ago.
Since then, Patrolman Edward Orzalek enrolled in a 13-day training program to become a certified inspector, and Patrolman Chris Yarns, who served as the borough's officer-in-charge for about eight months in 2012, spearheaded the effort to secure the scales.
"Without the scales, officers can't measure if a truck is carrying too much weight, which is a huge safety concern," Mr. Johnson said. "In terms of safety, this is a great addition."
Also at the meeting, James Hunt, director of sales for Berkheimer Tax Administrator, said he still doesn't know how much in earned income taxes is owed to the borough. He said he will have a better understanding by July. Berkheimer is the tax collection agency appointed to replace Centax Group, after Centax struggled in its effort to collect 2012 earned income tax money from Lackawanna County residents who worked in Luzerne County and distribute that money to Lackawanna County municipalities.
Other county municipalities are looking into whether they are owed money from Centax.
Contact the writer: miorfino@timesshamrock.com, @miorfinoTT on Twitter