As they prepare to finalize their 2014 budgets, Cumberland and Dauphin counties could be headed into a showdown with Capital Area Transit over funding.
The counties, who join with Harrisburg as CAT's funding partners, have each proposed giving the authority level funding for 2014. But that is less than what CAT has asked for, and less than what CAT executive director William Jones said the counties need to provide under state law.
The problem is compounded by Harrisburg's inability to pay the $73,000 it owes CAT from 2013.
Under Act 44, the partners together have to increase their payments to CAT by 5 percent annually, Jones said. If that doesn't happen, CAT could have to return money to the state and federal governments that were meant to match local investment in mass transit.It looks like Harrisburg's new Mayor Eric Papenfuse's fledgling admin is going to get jammed with a major bill here before all is said and done.
Harrisburg Mayor-elect Eric Papenfuse could propose changing CAT's allocation when he takes office, but that would mean cutting elsewhere in the tight city budget.
"We wouldn't want to say anything before we get a recommendation from our transition team," said Papenfuse spokeswoman Joyce Davis.
City councilman Bruce Weber seems to think the city can pay. . .The new administration expects to have 15 days to make changes to the budget, Davis said. There will almost certainly be some alterations to the Thompson, Davis said, since Papenfuse wants to make changes to how Harrisburg's government is organized.
@stcif01 I would say that would be a bit extreme...#HBG should pay its required & outstanding obligations. Have to find $$. It can be done
— Bruce P Weber (@btrain12) December 5, 2013
The discussion that ensued was a good fleshing out of where Harrisburg stands politically.
I contend that for proper regional transit to be a viable alternative to automobile transportation, the counties must become a bigger part of the revenue streams to CAT. Bruce here is telling it just how it is. He is a city councilman right now and has to solve problems right now. The city, like it or not, is subordinate politically to the suburban priorities of Dauphin, and on this issue, Cumberland County.
Suburban, exurban, and rural voter priorities are not aligned currently, even though the city of Harrisburg, not the townships, is the region's economic powerhouse. Never-the-less this disconnect makes it good politics for Dauphin County's two Republican commissioners to tell Harrisburg to eat it every chance they get, so they can get Norquisty, to the detriment of the region as a whole.
This is exactly why we need to work to change voter preferences.
It is not because Harrisburg is some charity case that we should feel bad for and implement policies that righteously assist it. It is because as liberals, and hopefully progressives ones at that, we realize that transportation policy should be about moving people, not moving cars. Because we realize that segregation in schools comes when people divest from their communities and separate themselves further and further from their neighbors out of fear and selfishness. It is because we want everyone to receive the same standard of access to health care and food. It is because we want to lower the barriers to market entry so everyone can have a fair shot at their hopes.
Democrats have already won in measures of strictly affiliation. Now, if we want real policy victories, like expanding CAT's service, we need to transform that numerical advantage into people demanding change. Right now with the balance of power tilted in the GOP's favor all Democratic leaders like Councilman Weber can do, when presented with situations like this is go along to get along.
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