Westmoreland finalizes state loan, threatens more job cuts as budget impasse continues

Westmoreland commissioners voted Monday to accept an $11.6 million state loan, a move they say is necessary to fund essential social service programs through the end of the year.

Even in doing so, more furloughs of county staff and partial closures of the county courthouse could follow as early as December without a new state budget in place.

“It depends on the budget. If we start getting past the holiday seasons, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas season, I think we have another phase we can look at,” said Commissioner Sean Kertes. “Let’s get through the month of November, and then we’ll have our conversations.”

Commissioners at the start of October furloughed 125 county employees amid the ongoing state budget impasse as part of a second phase of cost-saving measures. In September, commissioners implemented a hiring freeze, halted the purchase of supplies, placed restrictions on overtime and instituted partial closures of facilities at the county parks.

Officials said those efforts were needed to allow the county to pay its bills. State funding allocations vanished because of an ongoing budget stalemate among lawmakers in Harrisburg. Westmoreland County has not received allocations from the state since the end of June, a circumstance that required commissioners to reallocate funds from general operations to allow it to continue to provide essential services.

Furloughed staffers are expected to remain off the job while the impasse continues, commissioners said. A decision to implement further job cuts won’t be considered before December.

“Until the situation resolves itself, we’re really all taking a watchful eye to what’s unfolding and reacting to it,” Commissioner Doug Chew said.

Westmoreland’s $452 million budget relies on about $104 million in state funding, most of which is used to pay for mandated social services such as child welfare programs, services for the elderly and behavioral health.

The state loan approval accepted Monday is about $3 million shy of what the county sought. The funds are still expected to ensure social service programs continue uninterrupted through the end of the year, Kertes said.

But the loan also will require the county to pay 4.5% interest on the borrowed funds. The amount of interest taxpayers are on the hook for won’t be determined until a new state budget is in place and the county is able to repay the loan.

“This is a vote I hated to cast, and it’s really shameful that we have to. This is not a good day for county government,” Commissioner Ted Kopas said.

Additional borrowing could be considered later this year to ensure there is enough money on hand to pay the bills at the end of 2025 and into next year, according to county leaders.

Commissioners are expected to unveil the county’s proposed 2026 budget in two weeks.