Westmoreland supervisors approve $1.46 million transfer to catch up eight delinquent USDA loans

The Westmoreland County Board of Supervisors voted to appropriate $1,459,798.01 from the county's investment fund to the general fund on a motion approved by the board, to bring eight delinquent USDA Rural Development loans current.

The chair said the appropriation was needed after staff and the treasurer briefed supervisors on a recent break in automatic drafts following a USDA accounting-system change. The treasurer told the board she received originator information from the county's finance office and had provided the wire instructions to the bank; she said she would process the FedWire catch-up payments the next morning. "I have been provided today with all of the information for the wire after I had spoken with the new finance director," the Treasurer said.

A staff briefing explained that USDA transitioned to a new accounting system in July 2025, which changed transaction details used for preauthorized ACH drafts. USDA notified the county in August 2025 that a July payment was missing, and communications were complicated by a six-week federal furlough earlier in 2025. Staff said USDA's finance center cancelled the county's auto-draft agreement after repeated ACH rejections and has told the county it cannot establish a new ACH agreement until April 2026, requiring temporary payments by check or wire.

Davenport & Company reviewed the issue for the county and concluded the incremental financial cost would likely be small; staff said Davenport estimated interest or related incremental charges might be "around $5,000." The county also expects USDA to provide written confirmation of exact interest once the catch-up payment posts.

Legal counsel advised the board to appropriate funds to remove any ambiguity about access to money moved into investments. "We have the money. Money is not missing," a supervisor said in response to concerns about whether funds were available. The board approved the appropriation in a recorded voice/roll-call style vote.

The board directed staff to complete the wire payments, temporarily use checks until ACH is reestablished, and confirm future monthly payment amounts with USDA to ensure budgeting accuracy. Staff said the new director of finance will reconcile loan payments and bank statements monthly and promptly escalate exceptions.

The appropriation was framed as a timing-and-cash-flow solution to prevent further delinquency and interest accrual on the USDA loans. The board set no further policy changes during the motion, but supervisors expressed interest in reviewing internal controls and communication protocols between finance, the treasurer, and external lenders.