Blair County commissioners approve routine contracts and social‑services actions as debate over TPA decertification continues

Blair County Commissioners on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, approved a consent agenda that included payroll and warrant payments, prison service contracts and several Social Services program delegations, while one commissioner renewed a push for municipalities to allow the county to proceed with a vote to decertify the county's TPA.

The debate over the TPA arose during commissioners' comments, where one commissioner asked residents to contact their township supervisors and borough council members to vote to permit the commissioners to move to the next step. "Please encourage them to vote in favor of allowing the commissioners to move forward," the commissioner said. The same speaker added that, if municipal approvals reach the required level, a public meeting would be held before the Board of Commissioners took any public vote on decertification.

Why it matters: Commissioners said the issue ties to the county's long‑term development strategy. One commissioner said Blair County has missed out on large grants in recent years, saying, "we lost out in $7,200,000 in an AMBLR grant because we didn't have capacity or sustainability," and later adding, "I think there's another $13,000,000, I think, that, is out there." The commissioner framed the effort as an attempt to increase the county's capacity to pursue state and federal funding, while noting population decline in the county.

Actions taken at the Feb. 13 meeting

Votes at a glance - Consent agenda (resolution 42 20 25, sections a–h): Approved. The consent agenda included payments on the warrant lists, ratification of the warrant lists, ratification of payroll for the paycheck dated 02/07/2025 in the amount of…