HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Gov.-elect Ed Rendell announced Sunday that he will nominate men from western Pennsylvania to head four state departments directly involved with the state’s economy.
The former Philadelphia mayor announced the nominations, all of which are subject to confirmation by the state Senate, at a news conference in Pittsburgh. The nominees are:
— Dennis Yablonsky, 50, a Mount Lebanon resident who is chief executive officer of the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse, picked to become the next secretary of the Department of Community and Economic Development. The annual salary is set by law at $109,756.
— Stephen M. Schmerin, 52, of Gibsonia, a Pittsburgh attorney who specializes in labor law, tapped to become secretary of the Department of Labor and Industry, a job that pays $115,533.
— Gregory Fajt, 48, of Mount Lebanon, a former legislator who represented the South Hills section of Pittsburgh, to be nominated as secretary of the state Revenue Department. The salary is $109,756.
— William Schenck, 59, of Fox Chapel, a former chairman and CEO of Fleet Mortgage, was picked to head the Department of Banking. The salary is $103,980.
The latest announcements helped balance a prospective Cabinet that previously had slightly favored people with ties to Philadelphia, although Rendell’s spokesman said that was a secondary consideration.
“We were far more interested in their expertise than we were in their region,” the spokesman, Ken Snyder, said Sunday. “But it was important to the governor-elect to have a balanced cabinet” in terms of both geography and gender, he said.
Of the 15 nominees for department heads Rendell has announced so far, only four are female, although he has appointed women to several influential posts on the gubernatorial staff.
Yablonsky has headed the life-science greenhouse, a state-financed effort to spur the development of biotechnology businesses, since 2001 and previously headed the Pittsburgh Digital Greenhouse, a similar project designed to attracted high-tech businesses to the region.
Yablonsky “has the right experience to lead my economic-revitalization effort in Pennsylvania,” Rendell said.
Schmerin, who has more than 20 years’ experience in contract negotiations, workers’ compensation cases and other labor matters, understands the need to balance the protection of workers’ rights with employers’ need to keep costs as low as possible, the Democratic governor-elect said.
“Our objectives, plain and simple, will be to grow the work force and keep people working, work aggressively with employees and employers to resolve disputes and minimize work stoppages,” Rendell said.
Fajt, a tax lawyer and certified public accountant, would be responsible for collecting the state’s major taxes as revenue secretary. Rendell said Fajt would work to make tax collections more efficient.
Schenck is a financial consultant whose career in banking includes 26 years as a senior executive at PNC Corp., formerly Pittsburgh National Bank, and who is active in community affairs.
“Bill has the respect and know-how to work with bankers from around the commonwealth and country, seek their input, and encourage them to be part of our plan for economic expansion,” Rendell said.
Rendell, who will be inaugurated Tuesday, flew back to Philadelphia to watch the Eagles take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC title game. As governor, he has said he plans to continue his part-time job as a post-game commentator for the team on the Comcast SportsNet cable network.
At a hotel on the outskirts of Harrisburg, members of the Democratic State Committee gathered Sunday for their first meeting of the year, but little business was transacted amid the twin distractions of the inauguration and the Eagles’ prospects for a trip to the Super Bowl.
“This weekend is more about celebration than work,” state Sen. Allen G. Kukovich, the party’s state chairman, acknowledged to the restless crowd as he worked through the agenda.
