Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti, the Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District, proposed a 3% property tax increase in her 2023 city budget to fund several new positions including a diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator. The proposal would have generated approximately $957,000 in additional revenue for the city. Among eight proposed hires was a DEI coordinator position set aside at $25,500. Cognetti is seeking to unseat incumbent Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan in one of the most competitive House races in the country.
The budget also included funding for a police chief, fire chief, business administrator, solicitor and director of public works, with total costs estimated at $380,500. The proposed tax increase was intended to cover these positions. Cognetti's 2023 budget proposal was not adopted by the city council, which cut the DEI coordinator position without public comment.
What the Right Is Saying
Republicans have criticized Cognetti's DEI proposals as misplaced priorities. A red state senator dropped pressure on her over what critics characterize as "woke" DEI policies amid ongoing concerns about public safety and fiscal responsibility.
The framing from Republican opponents emphasizes that Cognetti sought to raise taxes during a period when many residents faced economic challenges, allocating resources toward administrative positions rather than core municipal services. Critics in the district have argued such proposals reflect priorities misaligned with working-class voters in northeastern Pennsylvania.
Republican sources note that while Cognetti frames her diversity efforts as merit-based, the budget proposal explicitly included funding for a dedicated DEI coordinator role, suggesting an intentional policy commitment to government-side diversity programs rather than organic hiring practices.
What the Left Is Saying
Cognetti has defended her approach to diversity as quiet and substantive rather than performative. "We're not doing this for the publicity. We are doing this quietly so that these conversations just become the norm," she said in a 2023 podcast appearance.
The Cognetti campaign emphasized her broader fiscal record, arguing she has worked to reduce costs for taxpayers. "Mayor Cognetti ran as an independent against a corrupt Democratic machine and reformed city hall. She saved taxpayers' money by balancing the budget after years of mismanagement, turned down a government car and gas card, refused a pay raise and improved the city's credit rating from junk bond status to an A- investment rating," her campaign said in a statement.
Cognetti argued that hiring the best candidates has naturally resulted in greater diversity at City Hall. "We're not doing it by cherry-picking, but by merit, and lo and behold, City Hall looks different," she said. "When you walk into City Hall today, there are far more people of color and far more women working there, I think, than you would have seen four years ago."
The campaign also pointed to Bresnahan's company receiving federal contracts as a disadvantaged business enterprise. "Rob Bresnahan's own company identifies itself as disadvantaged and women-owned in order to get a leg up on securing federal contracts," a Cognetti spokesperson said.
What the Numbers Show
The proposed 2023 Scranton budget included a 3% property tax increase estimated to generate $957,000 in additional revenue for the city. The eight new positions Cognetti proposed would have cost approximately $380,500 combined. The DEI coordinator position was allocated $25,500 of that total.
Bresnahan's company, Kuharchik Construction Inc., has received $162,000 in federal contracts since 2008 according to public records, though the company has not received federal payments since 2017. Bresnahan began leading the company as CEO in 2013.
Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District is considered one of the most competitive House seats in the country, with both parties investing significant resources ahead of the election cycle.
The Bottom Line
The unearthed budget records provide voters in Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District a window into Cognetti's policy priorities as mayor and how she might approach governance in Congress. The proposed tax increase was never implemented after city council removed the DEI coordinator position without public discussion, but it remains part of her record heading into a competitive general election.
Cognetti has sought to contrast her fiscal discipline as mayor with Bresnahan's congressional career, citing credit rating improvements and budget reforms. Meanwhile, Republicans are likely to highlight the tax increase proposal as evidence of different priorities than those of district voters. How these competing narratives resonate could influence the outcome in a race that national parties on both sides are watching closely.