Brenton Davis' proposed 2023 Erie county budget puts minority, elderly programs at risk

Erie County Executive Brenton Davis' proposed 2023 budget seeks to cut or eliminate funding for several programs designed to help the most vulnerable and marginalized communities in Erie County, Erie-area minority leaders said.

The $571 million budget, which Davis submitted to Erie County Council on Oct. 1, cuts nearly $1 million of funding to the Greater Erie Community Action Committee. The cut would effectively defund the Summer Jobs and More program, or Summer JAM, which provides job readiness training and employment opportunities for Erie County youth.

The budget also cuts the county's entire $50,000 allotment to the Urban Erie Community Development Corporation and reduces funding for Nurturing Hearts Inc. — a self-development nonprofit for girls — from $19,034 to $5,000.

Davis, in a recent statement to the Erie Times-News, argued that a "pro-growth, pro-business economy" was the ultimate driver for upward mobility and reducing racial disparities. Leaders in minority communities insist the proposed cuts are the latest example of the Davis administration unfairly targeting minority and underserved populations and diverting funds elsewhere.

"All we're asking is to give us the ability to help ourselves — not to chop our legs off," said Gary Horton, president of the Urban Erie Community Development Corporation.

Proposal eliminates Summer JAM, GED testing site, elderly care services

The $992,000 cut to GECAC in the proposed budget would have a "detrimental impact on people all across Erie County," said GECAC CEO Danny Jones.

That includes young people who would no longer be able to participate in the Summer JAM program, he said. Davis' budget eliminates the entire $263,200 the program received in the 2022 budget.

"Summer JAM helps youth throughout Erie County gain the abilities and training necessary to be successful in transitioning to adulthood and careers," Jones said. "This program is also critical to small businesses looking for summer employees."

The budget also removes $266,240 to defund GECAC's GED Testing Center and Adult Basic Education, which serves 225 adult students combined each year, according to Jones.

"GECAC operates the only (in-person) GED testing site in Erie County," he said. "Our residents would have to travel to Warren or Oil City multiple times to take their four-part GED exam. This would be an extreme hardship for people trying to better their lives for their families."

The budget further cuts $463,200 from GECAC's Area Agency on Aging. The cut would reduce services at nine senior centers, GECAC Meals on Wheels, in-home health and personal care services and senior center meals, according to a statement from GECAC.

The GECAC Meals on Wheels service is separate from Meals On Wheels Erie, an independent nonprofit organization located at 4408 Peach St. in Erie. The latter is not impacted by the proposed budget changes.

"We are just beginning to turn around the adverse effects that the last few years have inflicted on our elderly population," Jones said. "Cutting funding for senior services will make the long-term prognosis of our seniors disastrous for short-term gain."

Jones added the cuts would mean GECAC would lose an additional $430,000 in matching funds from the federal government.

"In total, we will have to eliminate $893,000 worth of vital services for older adults throughout Erie County at a time when seniors need more services, not less," he said.

Proposal could hinder services for New Americans

As for the Urban Erie Community Development Corporation, the $50,000 proposed cut could potentially cost four employees their jobs, including a community engagement specialist who works with New Americans, Horton said.

"We're able to leverage the county's $50,000 to help support employment and/or delivery of services to a mostly New American population — our poorest, newest citizens and residents of Erie County," he said.

Horton added that the Urban Erie Community Development Corporation started to receive county funding roughly five years ago and this could be the first time it would stop.

"There doesn't seem to be any plan as to why we're being singled out for cutting when we serve these populations in Erie County as efficiently as anyone who serves them," he said.

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The Urban Erie Community Development Corporation is a nonprofit that provides an array of after-school programs, job readiness, workforce development and adult education services, among others.

Horton said he's confident the nonprofit will endure with or without the county money but voiced frustration over the administration's pattern of cutting funds to minority organizations.

Since February, Davis has wanted to eliminate a second round of American Rescue Plan funding — $3.5 million — to the Erie County Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Commission, or Diverse Erie, which aims to invest in projects to empower underserved and minority communities.

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Touting economic development as the centerpiece of his administration, Davis described Project Resolve, the conceptual project involving Penn State Behrend that would transform Erie County into a regional manufacturing hub, as an "excellent example" of tackling racism, in a statement to the Times-News.

"Increased employment, the attraction of research and development — which develops next generation industrial clusters — attracts more employers and greater opportunities for all (and) rises the tide for all boats," Davis said.

Gerald Blanks, executive director of the Greater Erie Economic Development Corporation, said the administration's investment in Project Resolve should not be to the detriment of communities of color.

"Why is it always again that our community has to be the one that suffers?" he told the Times-News. "It always seems to be fitting that our community is the one holding the bag."

"It's almost like reverse Robin Hood — take from the poor and give to the rich," Horton added. "Give it to the people who don't need it."

Horton's brother, Andre Horton, who serves as a member of Erie County Council, has frequently said how Penn State University could easily raise and leverage enough funds for Project Resolve without the use of county money.

He called the county executive's budget an "assault" on Black and brown communities at a recent County Council meeting.

"This budget cuts programs that benefit people, those living and moving in the margins, those scratching, trying to figure out a way just to survive," he said. "When we cut programs that have the potential to impact people's lives in favor of big business or trickle down (economics) that's never worked for Black and brown communities, it doesn't bode well."

Davis hints that organizations could still receive funding

In a statement to the Times-News, Davis said his administration put together its proposed budget in the midst of record-high inflation and in the wake of a pandemic and an economic recession. As such, due diligence was done to ensure taxpayer dollars were spent effectively and efficiently and that concrete outcomes were determined, he said.

In regard to the Summer JAM program, Davis said his administration requested GECAC provide more reporting on outcomes and company participation in the program. He said his administration asked for historical data from GECAC but the information returned "lacked the important details needed to make data driven decisions."

Davis acknowledged that funding was reduced to Nurturing Hearts but added the nonprofit received other grant awards through the Erie County Department of Human Services.

"We must work to provide funding opportunities for the entire county and explore new organizations to fund," he said.

Davis said his team is engaging organizations and can still work with County Council to submit action sheets into the budget, adding that council members have the opportunity to change and pass the budget by Dec.1.

"Some of these organizations may ultimately receive funding, but due process will need to take place and we receive information of a favorable nature," Davis said.

He added, "County grant funds were never intended to be permanent funding streams. All of these organizations receive other public funds. We are continuing to look in depth at all organizations receiving taxpayer funds, how it is spent, proven outcomes, and the percentage of which goes to administration, salaries, fees, rent, etc., as opposed to programs."

Other budget details

The proposed $571 million budget proposal — roughly $38 million more than 2022 — is the largest in Erie County history and includes $123.8 million in expenditures from the county's General Fund, compared to $115.6 million in 2022.

In his cover letter to the proposed budget, Davis stated the factors contributing to the $38 million increase, beyond increased costs from inflation, included a 3.4% increase in required pension contributions; the inclusion of the roughly $27 million in unspent Rescue Plan funds; an 11% increase in health insurance costs, and a transfer of $999,996 to Pleasant Ridge Manor.

The 2023 budget contains no property tax increase. Davis said his administration is using $4.2 million from the unrestricted fund balance, $2.15 million in gaming revenue and $3.7 million in Rescue Plan dollars via revenue replacement to balance the budget. Davis said the amount was in line with longstanding fiscal policy. The county fund balance stands at $50,927,149, which exceeds the required two-month expenditure level of $19.2 million.

Erie County Council will hold its first public budget hearing on the 2023 budget Nov. 1 at 4 p.m. at the Erie County Courthouse. A second hearing will take place Nov. 17 at 3 p.m. at the courthouse.

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

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Proposed Erie 2023 budget puts marginalized programs at risk