Republican county commissioner candidate George Dunbar on Thursday accused Democratic incumbents of excessive spending and plunging Westmoreland County finances into a downward spiral.
Democratic Commissioner Tom Balya's spokesman responded by pointing out that Dunbar, a certified accountant, worked for a company that subsequently went bankrupt.
Ted Kopas, a spokesman for Balya, said Dunbar's opinions on county finances are therefore not credible.
Kopas released a file detailing the bankruptcy case of Wright Industries, an underground-utility contractor for whom Dunbar worked as chief financial officer until 2005. The bankruptcy case, filed March 6, includes unpaid bills from Dunbar's tenure with the firm, Kopas said.
Yesterday's volleys were the first confrontation between the commissioner candidates in what so far has been a quiet race leading up to the Nov. 6 general election.
Dunbar responded to the Balya campaign's release with disdain.
"That's dirty," Dunbar said. "If their response is negative stuff -- not true -- if that's the best they can do, then it surely proves we need change."
According to court records, Wright Industries filed for bankruptcy on March 6. Dunbar said he left the company two years earlier and that he had no involvement in the circumstances that led up to the Chapter 11 filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Pittsburgh.
Dunbar, a first-term Penn Township commissioner, held a news conference yesterday morning at the entranceway of the Westmoreland County Air Industrial Park in Unity to unveil his plan to curb county spending and keep taxes level.
"Our goal early on is to cap spending and keep taxes fixed at their current rate," Dunbar said.
Dunbar appeared without running mate Kim Ward, a Hempfield supervisor. Ward said later that Dunbar spoke for the GOP candidates.
Dunbar blasted the Democrats for increasing budget spending by more than $67 million over the last eight years and instituting a 23.5 percent tax hike in 2004, just months after they were re-elected to new terms.
Dunbar said the county's debt was dangerously trending upward, as about $8 million in loans are due to be repaid this year. That total could balloon to about $18 million a decade later, he said.
Dunbar said a recent two-year reduction in debt payments should be discounted.
"Ironically, a similar trend happened last election cycle as well. When the Election Year Toms come out, they love to use your tax money to pay down debt to look good before the voters. Unfortunately for taxpayers, months after the election the Tax-and-Spend Toms are back and looking for your wallet," Dunbar said.
County officials yesterday disputed Dunbar's claims that the debt payments would inflate over the next decade and said the amount in loan repayments is expected to decrease annually during the next two decades.
Dunbar said the Republicans would revamp the budgeting process, reform county bid procedures by eliminating instances when no formal bids are sought and halt automatic renewal of contracts.
Dunbar also said he and Ward would look to restore the county's internal controls, review insurance benefits with workers, update purchasing procedures and review operations at the county jail.
The Democrats countered yesterday by saying the county's financial condition was in good shape, with a stable tax rate, healthy reserves and a strong bond rating.
"The facts speak for themselves. This county's finances have been managed solidly if not spectacularly," Kopas said.
Kopas, a volunteer for the Balya campaign, works as his chief of staff at the courthouse in Greensburg.
Commissioner Tom Ceraso did not respond to a request for comment.
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