3 Erie County Council members say Davis plan could divert ARP dollars from hard-hit areas

Erie County Executive Brenton Davis has pledged millions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief to a single manufacturing center he believes will spark greater investment in the region.

But in order to make good on that pledge, Davis wants to divert funds from a transformative grants program that has been supporting hard-hit communities for a year.

Erie County Council members Mary Rennie, Andre Horton and Terry Scutella say the pledge violates the spirit of the American Rescue Plan, which was to provide immediate help to those most affected by the pandemic.

They also say Davis made the pledge unilaterally, with no public hearings, no public votes and no regard for the process and procedures of county government.

"It's not even a rubber stamp, it's a rollover," Rennie said in regard to Davis' approach to council.

Davis pledges funds:Erie County Council members accuse Davis of committing funds without council approval

At a Sept. 15 meeting, Davis officials asked council to support a resolution to green-light the use of American Rescue Plan funds toward the proposed center.

The resolution was tabled after Rennie, Horton and Scutella said the administration was merely seeking council support after already committing funds to the project.

This past Thursday, the finance committee agreed by a 4-3 straw vote to add the resolution to the regular council meeting agenda for Oct. 4 as a first read. Rennie, Horton and Scutella, all Democrats, were the nay votes.

Davis eyes Penn State Behrend project

The pledge in question involves $5 million in American Rescue Plan money that Davis wants to go toward the development of a manufacturing and engineering center at Penn State Behrend's Knowledge Park.

The $5 million makes up a local match for a state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant of $8 million. If awarded, the RACP grant — on top of the local matches from the county and Penn State University — could provide the project roughly $16 million.

The center is the first phase of Project RESOLVE and is one of 15 projects in Erie County competing for a RACP grant. It's the only one that Davis is supporting with American Rescue Plan funds.

Davis seeks regional partners:Davis seeks regional partnerships to maximize federal grant funding

In a statement, Davis said the new center would establish the region as a "global leader in battery research and testing," and make the area a magnet for employment and investment, especially at the Wabtec Corp. plant in Lawrence Park Township.

He said using the $5 million was a "logical approach" since the money was part of an existing budget line, Transformative Grants, in the 2022 American Rescue Plan budget.

However, Rennie says Davis is "playing favorites" among the potential RACP contenders and has committed funds to the center — before seeking council approval — to bolster its chances of getting the RACP award.

Funds were to help multiple community projects

Speaking with the Times-News, Rennie said the Transformative Grants budget line was intended for the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority, which received the first round of this funding in 2021 and has a grant process in place to support critical community projects.

Davis officials said the money was fair game because the 2022 American Rescue Plan budget did not specify the Gaming Revenue Authority as the recipient of the funds.

"If ECGRA doesn't have control over it, then that doesn't automatically mean the county executive has control over it," Rennie said. "In other words, if we didn't name a fiscal agent, all that means is council needs to name a fiscal agent for that money. The county executive does not have complete authority to go in any line of the budget and just raid it for his own purposes."

Davis, townships call for ARPA changes:Davis joins township officials to urge Erie County re-budgeting of federal spending plan

Perry Wood, executive director of the Gaming Revenue Authority, said he expected to receive the $5 million and had conducted "organized rural listening sessions" in the summer to determine what projects needed support.

“It would be a shame to see that funding directed away from transformational grants to communities like Millcreek, Girard, Corry, North East and Union City," Wood told the Times-News. "The County Council has been put into a very difficult position being asked to choose between their constituents and a single project.”

Wood said the listening sessions showed an "urgent need for investment" in dozens of projects, from water lines and broadband in Girard to sewer service expansion throughout the borough and township of North East.

"It's projects like those that would be left unfulfilled," he said.

While Rennie, Horton and Scutella each voiced their support for Project RESOLVE, they questioned whether American Rescue Plan funds are the appropriate funding source.

"I think the money can be used for basically what it was meant to be used for," Scutella said. "There's still people and other organizations that are hurting and I think it would be better to use it for them."

Council solicitor says Davis violated Home Rule Charter

At a Sept. 15 finance meeting, County Council Solicitor Tom Talarico said Davis had "usurped" the council's authority by pledging the funds without council approval.

He also said if council approved the resolution to support the use of American Rescue Plan funds, it would be "breaking the law every bit as much as the county executive."

"He, on his own, usurped the County Council's authority and pretended that he had the authority to get involved and influence Wabtec, Behrend, RACP, the government — all giving them the impression that that money has been appropriated already," Talarico said of Davis. "He has no authority to do that. He is completely out of line."

Horton questioned why the council's three-person ad hoc committee — which was formed by council in July to recommend changes to the 2022 American Rescue Plan budget — had not reported back to council on the matter.

Council creates ad hoc committee:County Council forms committee to readdress American Rescue Plan funds

County Information Officer Chris Carroll, in an email to the Times-News, said Davis had met with the ad hoc committee on multiple occasions and the committee had "indicated support of this commitment to Project Resolve."

However, ad hoc committee members Brian Shank and Jim Winarski said they were unclear about any such commitment.

"To the best of my recollection — no," said Shank in regard to the ad hoc committee backing the $5 million pledge.

Winarski said, "I would say people liked the idea but I don't know if there was ever any commitments."

Schauerman, the third member of the ad hoc committee, could not be reached for comment.

Rennie stressed that if the resolution passes, then County Council is "rolling over" for the county executive. If it fails, the county will be "on the hook" to find funds elsewhere, she added.

Penn State Behrend, Davis deny any pledge of funds

In an emailed statement to the Times-News this past Tuesday, Robb Frederick, Penn State Behrend's assistant director of news and information, said no one has pledged funds toward Project RESOLVE.

"No officials, including the current county executive, have at any point made any promises of funding for this project," Frederick said. "It has always been our understanding that any allocation of local funding for the center would require the approval of County Council. We recognize and respect the council’s role in this process."

This past Thursday, Davis told council members that any allegations that he committed funds or made any deals with Penn State Behrend on Project RESOLVE were "fictitious."

However, Davis and his director of administration, Doug Smith, have acknowledged in a statement and at a council meeting, respectively, that $5 million in American Rescue Plans was "pledged" to the project.

Documents obtained by a Right-to-Know request from the Times-News also indicate that Davis on Aug. 19 emailed the Erie County General Authority — which submitted the RACP application on the county's behalf — and wrote that "Erie County will invest $5 million in Project Resolve from our ARPA funds" and that "PSU has agreed to match the $5 million," and that these funds were "agreed upon."

The RACP grant application, submitted on Aug. 19, indicates a local match of $8.4 million — which includes the $5 million investment.

A.J. Rao can be reached at arao@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNRao.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie County Executive Davis, council at odds over $5M pledge to Behrend