Westmoreland County won’t get paid, at least for now.
Zachary Reber, the state’s budget secretary, last week responded to an invoice sent last fall by county Controller Jeff Balzer that sought nearly $500,000 to recoup revenue the county says it missed out on as a result of a more than four-month state budget impasse.
“The Office of the Budget understands your position, but as of the date of this letter the General Assembly has not specifically authorized the office … to reimburse unrealized interest that would have been earned had there not been a budget impasse,” Reber wrote.
In his response, Reber said the state would repay the county’s lost interest only if those funds are authorized by lawmakers.
The county in October sent a bill to the state seeking reimbursement for revenue it claims was forfeited related to expected interest earnings on anticipated state funds not banked as well as for money lost when investments were liquidated for cash needed to pay bills during the impasse.
Payment of the county’s bill was always a longshot.
“It is what we anticipated,” Balzer said of the state’s response to his invoice. “It shows us a pathway to get paid and this was born out their inability to complete the simplest of their duties, pass a budget.”
Balzer said the county will reach out to members of Westmoreland County’s legislative delegation in Harrisburg to gauge support for bill that would authorize funding for lost revenue.
State Rep. Eric Nelson, R-Hempfield, said he is not aware of any pending legislation related to the county’s claim of lost revenue.
“A budget standoff hurts everyone, both counties and our small business like pre-K centers. It’s why we should work hard to avoid them,” Nelson said in a text message. “I would be very hesitant to support an effort to exclusively reimburse counties and exclude small businesses.”
State Rep. Eric Davanzo, R-South Huntingdon, said he has had no contact with Balzer about the funding issue.
“I know he’s been a Facebook warrior about this but he has yet to come to me with it,” Davanzo said. “If he has a legitimate issue I have no problem with it, but I don’t think there is much support (in Harrisburg) for it.”
Westmoreland, along with other local governments saw state funding halted as lawmakers and the governor’s office stumbled through passing a new budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year.
The county was forced to dip into its reserves and use investment funds to pay the bills as the budget standoff continued last fall. It also took out an $11 million bridge loan from the state treasury to pay for required services. As part of the budget deal, that was eventually signed into law November by Gov. Josh Shapiro, interest on that loan was forgiven.
State officials said last year Westmoreland was the only county that sought out and received a state loan.