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The second Montrose Borough meeting of the month was sparsely attended. The meeting convened as usual at 7:30 pm.

The first item on the agenda was the insurance renewal. A representative of DGK, Jim Davis, was present for the discussion. He spoke up regarding Act 46 of 2011, the Cancer Presumptive Act, which was state legislation affecting worker’s compensation programs. This changed the eligibility requirements and benefits for firemen. Under the act if a fireman, paid or volunteer, was exposed to a class 1 carcinogen within the last 600 weeks and contracted cancer, he or she could receive compensation through worker’s compensation. Of the seven insurance carriers that used to provide coverage for firemen outside of the state system, three had backed out and one was deciding not to write any new policies. A lot of companies, he continued, were forcing the volunteer class to the state system. This was a state mandated benefit to the firemen of Pennsylvania, and he said that eventually the tax payers would have to feel the effect. That was why the premium for the borough had increased by $3,000 or $4,000 in total. Several claims had already been filed under the new law, some of them postmortem.

With Sandy Hook still fresh in the minds of the public, Susquehanna Community School District Directors listened attentively to Lanesboro Mayor Chris Maby’s presentation of a proposal for increased police coverage for the school’s campus. Mayor Maby’s presentation at the school board’s deliberation and information session on Tuesday, February 19, outlined the basics of a still-to-be-formalized proposal for the board’s consideration and ultimate ratification at a future meeting. Included in the outline of police services would be on-campus police presence during the hours of 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on every school day. Hypothetically, Lanesboro borough would increase its police force by one full-time position, with the position pay range from $12.50 to $14.00 per hour. While the school district would be responsible for salary re-imbursement to Lanesboro for the contracted police services, Superintendent Bronson Stone indicated that grant monies would very likely be available to cover much, if not all of that cost.

Mayor Maby noted that the increase in borough police staffing would be a win-win situation for both the school and the community because of the increased police presence. While the officer selected for duty at SCSD would not be available for routine patrol duties, in the event of a true emergency within Lanesboro the officer would be available to temporarily respond, with return to campus as soon as back-up arrived or the emergency was controlled at the off-campus incident.

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