LOCK HAVEN — At their regular meeting this week, the Clinton County Commissioners proclaimed Nov. 1 as National Family Literacy Day in the county.

Established by Congress in 1994, the holiday, which celebrates its 31st anniversary this year, highlights the importance of reading and learning for the whole family.

Each year, National Family Literacy Day features special activities and events that highlight the importance of family literacy programs, which help empower parents to foster a nation of readers. These programs include readathons, book drives, workshops and family activities, taking place at schools, homes, libraries and community centers throughout the county.

In America, an estimated one in six adults struggles with reading and writing, and one in four children will grow up not learning how to read.

As champions of the holiday, the National Society of Daughters of the American Revolution has committed to securing a better future for the country through improved education for children and adults.

Accepting the proclamation on their behalf was Diane Whitaker, long-time executive director of the Annie Halenbake Ross Library and state vice-chair for the National Literacy Promotion Committee of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

The Daughters of the American Revolution define literacy as an individual’s ability to read, write and speak English, but also to compute and solve problems at least functionally in their job and in society.

“As many as one in seven adults do not have that second level of being able to work at a job and function in our society,” said Whitaker.

For that reason, Whitaker, on behalf of the organization, is connecting with communities to promote literacy in its various forms.

“I ask all of you to go out and promote the day in your own way. Lend a book to a friend, go to a library, read to a child, help someone with a GED class – whatever way you’d like to promote literacy,” she said, was welcome.

Speaking for the board, Commissioner Jeff Snyder said, “The county of Clinton is committed to increasing literacy by promoting and supporting literacy programs.”

Among other business, the board provided additional information about their 2026 budgeting timeline and approved a forbearance agreement for Renovo’s Bucktail Medical Center.

2026 Budget

According to Chief Clerk Desiree Myers, the Clinton County Board of Commissioners intends to present the county’s preliminary 2026 budget at their next meeting on Nov. 13.

The budget will remain on display for one month.

They hope to finalize and approve it at the Dec. 18 commissioners meeting.

Forbearance

In light of the ongoing federal government shutdown and state budget impasse, the board of commissioners unanimously approved a forbearance agreement with Bucktail Medical Center for their previous $300,000 loan.

The loan, originally set to mature on Oct. 31, 2025, will now have a maturity date extending to 60 days after the enactment of a budget for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the 2025-2026 fiscal year.

“Our expansion of the timeline on the Bucktail Medical Center (loan) is due to not only the state budget impasse but the federal government shutdown,” said Commissioner Angela Harding. “We are trying to continue to work with Bucktail Medical Center to make sure they are a viable source for healthcare in our community.”

In other business commissioners:

— Opened bids for rug and mat services and turned them over to the county staff and solicitor for review.

— Approved an agreement between Clinton County and John and Joyce Gummo to accept a donation of items from the Gummo property. The agreement requires the county to retrieve the items by Nov. 30, 2025, and provide a contribution acknowledgment letter no later than Dec. 15.

“We would like to thank the Gummos for this very generous donation. We’re looking forward to getting these items and then placing them along Bald Eagle Valley Trail,” said Commissioner Jeff Snyder.

Commissioners also approved a related agreement between the county and the Friends of the Bald Eagle Valley Trail group to support the placement, display and administration of the items donated by the Gummos.

— Approved two motions related to the Community Development Block Grant program. The first was an amendment to the SEDA-COG CDBG Professional Services Agreement. The second was an agreement with SEDA-COG for administration of the fiscal year 2024 Community Development Block Grant.

— Approved a contract renewal with Morefield Communications for the transition to the Flex Plan and CISCO SMARTnet renewal, co-termed through Nov. 17, 2028, for $19,814.48.

— Approved renewal of the county’s Wildcard SSL Certificate through GoDaddy, which secures the county’s domains and all associated subdomains. The two-year term costs $999.98.

— Approved a three-year inmate housing agreement with Union County at the Clinton County Correctional Facility, effective Oct. 21, 2025. The rate is $73 per inmate per day.

— Approved a service contract with Thomson Reuters for West Proflex legal research software, including 12 user licenses and West Complete print subscriptions, at a combined monthly cost of $6,624.58.

— Approved a master services and purchasing agreement between the county and Justice Premier Plus and Axon Justice-Pro-Fast Pass to provide the district attorney’s office with an integrated digital evidence and case management platform. The cost is $101,846.

According to District Attorney Dave Strouse, “Essentially, it allows us to help solve the digital evidence issue we have in my office, and in every district attorney’s office across the county.”

Strauss said recent studies have found that 35 percent of attorneys’ time and 60 percent of detectives’ time is spent dealing with digital evidence management, as prosecutors’ offices have become increasingly digitized.

“This program allows us to use an Axon system, which is heavily AI-based, but it integrates all those digital files into one database and reviews them prior to having human eyes put on them. (It) alerts us to what those evidentiary issues are, where they are located in the videos and allows us to replay those videos, sometimes four or five at a time,” said Strauss.

He added that the secure system could speed up their operation by as much as five times and eliminate the need for additional personnel.

— Approved an agreement between Clinton County and Flemington Borough for professional services provided by the county engineer. The agreement is not to exceed $10,300/

— Approved an application to the PA Commission on Crime and Delinquency for the expansion of the Clinton County Law Enforcement Treatment Initiative (LETI) Diversion Program Grant for the West Branch Drug and Alcohol Abuse Commission as a pass-through grant in the amount of $230,392.

“This PCCD Grant will expand what we have already created here in Clinton County,” said Barb Vanaskie, coordinator of the current Law Enforcement Treatment Initiative. “Our success rate has been really great, in my opinion, from the district attorney’s office. We’ve seen a decrease in recidivism.”

The grant will not only expand the charges applicable for the program, but also at early intervention, youth diversion, training for the probation department and engaging magistrate-level judges.

— Approved the transfer of IV-D Funds from the IV-D checking account to the General Fund in the amount of $41,617.00 for reimbursement of expenses for July 2025.

— Approved County Bills in the amount of $2,180,040.89 for the two-week period ending Oct. 29, 2025, and net payroll in the amount of $332,970.88 for the two-week period ending on Oct. 24, 2025.