Luzerne and Lackawanna counties have a tentative agreement with officials at the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport to continue providing law enforcement officers at airport for two years.
Police officers from surrounding municipalities will staff the airport seven days a week from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m., according to a news release from Luzerne County. The airport will cover 50% of the cost, while each county will cover 25% of the costs.
The two counties share ownership of the airport, which is primarily in Pittston Twp. in Luzerne County and is known as AVP because of its proximity to Avoca.
Luzerne County officials have been upset that Lackawanna County wasn’t contributing to pay for law enforcement officers at the airport. A meeting to discuss the issue scheduled for 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Luzerne County Operations Building in Wyoming was canceled.
The Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office took over the Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) program at the airport in 2021, and the TSA funding for the program ended in May 2024. The LEO program costs $144,000 a year, and the airport has been paying $5,000 a month to help fund the program.
Lackawanna County Commissioner Bill Gaughan has said law enforcement officers don’t need to be at the airport because the airport spends $500,000 a year on a security force. Security guards can’t arrest anyone but can detain people and call local police for arrests, Gaughan said.
“Luzerne County Manager Romilda Crocamo and Luzerne County Council thank Lackawanna County Commissioners Chris Chermak and Brenda Sacco for recognizing the importance of reaching an agreement, and that having police officers at the facility, which is owned and operated by both counties and physically extends into both, ensures the safety of all travelers and the surrounding public,” Luzerne County said in its news release.
The bi-county airport board is scheduled to meet at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at the airport in Pittston Twp. The new agreement will go into effect immediately when signed by all parties.