Editorial: Westmoreland ARP funds need tentative plans
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In 2021, Westmoreland County received half of a $105.3 million coronavirus relief fund allocation under the American Rescue Plan.
It’s a significant amount of money. The county’s entire budget for 2022 is $367.6 million, so being given nearly a third of that as a windfall with comparatively few strings opens up a lot of options for the kind of projects government often wants to do but has to reject because it just doesn’t have the money.
The problem is, there always are more of those projects than there ever will be the cash to accomplish.
In August, a Tribune-Review editorial chastised the county commissioners for their silence on plans for the money while other counties were openly soliciting ideas. A month later, we applauded a change in course as the county put up a web survey. Two public hearings were held soliciting more input. A plan would come in early 2022, commissioners said.
Here it is halfway through April — well into the second quarter of 2022 — with no plan yet in sight.
Oh sure, some money has been spent. There was $1 million for staff raises and bonuses and technology upgrades. Then $7 million was needed for emergency courthouse parking garage work when engineers said they couldn’t promise it wouldn’t collapse. Luckily, there was a pot of money to pull from for that.
That still leaves about $97 million waiting for a project or several to kick start. So when will the commissioners say what that money will cover?
“We each have our priorities, and we’re working through those priorities,” Commissioner Gina Cerilli Thrasher said.
OK, that makes sense. The commissioners do have different areas of concern. And Thrasher also said they don’t want to spent it quickly or dole out “blank checks.” That’s also good to know.
But no one is asking for dollar bills to be showered from the courthouse like confetti. They are asking for a plan, and that’s not unreasonable.
The county has plenty of options on the table that would widely benefit county residents — even across political extremes. Republican Commissioner Sean Kertes has pitched a plan that would include funding mental health services and housing. The progressive group Voices of Westmoreland also would like to see those areas funded.
Kertes also supports other areas such as investment in small-business grants, countering blight and funding infrastructure projects such as broadband, water and sewer. He has no cost breakdowns for those.
Thrasher said she won’t talk about her priorities because the last time she did, “everyone attacked me.”
“When it’s done, it’s done,” she said.
Sorry, commissioner — that’s not how transparent government works. When people asked to be part of the process, they didn’t just mean they wanted a suggestion box. The residents of Westmoreland County have a right to know how all of their commissioners want to spend this money.
The fact that all three commissioners say no agreements have been made speaks to the worst part of government — the backroom bargaining.
Maybe it’s time for the commissioners to put their priorities solidly on the table, in front of the public, akin to a preliminary budget that is released before final approval, so people can see what’s there and make recommendations.