Allegheny County residents weighed in on the proposed 2023 budget at a town hall meeting with some county council members on Monday.
County Executive Rich Fitzgerald presented the$1 billion operating budget to county council in October. It includes a 2.9% increase over the 2022 budget, mostly due to personnel costs.
So far, county council has heard feedback on the budget from various county departments. But Monday’s town hall, organized by the Pittsburgh Chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America and Economic Justice Circle Pittsburgh, was focused on what county residents think.
They asked council members questions about county sustainability efforts, education funding, and the Allegheny County Jail.
County Council member Anita Prizio, a Democrat, said she hopes the town hall will be held every year, noting it could boost transparency and accountability.
“Budgets are essentially moral documents. And let this be the first town hall introducing participatory budgeting. We are here to listen, learn and act,” Prizio said.
Prizio and others said they plan to propose “strategic amendments” to the financial plan in an effort to drive funding towards causes they think need more attention.
One proposed amendment would increase funding to the public defender’s office, as well as the district attorney’s office, county medical examiner, and IT positions in the department of court records, all of which fall under the same collective bargaining agreement. Public defenders havebeen asking for salary increases. New hires in the public defender’s and DA’s offices can expect to make about $45,000 a year.
County Council member Bethany Hallam, also a Democrat, said although these offices have the same starting salary, the DA’s office often gets more funding.
“So even though they have that pay parity when it comes down to it, the lawyers are moving through the ranks at the district attorney’s office at a way faster pace than they’re moving through the ranks at the public defender’s office,” Hallam said.
Council members also say this base salary increase would make Allegheny County more competitive with neighboring counties. Erie and Washington Counties offer starting salaries of $65,000 and $68,000, respectively.
Another proposed amendment would boost funding to the Community College of Allegheny County. Current law requires the county, state, and CCAC students to split the college’s operating budget evenly.
Hallam said the county’s proposed contributions in the 2023 budget are $8.3 million shy of hitting the 1/3 contribution mark. She said this could put the county in violation of state law.
She explained when the county doesn’t contribute its portion of the funding, “It’s not just that CCAC has a lower operating budget… What happens is the cost of operating the institution falls on the backs of our students.”
At least four members of the county council’s budget and finance committee must approve any amendment before it can go before the full council. Any measure that appears before the full council needs at least eight votes to pass.
The full council must approve the budget before Dec. 6.
