Committee approves Bill 55 to charge personnel costs to 2024 Recompete grant

The Allentown City Budget & Finance Committee on July 23 approved Bill 55 to reclassify specified personnel costs from the general fund to the city's 2024 Recompete grant fund.

The reclassification "allows the expense incurred with administration of that grant" to be charged to the grant rather than the general fund, a city finance staff member, Miss Patel, told the committee. She said the measure lists each position's percentage of pay and benefits that the grant will cover and "gives back to the general fund some of the expenditure currently paid by general fund that will be charged to the Recompete grant."

The step is an accounting reallocation: positions that had been budgeted in the general fund will be tracked under the grant fund so wages and benefits are recorded against grant revenue. Miss Patel said the reclassification will remain "as long as the grant's being administered," and she indicated administration may later request additional positions be moved into the grant fund.

The city controller noted the change should produce savings for the general fund and asked whether administration anticipates capturing those savings in future budget years. Miss Patel replied that tracking wages and benefits under the grant fund makes it possible to identify and, if feasible, realize savings going forward.

Committee members voted by voice vote to approve Bill 55 after a motion and second were recorded on the floor. The meeting record shows a voice vote with committee members answering "aye"; no roll-call tally was recorded in the transcript.

The vote implements an internal accounting and budget-classification change; it does not create new positions or change the total payroll costs, according to the presentation.